You may have heard of World War II Coast Guard hero, Sinbad the sailor dog. Sinbad (c.1937 – 1951) is famous for being the mascot of the USCGC Campbell, and was classified as a non-commissioned officer – “Chief Dog”. “Sinbad is a fighting dog from a fighting ship. Sinbad is the mascot of the … Continue reading The Further Adventures of Sinbad
The hard-working canine mascots of the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II tried their best to be Good Boys….but sometimes a dog’s just got to be bad. As the Still Picture Branch prepares the digitized images from the U.S. Coast Guard Series “Activities, Facilities and Personalities” for upload into the catalog, we noticed that … Continue reading Bad Boys
In light of the 2018 NFL Draft taking place this week, April 26th – 28th, we at The Unwritten Record decided to highlight some of the football related records in our Still Pictures collection. Dating all the way back to 1936, the NFL Draft represents a time during the “off-season” when teams reload their rosters … Continue reading Off the Board: Photographs of Past NFL Draftees
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 that highlighted the experiences of the “average” soldier. Pyle was able to tell the stories … Continue reading Spotlight: Remembering Ernie Pyle
“Since the Council began its work, the enormity of the year 2000 problem has become increasingly apparent. It is not just a Federal systems problem or an American problem, it is a global problem.” -President’s Council on Year 2000 Conversion, May 5, 1998, https://catalog.archives.gov/id/18514276 Humanity’s worst fears about a Y2K meltdown on January 1, 2000 never … Continue reading Y2K: The New Year’s Disaster That Wasn’t
In August of 1946, a year after the end of World War II, the United States Navy mounted an expedition to Antarctica officially titled The United States Navy Antarctic Developments Program, 1946-1947. The mission, more commonly referred to as Operation Hi-jump, was organized by Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, Jr., USN (Ret) and led by Rear Admiral Richard H. … Continue reading Operation Hi-jump: Exploring Antarctica with the U.S. Navy
Though the first Byrd Antarctic Expedition took place more than twenty years after the likes of Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton, little had changed when it came to the available methods of transportation. Explorer Richard E. Byrd had large tractors to move supplies, but still relied heavily on dog sleds, skis, and schooners ships, which … Continue reading Polar, Planes, and Puppies: The Photos of E.J. Demas
This post was written with Heidi Holmstrom. In the past year, staff in the motion picture preservation lab handled millions of feet of film. Films might come to us for inspection and repair, photochemical duplication, or digitization. To follow up last year’s list, we’ve identified a handful of films that were digitized in 2016 and … Continue reading Favorite Film Finds of 2016
Years before the United States Marine Corps officially adopted the bulldog as its mascot or the United States Military academy adopted the mule, many military regiments adopted mascots and pets. Some were donated by local groups and many were found. Many of these mascots had jobs, whether utilitarian or ceremonial. Pigeons carried messages, dogs helped … Continue reading Photographs of Military Mascots in WWI
The rumors would usually start at lunchtime. “Did you hear we’re watching a movie today?” The whispers and the excitement would grow during recess, and then came exclamations of joy and/or relief as we filed back into the classroom to find the projector set up. For the next twenty minutes (or longer with the inevitable … Continue reading Obsolete Instruction, or What to Do When Your St. Bernard Has a Hangover
