Skip to main content
Access to this video is a benefit for members through

Up Next

JFK & LBJ: A Time for Greatness

JFK & LBJ: A Time for Greatness

Season 14 Episode 2
55:10
The Real Trojan Horse

The Real Trojan Horse

Season 14 Episode 3
54:40
Jamestown’s Dark Winter

Jamestown’s Dark Winter

Season 14 Episode 4
54:41
Graveyard of the Giant Beasts

Graveyard of the Giant Beasts

Season 15 Episode 5
55:11
Van Gogh’s Ear

Van Gogh’s Ear

Season 16 Episode 2
55:09
Nero’s Sunken City

Nero’s Sunken City

Season 16 Episode 3
55:11
Leonardo, The Man Who Saved Science

Leonardo, The Man Who Saved Science

Season 16 Episode 4
55:11
The Woman in the Iron Coffin

The Woman in the Iron Coffin

Season 16 Episode 5
55:11
Secrets of the Dead Season 17

Hannibal in the Alps

Season 17 Episode 2
55:11
King Arthur's Lost Kingdom

King Arthur's Lost Kingdom

Season 17 Episode 3
55:41
Abandoning the Titanic

Abandoning the Titanic

Season 17 Episode 6
55:15
Gangster's Gold

Gangster's Gold

Season 18 Episode 5
55:23
Back to Show
Secrets of the Dead

Ben Franklin's Bones

Season 14 Episode 1

When skeletal remains of at least 10 people turned up in the basement of Benjamin Franklin’s British residence, people wondered if the Founding Father might have had a much darker side. Franklin was aware of the bodies in his basement, but they weren’t the victims of violent acts. Rather, they were used for the purposes of an illegal anatomy school that helped shaped modern medicine.

Watch Preview
Support Provided By
Season
Field of Vampires
55:15
Uncover the mystery behind the discovery of more than 50 "vampire" burials.
The Civil War's Lost Massacre
55:23
A search for the remains of Black Union soldiers murdered toward the end of the Civil War.
The Herculaneum Scrolls
55:15
Scientists attempt to read ancient scrolls carbonized by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.
Mozart's Sister
55:15
Learn the untold story of Maria Anna Mozart, Wolfgang’s older sister and collaborator.
Returning to Babylon
Unlock with PBS Passport
54:45
Archaeologists search for Assyrian artifacts that survived the Isis occupation of Mosul.
The Princes in the Tower
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:16
Find out if the 15th-century murder of two princes in the Tower of London can be solved.
Death in Britannia
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:16
Uncover the only evidence of crucifixion in Roman-occupied Britain.
Eiffel's Race to the Top
Unlock with PBS Passport
54:46
Discover the untold story of Paris’ most famous landmark and the race to top 1,000 feet.
Secrets of the Dead Season 20
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:02
Discover the world of dinosaur fossil collecting, an unusual hobby with a growing market.
The Sunken Basilica
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:16
Explore the sunken remains of an early Christian basilica in western Turkey.
Hidden in the Amazon
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:25
New evidence sheds light on the early indigenous societies of the Amazon.
Decoding Hieroglyphics
Unlock with PBS Passport
55:25
Research is revealing the hieroglyphic texts from within the tomb of an Egyptian scribe.
Active loading indicator