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!
Horsepower! We hear this common phrase everyday associated with everything from cars to lawn mowers to available human capital. It's all about power and the power to get things done. While today the term "horse power" typically refers to the power of an engine in a car or truck and is a single, compound word, … Continue reading Fire Up the Horses and Let ’em Run! Early Representations of Horsepower from RG 241: Restored Patents
In what seems to be turning into a recurring theme, I’m back again to tame some of our wildest records here in the Still Picture Branch…this time, famed warhorse, Sergeant Reckless! As the de facto animal expert here in Stills, I’ve developed quite the nose for sniffing out hidden gems depicting our furry friends. Recently, … Continue reading Hold Your Horses
Co-Authored by Beth Fortson and Corbin Apkin. You wake up in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve and realize that you have forgotten to get a gift for your sister's brand new "He's Totally The One" boyfriend. You get a text from your old college roommate two days before your New Years Party … Continue reading Spotlight: Last Minute Holiday Gifts!
This week's images are from RG 17-HD. They are mounted prints depicting beautiful race horses from the early 1900's! Accompanying metadata is limited to the captions, which are included with the images below. These captions, affixed to the mounts and written in Spanish, appear to include the date that the photographs were taken and the … Continue reading Spotlight: Race Horses
For the release of a new short film about Austria's Lipizzan horses, Universal-International, the maker of Universal News, staged a special publicity event at a drive-in movie theater. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IvnUi61dQA From the release sheet: "HORSE NIGHT" AT THE DRIVE-IN, CALIFORNIA - "Horse night" at the drive-in. An enterprising theatre manager sets up oats and rye on … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: A Drive-In Movie for Horses, 1954.
On July 25, 1909, Louis Bleriot became the first man to fly over the English Channel. In 1959, the flight was commemorated with the first crossing by hovercraft. Taking a hovercraft between England and France was a reality for commercial passengers between 1968 and 2000, when a commercial hovercraft service offered transportation across the English Channel. … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: A Hovercraft Crosses the English Channel, 1959
The world's first parking meter was installed in Oklahoma City on July 16th, 1935. Today, advanced parking meters allow a driver to pay by mobile phone, but the first parking meters required a nickel to operate. This story from Universal News demonstrates the novelty of the new invention. http://youtu.be/gJiMa0aKNgU From the release sheet: Town Clocks … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The First Parking Meter, 1935
Did you enjoy a mint julep over the weekend in honor of the Kentucky Derby? This week, we look back to the sixty-fourth running of the Kentucky Derby, held on May 7th, 1938. The winner was long-shot Lawrin, the only Kansas-bred horse ever to win the race. Lawrin was buried beside his sire, Inisco, in his … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: The 64th Running of the Kentucky Derby, 1938
This week we're featuring Professor I.M. Nuts, a gentleman who demonstrates his spectacular inventions in several Universal News stories. In this story, Prof. Nuts shows off a gadget that will prevent you from ruining your day while eating grapefruit. According to Nuts, "every home should have at least half a dozen"! http://youtu.be/djr2GckgFvI Have you ever … Continue reading This Week in Universal News: An Invention to Protect Yourself from Grapefruit, 1937
