This week we're happy to welcome guest blogger Brian Real to The Unwritten Record. Brian recently received his PhD in Information Studies from the University of Maryland. Brian regularly visits the research room in College Park so we're used to seeing his name on order sheets for reference requests. We asked him to tell us more about … Continue reading The True Story of a Blind Electrician: “Born a Man” as a Document of Disability Rights
A Little-Known Expedition If you know anything about Admiral Richard E. Byrd, you probably know that he was the first to fly over the North and South Poles, and that he led several expeditions in Antarctica. However, you probably don’t know the story of his first Arctic expedition. In fact, most accounts muddy the details … Continue reading The Aviator, the Explorer, and the Radio Man: The 1925 MacMillan Arctic Expedition
If I asked you to tell me what you think of when you think of silent films, one characteristic you may mention is that silent films are black and white. While it is true that most silent films were shot using black and white film, by the time they were projected many had vibrant colors … Continue reading Colorful Chemistry and a Visit to Your National Parks
This post was written by Beth Fortson. Beth is an Archives Technician with the Still Photos Branch in College Park, MD. In April 1980, after desperate attempts by Cubans to gain asylum at the gates of the Peruvian Embassy, Fidel Castro was pressured to ease restrictions on emigration and granted those wishing to immigrate to … Continue reading From Mariel Harbor to Eglin Air Force Base: Cuban Refugees and the Mariel Boatlift
Donna Anoskey and Dan Rooney contributed to this post. Years ago many government agencies, along with Hollywood and independent film makers, stored film productions with the private laboratories that provided their duplication services. In 2001, one of the premier film facilities on the East Coast, in business for over 50 years, went bankrupt, still in possession of … Continue reading The Tale of the Forgotten Films: An Archival Rescue
A few months ago, I spent more time than usual with a film reference request. The film copy that came down for Clear Skies, Clean Air (1971) was 35/32mm, which meant that I had to make a print before I could run it on the film scanner. I listened to the soundtrack several times while … Continue reading In Search of…Leonard Nimoy
How do you get around when you live on a 1.2 square-mile island with no privately owned vehicles? If you live on Kwajalein Island, bicycles are the answer. But these aren’t just any bicycles. Kwajalein Island is a part of the United States’ Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site (formerly Kwajalein Missile Range). The … Continue reading A Bike Like No Other
Many Americans living along the Gulf Coast do not need an anniversary to reflect upon Hurricane Katrina. The natural disaster caused overwhelming hardship for thousands, irreparably damaging houses, businesses and entire cities. Katrina left a legacy that they will never forget. Yet for some, the ten years since the hurricane has blunted Katrina’s gravity. While … Continue reading Remembering Hurricane Katrina (Photos)
This post was written in collaboration with Ellen Mulligan. The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the worst flood in U.S. history. Following the mass destruction caused by the flood, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expanded the existing levee system to more than 3,500 miles, making it the longest in the world. Plans and progress from 1938 … Continue reading Taming the Mississippi
On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later another bomb was detonated over Nagasaki. Whether the United States needed to use the bomb to ensure a Japanese surrender is a point that is debated to this day. It is not controversial to acknowledge that the actual results of … Continue reading Witness to Destruction: Photographs and Sound Recordings Documenting the Hiroshima Bombing
