This post was written in collaboration with Carla Simms The National Zoo in Washington D.C. is one of the capital’s most celebrated landmarks. The zoo was created by an act of congress in 1889, and officially made a bureau of the Smithsonian Institution the following year. Since its founding, the zoo has been a pioneer in … Continue reading Historic Maps and Photos of the National Zoo
The 1950 Census population schedules will be released in April 2022. In preparation, we are adding over 8000 Enumeration District Maps to the online catalog, including all county maps and any map that includes five or more enumeration districts. Click the NAID links to download full size maps from the online catalog Enumeration Districts-- or "E.D.s" as they are known … Continue reading Snapshot USA: 1950 Census Enumeration District Maps
The role of women in World War II has been immortalized through iconic images like Rosie the Riveter proclaiming “Yes We Can!” and WASPs earning their wings. Stories of women flooding the workforce in the absence of men dominate history books and films. But they were not the first, nor the last, to challenge their … Continue reading The Women of World War I in Photographs
This post was written in collaboration with Kelsey Noel. "This is the lesson of the penny. Some have too many, Some have too few, But share with those who haven't any." … Continue reading Original Costume Sketches for a Production of Pinocchio, 1939
One century ago, San Francisco's 1915 World’s Fair closed its doors, ending one of the most unique events in American history. For 288 days, the fair brought together an odd array of individuals that seemingly belong in different chapters of the history textbook. Civil War veterans could watch as Henry Ford produced a car every … Continue reading A Fair to Remember: Colored Lantern Slides at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition
Back in June, we published a post about animals in the military. It featured war dogs, bat and pigeon bombs, and monkey saboteurs. We thought we’d covered everything, but almost as soon as that post was published, we digitized a film for our research room that highlights torpedo-retrieving whales. One of these whales is Ahab. … Continue reading Playing Fetch with Pilot Whales: The Navy’s Project Deep Ops
It has been 54 years since the U.S. Embassy in Havana closed its doors. Upon ending diplomatic relations with our neighboring island nation, President Eisenhower announced, “It is my hope and my conviction that it is in the not too distant future that it will be possible for the historic friendship between us once again … Continue reading Re-establishing Diplomatic Relations with Cuba (Historic Photos)
In 1990, editors at the Harvard Law Review elected their first black president in the journal’s 102-year history. The newly elected 28-year-old president was a law student and community activist. By that time, the lawyer-to-be had gained the respect of his peers and professors, all of who praised the student’s modesty, integrity, and drive to … Continue reading Topic Magazine: Spreading Information to Africa
In 1973 the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) transferred to the National Archives approximately 31,000 negatives and corresponding prints created by the Economic Cooperation Administration (ECA) and its successor, the Mutual Security Agency (MSA), to document economic recovery in Western Europe after World War II under the Marshall Plan. After processing, this accession became … Continue reading Photographs Relating to the Marshall Plan and Post-WWII Economic Recovery in France
Guest blogger Jan Hodges became interested in World War I combat art as a result of her involvement as a volunteer in a holdings maintenance project for American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) documents at the National Archives at College Park. This article is part five of the series about World War I Art and Artists. The … Continue reading World War I Combat Artists – George Harding
