Environmental Obstacles
Clip: Season 17 | 2m 59s
The Corps wanted finish the highway in a hurry, but progress was slowed by mud and muskeg.
As much as the Corps' officers wanted to punch the Alaskan Highway through in a hurry, dealing with muskeg (swamps of decaying vegetation) and mud drastically slowed things down. By the end of June after three months of work, the Engineers had constructed 360 miles of road. The Army knew it had about four months left to build at least 1,100 more miles before winter arrived.
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Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Carlisle Companies. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
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Environmental Obstacles
Clip: Season 17 | 2m 59s
As much as the Corps' officers wanted to punch the Alaskan Highway through in a hurry, dealing with muskeg (swamps of decaying vegetation) and mud drastically slowed things down. By the end of June after three months of work, the Engineers had constructed 360 miles of road. The Army knew it had about four months left to build at least 1,100 more miles before winter arrived.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Clip: S17 | 50s | On October 25, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers closed the last gap of the highway. (50s)
Now PlayingClip: S17 | 2m 59s | The Corps wanted finish the highway in a hurry, but progress was slowed by mud and muskeg. (2m 59s)
Clip: S17 | 1m 9s | Bulldozers cleared trees and dirt from a 60 to 90-foot swath for the Alaskan Highway. (1m 9s)
The Army Corps of Engineers' Assignment
Clip: S17 | 1m 35s | The job of building an Alaskan highway was assigned to the Army Corps of Engineers. (1m 35s)
Clip: S17 | 2m 53s | By September, 1942 the Army Corps of Engineers had struck permafrost. (2m 53s)
Cuba Newsreels: Queue of Asylum-Seekers, 1980
Clip: S17 | 2m 27s | Cubans line up to have their passports stamped at the Peruvian Embassy. (2m 27s)
Cuba Newsreels: Castro Visits the U.S.S.R., 1972
Clip: S17 | 53s | Castro travels to the U.S.S.R. and meets with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. (53s)
Building the Alaska Highway Promo
Preview: S17 | 30s | In May of 1942, thousands of American soldiers began the building of the Alaska Highway. (30s)
Trailer | The Fight | American Experience
Preview: S17 Ep11 | 30s | Theirs was a rivalry that would draw American and Germany inching closer to war. (30s)
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Clip: S17 Ep11 | 9m 43s | Watch a preview of The Fight. (9m 43s)
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Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Carlisle Companies. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.