In 1945, the U.S. Government faced low morale and growing frustration over undelivered mail amongst those serving in Europe. It was decided the large backlog of undistributed mail would be dealt with by the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. The battalion, nicknamed the “Six-Triple Eight," was a multi-ethnic unit of the Women's Army Corps (WAC) comprised … Continue reading The Six Triple Eight Link Roundup
This week, sixty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This act, signed into law on July 2, is the nation’s benchmark civil rights legislation and remains one of America's most significant legislative achievements. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The act … Continue reading Spotlight: Passage of The Civil Rights Act of 1964
I'm back again with another update regarding the progress of the Subject Finding Aid Project in the Still Picture Branch. Harnessing the momentum gained with Batches 2 and 3, I'm happy to announce that roughly 3500 descriptions for Batches 4 and 5 are LIVE in the NARA Catalog! The Finding Aids in these batches cover … Continue reading Subject Finding Aid Project (Update 2)
In 1941 the United States had begun to prepare for the possibility of war and consequently, millions of jobs were being created. However, racial discrimination kept African Americans and other minorities from obtaining these defense industry jobs. In response to pressure from A. Philip Randolph, who had been organizing a march on Washington, and other … Continue reading Montford Point Marines
Please Note: Primary source documents used in this post may contain harmful language. See NARA's Statement on Potentially Harmful Language. Last week, the 369th Infantry Regiment, more famously known as the Harlem Hellfighters, was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. The honor comes more than a century after their service in Europe during WWI. The regiment … Continue reading The Harlem Hellfighters Return Home
February 11 is International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a day set aside to recognize the role women and girls play in science and technology and promote full and equal access to participation in science. What better way to recognize the day than by highlighting a few NASA trailblazers? Still taken from 255-HQ-296 … Continue reading Celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science with NASA Trailblazers
When it comes to research in the Still Picture Branch, our staff would agree that World War II photographs are by far some of our most requested records. Given their popularity, our How to Research posts are intended to be a quick reference guide, with some tips and examples of how to effectively search through our … Continue reading How to Research: Photographs Relating to World War II Navy Ships
Photos for this blog post were selected and scanned with the assistance of Kaitlyn Crain Enriquez. The United States celebrates Black History Month in February. First established as Negro History Week by African-American historian Carter G. Woodson in 1926, Black History Month was formally designated by president Gerald Ford in 1976: "Freedom and the recognition of individual rights are … Continue reading Spotlight: Celebrating Black History Month
Paul Owen grew up in Jacksonville, Florida in the mid-20th century. He attended Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon, where he earned his Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and then his Doctorate in Optometry (O.D.). In 1966, Dr. Owen became the first optometrist in the Public Health Service commissioned Officer Corps. Prior to this, any necessary … Continue reading Dr. Paul Owen: The First PHS Optometrist
On October 2, 1967, Thurgood Marshall was sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice. Marshall had a long history of fighting for civil rights in the legal system, most famously when he argued against school segregation in the Brown v. Board of Education case. Marshall served on the Supreme Court until 1991. He died in … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall is Sworn In, 1967
