[laughter] i don't think he really does. as a six-year-old boy, he is enamored by the light, flashes, gunfire explosions, the video, factor of it all. but what i try to do every single time we come through here, we stop right here. most people decide to stop and watch the video and they look at their card that was given to them and they look to see if the ir person lived or died. we hope that that sacrifice, because there were only nine survivors, we hope that sacrifice hits people. one of the things i do with my son every time we come here, because he gets a different card every time, we stocp and i point out the person's picture that he has. i got the which one he gets, he gets a different one every time, and i try to explain that he gets one where a person not --

-- i try to explain that these people died so that he could do the things he does today, so he can enjoy the freedom he has today. that is hard for a six-year-old to understand, and i don't think he does understand that yet. but it is very important people understand that these men aboard that died died to preserve our , freedom. they sacrificed themselves then for everything we have today. they sacrificed all their tomorrows for our today, and that is why this exhibit is here. it is not just to highlight the sacrifice of the tang, but the sacrifice of all the americans who died aboard submarines in the second world war. weekend, american history cablejoining our comcast

partners to highlight the history of sacramento, california. to learn more, visit www.c-span.org. we continue now with our look at the history of sacramento. >> the capital of california was not supposed to be in sacramento. a little farther down the road in san jose was were the first legislature met. they also met in vallejo and the nation which is close to san enoughco but still close to sacramento. when they first decided where to place the capital, they wanted it closer to an area people to get too quickly. sacramento had a lot going for it because of the gold rush in 1849 it brought a lot of people in. we have roads and a way to get here, the sacramento river. eventually, sacramento was chosen in 1854 to be the state

capital. this building started in about 1860. it took about 14 years to complete, as is the case with a lot of state capitals throughout the country, the civil war era brought a lot of stops and starts. the capital in 1971 went through a distinctive seismic test, a two-year test, to see if the building would withstand an earthquake. there was a huge earthquake in the southern california area in 1971 that turned our attention to the fact that with modernization, floors, mezzanines, trying to make this victorian building with modern, they decided to go ahead and see if it would be condemned by an earthquake. it was condemned. the bricks holding together the building, you could put a pencil through it. they said it was held up by habit and gravity. inah collier dropped plans

the 1960's for a modern office space with gina towers. it would take 40 julie dollars to take down the capital down to the ground. and about $70 million to build. that was so for a while. by then people were turning the attention to the bicentennial. 1976. a bill introduced in the thembly in 1975 created ability for us to take the money that would be used for the collier towers and redirect it to see if we could save the building and make it earthquake safe, retrofit it. they saw it could be done. and 68 million dollars later, what we are looking at is a re-creation of what you would have seen in 1900 through 1910. we are in the assembly chambers. our on what they call the

floor of the assembly. the galleries are above us. as with any state house, the galleries are where the public would sit and view the legislature. the idea california is very diverse is resembled -- reflected in our 80 assembly members. they sit at desks that were here in 1869. the first time the room was used, the desks were sitting here, brand-new. there is the story of the gentleman who immigrated here and make california his home because of the possibilities. john brennan was from germany, a woodworker of renowned. he came to california during the gold rush. because he was a woodworker, he created tools for minoers. ory would use bowls rockers. you can put more dirt through and be more efficient finding gold. he made those.

eventually, miners asked him to make fence. huge businessa that is online today, believe it or not. john bruner created all the desks you see. there are 80 of them and 40 in the senate. we still use them today. our legislature since the 1960's has been full-time. prior to that, it was part-time. because of that, we had many people be able to be reelected over and over again. by the 1990's, people thought it might not be a good thing to have career politicians. in the 1990's through a theosition voted on by california voters, we became a state of term limits. thehe assembly after 1990, members would serve two-year terms and could repeat that three times. six years total. in the senate, it was two for your terms. in 2012, the voters made a

decision again and term limits were changed. many attempts were made, but all were voted down. 2012, the voters decided each legislator could serve a total of 12 years in either house. had twoingly enough, we significant us and the members here in california prior to term limits. one of them served 15 years as speaker. the speaker of the assembly is elected by the members. a gentleman named willie brown, who was raised by a single mom in texas, begin influential in politics and a strong african american political figure in california. he was here for quite a while and served for 15 years before term limits. he had to term out. he went on to be mayor of san francisco. a former speaker who had a lot of power for nine years as a

committee hearing room named after him. john burton who was pro tem of the senate also has a hearing room named after him. but it was his brother philip from theo first went simile straight to congress representing the bay area. two legislators are now. a number of our lawmakers have gone on to careers representing californians in the united states congress. there are interesting things around the room. the portrait of abraham lincoln .s above the speaker in the senate, a portrait of george washington hangs over the leadership desk. the picture of abraham lincoln is done by an artist who andched lincoln in person did a number of paintings from his sketches during the civil

war. 1900-1910ncoln in would have been considered as significant as to washington would have been. you have two significant presidents hanging in our remind you we are connected to the united states. california being so far west and not a lot in between, the idea we would create the look of the al with as close to what the united states capital looks like, we are the wild west building this huge building with a dome and columns, very similar in look and style to the united states capital. that was not by mistake. it was the idea we were part of this particular government. this is who our identity is. you see a lot of symbolism in the rooms. the green color of the assembly and the red color of the senate stemmed from what was being used during -- in the united states capital at that time in their

house and senate. it has roots that go back to british parliament where we got our to house system. green, house of commons, red house of lords. the senate.n we are on the third floor of the capital. the third floor was the gallery. the chairs around you are for the people. sessions are open to the public. you will see either a lot of people, a lot of schoolchildren, or a lot of nobody depending what is going on. a lot of bills have gone through this room that have been very controversial. that is what the capital is built for. these to tell children we are a bill-making factory. the intent of the building was to be a place where california legislators would make decisions on legislation and turn them into law.

1911, you saw someone to mental bills passed year due to progressive era governments. prior to 1911, a lot of legislation was favorite to win special interests. the railroad with a huge special interest in california. a sacramento native right in the progressive era politics, which meant it was government in the service of people. creating bills and legislation that would assist people in various walks of life. the 1911, esop compulsory education in california. 1911, you saw- in compulsory education in california. monumentally, the women's suffrage bill was approved. it was a senate constitutional amendment here passed by the andte and the assembly

routed by a slim 2% majority in the state of california. also significant is the initiative on the recall, the idea you could directly vote on something by passing a legislative approval and disapproval. in 1972, the people of california reintroduced the death penalty into california based on an initiative process. at the top of the senate, you see the statue of the goddess of minerva. she was placed on the california state seal in 1849. minerva represented also california becoming a state without being a territory. minerva in her agent -- aged roman story from full-grown. she was never a baby or young

child. just write off the bat, full-grown, like california. it became the 31st state without being a territory. they were proud of that in 1839. to put that on the state seal in 1849 not having been a state yet, that was it. they had decided we were either going to be a state or independent republic. minerva was the symbol of that, which is why she is one of the biggest things up there. right now, we are in one of our historic rooms. with the restoration, the first floor was turned into a museum showing people what government was like. we are in the governor's main office. this would reflect the governor who was governor during the 1906 san francisco earthquake. the governor used these office complexes until 1950 when the east wing annex opened and the

governor's offices moved there. you see a lot of things reflected in the opulence of the period. the heavy curtains, the woodworking on the walls to represent tooled leather. but this was a working, functional office. it must have been amazingly busy during the time of the earthquake when the government would -- governor went to oakland and executive had to take donations that came to the governor's office. the best communication with telephone and telegraph. we have a telegraph from theodore roosevelt asking how he could help the day after. there are things you can show people on government, how it changes, and things the governor's office does. we talked a little about progressive era laws made, most significantly women's suffrage,

plus the recall referendum. this is the perfect place to talk about that. the recall was used significantly afterwards to recall people on commissions that are coming to the railroads. it had never successfully then used to recall the governor until most recently. in 2003, governor gray davis was recalled. at the same time on the same ballot, a new governor was elected. a person well-known throughout the united states, if not the world, arnold schwarzenegger. he became governor in 2004 based on the recall. gray davis was only the second governor to be recalled at that time in the united states. another state recalled a governor in 1921, so it is not used often to recall a governor. attempts are made to recall a governor. ronald reagan had in its entered recall. ronaldrent governor --

reagan had an attempted recall. our current governor, jerry brown, when governor prior to who had been dad, governor, were both recalled but unsuccessful. gives ag old buildings feeling of solidarity. things valuable than are still valuable now. the original intent of the building was still here. >> throughout the weekend, american history tv is featuring sacramento, california. our staff recently traveled there to learn about its rich history. learn more about sacramento and other stops at www.c-span.org. you are watching american history tv all weekend, every weekend on cspan3. ,> next on american history tv a panel of scholars looks at the history of incarceration and pr