The Okeechobee Hurricane of 1928
Clip: Season 31 Episode 1 | 1m 30s
The Okeechobee Hurricane claimed one of the highest death tolls of any natural disasters.
In the summer of 1928, heavy rainfall raised Lake Okeechobee’s water level three feet above normal. That fall, a hurricane smashed the coast of Florida, and the impact flooded Lake Okeechobee. The inland flood obliterated 21 miles of the 47-mile earthen and an estimated 2,500 people died in Southern Florida, most of them migrant farm workers.
Problems with Closed Captions? Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems with Closed Captions? Closed Captioning Feedback
Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Carlisle Companies. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
Support provided by:
The Okeechobee Hurricane of 1928
Clip: Season 31 Episode 1 | 1m 30s
In the summer of 1928, heavy rainfall raised Lake Okeechobee’s water level three feet above normal. That fall, a hurricane smashed the coast of Florida, and the impact flooded Lake Okeechobee. The inland flood obliterated 21 miles of the 47-mile earthen and an estimated 2,500 people died in Southern Florida, most of them migrant farm workers.
Problems with Closed Captions? Closed Captioning Feedback
How to Watch American Experience
American Experience is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
When is a photo an act of resistance?
For families that just decades earlier were torn apart by chattel slavery, being photographed together was proof of their resilience.Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S31 Ep1 | 3m 35s | The plume trend let to the mass slaughter of the highly prized plumed birds in Florida. (3m 35s)
Clip: S31 Ep1 | 1m 33s | A reporter for The Miami Herald, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas advocated for conservation. (1m 33s)
Hamilton Disston: Pioneering Everglades Developer
Clip: S31 Ep1 | 1m 15s | Hamilton Disston visioned the Everglades into dry land for cultivation. (1m 15s)
Video has Closed Captions
Clip: S31 Ep1 | 9m 3s | Watch Chapter 1 of The Swamp. (9m 3s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
Support for PBS provided by:
Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Carlisle Companies. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.