Poster used in A.L.A. Campaign for books, Camp Meade (165-WW-33D-5, NAID 20801784) When America entered World War I in 1917, the American Library Association decided to take part in the war effort by establishing the Library War Service. Its purpose was to provide library services to American soldiers in training camps and overseas. The Association … Continue reading Wartime Reading: The Library War Service
The RG 241: Restored Patents (NAID 305885) are finally here and available for viewing and download via the National Archives catalog! In addition to containing some very detailed and colorful images, this series is particularly interesting because of its unique background. In 1836, the Patent Office was being housed in the Blodget Hotel in Washington, … Continue reading RG 241: Restored Patents Now Fully Digitized and Available Online!
Friday, August 14th, marks the 75th anniversary of the surrender of the Empire of Japan, ending the Second World War. To commemorate this event, the National Archives Moving Image and Sound Branch would like to present films from our holdings documenting the tremendous moment in world history. After the surrender of German forces on the … Continue reading VJ-Day 75th Anniversary
75 years ago, in August 1945, the United States dropped the first and last atomic bombs used in warfare. The first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima at 8:15 AM on August 6th, and the second bomb was dropped over Nagasaki on August 9th at 11:02 AM. Whether or not the atomic bombs should have been … Continue reading Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Though our research rooms remain closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, National Archives staff have been diligently working from home to make records more accessible to the public. In this vein, Still Picture staff have been converting finding aids into online catalog descriptions. Making descriptions searchable via the catalog will ultimately help researchers locate and … Continue reading An Update on Still Picture Catalog Additions
Deep in the stacks of the Cartographic Branch at Archives II, nestled in RG 76, is a series entitled “Maps and Records Pertaining to the Northeastern Boundary of the United States”. This series contains manuscript maps and drawings of various locations along the border, including a set of spectacular color drawings and manuscript maps offering … Continue reading RG 76: Maps and Records Pertaining to the Northeastern Boundary of the United States – An Artistic Glimpse of Past
This week’s blog post covers the U.S. Information Agency (USIA)’s film The Draggin’ Wagon, (Local Identifier: 306.6618). The film offers a unique look into the life of a young African American boy, Clarence Carter Jr., and his journey to create a homemade Soap Box car for the 1963 Soap Box Derby in Washington, D.C. The … Continue reading The Draggin’ Wagon: An All American Soap Box Derby
Poster, "Uncle Sam Says-Garden To Cut Food Costs" circa 1925 Record Group 287 Still Pictures Identifier: 287-PA1.32:G16 NAID Identifier: 541773 Throughout history, we have seen how government has played a role in the way we do things, such as eating. This was true during the first and second World Wars. At the time, government agencies … Continue reading Food and the War Effort
The Spanish-American War waged from April 1898 to August 1898. As the name suggests, the main opponents during the war were the United States and Spain, while the core issue was that of Cuban independence from the Spanish. The Americans backed Cuban independence, and even took to sending American troops to Cuba in support. Almost … Continue reading Spotlight: The Spanish-American War through Photographs
The October 18, 1935 release of the The March of Time newsreel serial contains a segment on "Summer Theatres." The outtakes from this segment shine a light on a time when summer stock theater was an important way for emerging actors and other artists to be seen by film studio representatives. Often taking place outdoors, sometimes in a mere tent, … Continue reading Summer Theater in The March of Time
