Spotlight: Passage of The Civil Rights Act of 1964 

This week, sixty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This act, signed into law on July 2, is the nation’s benchmark civil rights legislation and remains one of America's most significant legislative achievements. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The act … Continue reading Spotlight: Passage of The Civil Rights Act of 1964 

How To Locate D-Day Footage in NARA’s Moving Image Holdings

D-Day and the Combat CameramanThis week marks the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day Operation. Starting on June 6, 1944, about 175,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, supported by 5,000 naval craft and more than 11,500 aircraft. By June 30, over 850,000 men, 148,000 vehicles, and 570,000 tons of supplies had landed … Continue reading How To Locate D-Day Footage in NARA’s Moving Image Holdings

HemisFair ’68, When The World’s Fair Came to Texas

Today’s post was written by Caitlin Hucik and James Konicek. Still taken from US The first World Exposition sanctioned by the Bureau International des Expositions was named the Great Exhibition and held in 1851 London, England. Since then, over 30 sanctioned expos have been held every 5 to 10 years. In 1968, San Antonio hosted … Continue reading HemisFair ’68, When The World’s Fair Came to Texas

National Nurses Day and World Red Cross Day with the Home Nursing Series

Today's post was written by Rachael Brittain and Ken Myers. In celebration of National Nurses Day and World Red Cross Day, the National Archives would like to commemorate the work and sacrifices nurses and Red Cross staff make to contribute to our nation’s health and safety. We invite you to celebrate their contributions with the … Continue reading National Nurses Day and World Red Cross Day with the Home Nursing Series

Celebrating the 221st Anniversary of The Louisiana Purchase with Special Media

To celebrate the 221st anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase on April 30, let’s use the catalog to see related records! On April 30, 1803, 828,000 square miles of land were purchased by the United States from the then-owner of its territory, France, for $15 million, which today would be about $342 million. Napoleon Bonaparte famously … Continue reading Celebrating the 221st Anniversary of The Louisiana Purchase with Special Media

Christine Jorgensen: America’s First Transgender Celebrity

Clip from Universal Newsreel Volume 26, Release 440 (Local ID: UN-UN-26-440-1-4) Please Note: Primary source documents used in this post may contain harmful language. See NARA’s Statement on Potentially Harmful Language. The scenes shown in this 1953 Universal Newsreel footage are some of the first moments pioneering transgender woman Christine Jorgensen would spend in the … Continue reading Christine Jorgensen: America’s First Transgender Celebrity

Wings for This Man: Celebrating the Tuskegee Airmen

Please Note: Primary source documents used in this post may contain harmful language. See NARA’s Statement on Potentially Harmful Language. The First Motion Picture Unit When America entered the war in Europe in 1941, the country's greatest challenge was finding enough manpower to wage a two-front war. The country needed to quickly increase the number … Continue reading Wings for This Man: Celebrating the Tuskegee Airmen

60th Anniversary of the March on Washington

Participants of the March on Washington, D.C. Local ID: 306-SSM-4C-35-4 August 28, 2023, is the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, also known as the March on Washington. More than 200,000 people took part in the demonstration held on the National Mall to advocate for Black Americans' civil and economic … Continue reading 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington

Cartographic Digitization Spotlight

The Cartographic and Architectural holdings include over 15 million items, including maps, charts, aerial photographs, architectural drawings, patents, and ship plans. In an effort to make these vast holdings more accessible to the public, we are continuously working on various digitization projects. These projects cover some of our most popular records and allow access to … Continue reading Cartographic Digitization Spotlight

Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! Sound Recordings of the Supreme Court of the United States Now Fully Digitized

The Moving Image and Sound Branch is pleased to announce that the sound recordings of RG 267: Records of the Supreme Court of the United States have been fully digitized and are available for listening and download through the National Archives Catalog. The audio recordings in Record Group 267 are organized into three series,  Sound … Continue reading Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! Sound Recordings of the Supreme Court of the United States Now Fully Digitized