Category Archives: Photographs

Spotlight: Remembering Ernie Pyle

Posted on April 18, 2018 by

On April 18th, 1945, war correspondent Ernie Pyle was killed by enemy fire on  Iejima* during the Battle of Okinawa. At the time of his death, Pyle, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, was well-known for his intimate and personal storytelling … Continue reading →

Posted in Military, Motion Pictures, Photographs, U.S. Army, U.S. Marines, U.S. Navy, Uncategorized, World War II | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The 1918 Influenza Pandemic (Photos)

Posted on March 13, 2018 by

This post was written in collaboration with Kevin Quinn, Sarah Lepianka, and Katherine Stinson – Archives Technicians in the Still Photos Branch.   The 1918 Influenza Pandemic, also known as the Spanish Flu, was one of the deadliest events in human … Continue reading →

Posted in Digitization, Photographs, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Spotlight: Wedded In Service

Posted on February 13, 2018 by

This post was written in collaboration with Beth Fortson. “I’d feel like a quitter if I left the service now.” – Wren Josephine Mary Kennelly This Valentine’s Day, the Still Picture Branch would like to share a photo story from … Continue reading →

Posted in Digitization, Military, Photographs | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Spotlight: Dogs in Airbrush

Posted on January 3, 2018 by

Airbrushing was an early method of retouching and coloring photographs which can be traced back as far as the late 1800s. It is a unique process which creates a beautiful matte effect, causing images to look as though they are … Continue reading →

Posted in Graphic Materials, Photo of the Week, Photographs | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Cartographic’s Favorites of 2017

Posted on December 21, 2017 by

Co-written with Amy Edwards The Cartographic Branch holds a wide variety of materials. While working with these documents for reference requests, projects, or research room requests, our staff comes across some very cool and significant documents. Today, we are featuring … Continue reading →

Posted in Architectural and Engineering Drawings, Cartographic Records, Maps, Military, Photographs, Ship Plans, U.S. Navy, Uncategorized, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

How to Research: Photographs Relating to WWII Marine Corps Units

Posted on October 12, 2017 by

In this fourth and final post of How to Research WWII photographs, we will provide an example of how researchers can search for and identify images related to a specific US Marine Corps unit. As is true with the WWII … Continue reading →

Posted in Photographs, Reference, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Shifting the Lens on WWI: Stories from the Home Front

Posted on October 6, 2017 by

Today’s post comes from Marissa Friedman, intern at Historypin. Historypin teamed up with the US National Archives (NARA) to develop the Remembering WWI tablet app, part of the Anonymous Donor Project. You can learn more about the national collaborative Remembering … Continue reading →

Posted in Motion Pictures, Photographs, Uncategorized, World War I | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Digitization of 26-LG

Posted on September 21, 2017 by

Many different factors are considered when selecting a series for digitization. Records that are particularly fragile or have high intrinsic value might be digitized to help preserve the originals by reducing the amount of physical handling each item receives. Records … Continue reading →

Posted in Digitization, Photographs | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Maps of the Great War: Army Cartography in World War I

Posted on September 19, 2017 by

One of the most illuminating groups of records found in the Cartographic Branch at the National Archives is Record Group 120: Records of the American Expeditionary Forces (World War I), 1848 – 1942 (seen in our catalog here). These records … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartographic Records, Digitization, Graphic Materials, Maps, Military, Photographs, World War I | 1 Comment

Through an American Lens: The Russian Civil War

Posted on August 29, 2017 by

Note: Some images are of a sensitive nature. In 1919 the United States was entering a decade of prosperity after the success of World War I. The country benefited politically and financially from the experience and while things were by … Continue reading →

Posted in Lantern Slides, Photographs, Russian Civil War, U.S. Navy, Uncategorized | Leave a comment