Facial Hair Friday: G. Gordon Liddy, White House Plumber

Today’s post comes from Alyssa Manfredi at the National Archives History Office. George Gordon Liddy played an infamous role in the Watergate scandal. He and a team were behind the attempted break-in to the Democratic National Convention office, which inadvertently led to the downfall of President Richard Nixon. Liddy became one of the few people … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: G. Gordon Liddy, White House Plumber

National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: The Aftermath

This post, the final in a series of three looking at the 1973 National Personnel Records Center fire and its aftermath, comes from Jen Hivick, an archives technician at the NPRC in St. Louis, Missouri. In the year following the disastrous fire at the Military Personnel Records Center, employees struggled to find a new normal. … Continue reading National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: The Aftermath

The Office of the First Cat

August 8th is International Cat Day, and today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office looks at the history of household cats at the White House. Socks Clinton lounges at podium in the White House Press Briefing Room, 1993. (National Archives Identifier 236748090) While cats were likely used to control the mice … Continue reading The Office of the First Cat

Louis Pasteur and the Science of Beer Making

Prost! On August 4, 2023, we're having another #ArchivesHashtagParty, and this month’s focus is #ArchivesScience, so we’re turning to food science. Today's post from Caroline Shanley in the National Archives History Office looks at a patent from Louis Pasteur on beer-brewing technologies. Brewing beer has been enjoyed by many cultures for thousands of years. In … Continue reading Louis Pasteur and the Science of Beer Making

Facial Hair Friday: Herman Melville

Today’s post comes from Alyssa Manfredi at the National Archives History Office. Herman Melville is still revered today as one of the great American writers. Over his career, Melville wrote 17 short stories, 11 novels, and countless essays and poems.  Herman Melville. (National Archives Identifier 209202332) Melville was born in New York City in 1819, … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Herman Melville

The Calutron Girls

Today’s post, from Alyssa Moore, in the National Archives History Office, looks at the Calutron Girls in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, during World War II. Calutron was an acronym for “California University cyclotron,” named after the University of California, Berkeley, where the devices were developed. The highly anticipated July 21 release of Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer, … Continue reading The Calutron Girls

Not Just Suffrage: Divorce and the Seneca Falls Convention

Today’s post comes from Caroline Shanley from the National Archives History Office.  This July commemorates the 175th anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention, held in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. This gathering of prominent White feminists resulted in the Declaration of Sentiments, a list of demands to ensure the legal, political, and social equality … Continue reading Not Just Suffrage: Divorce and the Seneca Falls Convention

Becoming Bigger and Better: The NPRC After the Great Fire of 1973

Fifty years ago, a fire at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, MO, destroyed millions of military personnel records. Visit the National Archives website for more information about the fire and its aftermath. Today’s post from Thomas Richardson, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center, was originally published in 2021 and has been … Continue reading Becoming Bigger and Better: The NPRC After the Great Fire of 1973

Escaping the White House: Camp David

On Friday, July 7, 2023, the National Archives is hosting a vacation-themed hashtag party. Join the conversation on Instagram and Twitter using #ArchivesHashtagParty and #ArchivesVacay. Today’s post is from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office. Secluded in the Catoctin Mountains of Maryland, not far from Washington, DC, sits an active naval base called … Continue reading Escaping the White House: Camp David

National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: The Fire

July 12, 2023, marks 50 years since the disastrous 1973 fire at the Military Personnel Records Center in St. Louis that destroyed millions of military personnel records. To commemorate the occasion, we are featuring a three-part series on the fire and its aftermath. This post comes to you from Jen Hivick, an archives technician at … Continue reading National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: The Fire