From KQED.

I've been hiking around the Bay Area for more than a decade now, and really do make a point to try to get to some new places.

But I know I haven't even discovered half of the hikes this region has to offer.

I often find myself turning to online guides or maps to try to find new trails in this outdoor haven.

But for San Francisco resident Ryan Flynn, the quest to find a perfect new hike took a more

explosive turn.

So I was just kind of looking for hikes for my wife and I to do on a weekend.

So I was just on Google Maps and I happened to see a little pin for like a historical

marker for the first dynamite factory in the United States.

And that was very surprising.

So I figured I would reach out to you guys.

The pin Ryan stumbled across marks the location of California registered historical

landmark number 1002. If you enter Glen Canyon Park from Elk Street, you'll see it.

Giant Powder Company under personal license of inventor Alfred Nobel began producing dynamite here

on March 19, 1868. For Ryan, this all came as a shock.

So he sent in this question.

What is the history behind Glen Canyon Park being the first dynamite factory in the U.S.?

I've run through Glen Canyon Park a few times, and safe to say, dynamite was not top of mind. But turns out this peaceful park has a turbulent

backstory that dates back to the mid-19th century, when Alfred Nobel, yeah, like the Nobel Peace Prize,

invented dynamite. Today, we'll learn how dynamite made its way to San Francisco and why it was such a transformative product in this state.

Plus, we'll explore the stories of Chinese laborers, who often had the most dangerous jobs of all in the high explosives industry.

One quick heads up, there are a few gory details about the aftermath of explosions in this

...