Thursday Photo Caption Contest

Torn between termites, easy bake ovens, and Terrifying Woodchuck Airlines, we asked a guest judge to make the final call! Congratuations to Burble, who has won 15% off at our eStore! Alice Kamps, the curator of "What's Cooking, Uncle Sam?" thought the reference to a Faster-Than-Light drive was the funniest by light years. And while … Continue reading Thursday Photo Caption Contest

Meatloaf by candlelight? Not for this President.

Like most boys from Missouri, Harry Truman developed simple tastes in food as he was growing up—especially things like his mother's fried chicken and that great American budget-friendly staple, meatloaf. According to the Truman Presidential Library in Independence, Missouri, the 33rd President also liked corn bread with Missouri sorghum, all kinds of fowl, and Ozark pudding, which included … Continue reading Meatloaf by candlelight? Not for this President.

The Pentagon Papers, now online after 40 years

  If you opened the the New York Times this morning in 1971, you would have seen the first part of the secret "Pentagon Papers" that the newspaper published—without authorization from the government. Today in 2011, the National Archives and the Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon Presidential libraries will release the entire official Report of the Office of … Continue reading The Pentagon Papers, now online after 40 years

Thursday Photo Caption Contest

Last week's photo of men swinging from the trees inspired many noteworthy captions, from the Pirates of Penzance to pigeon interception. Overwhelmed by choice, we turned to our guest judge James Kratsas of the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Michigan. James was also overwhelmed—by grim memories of dancing at weddings, and he chose Marene B's caption. … Continue reading Thursday Photo Caption Contest

What’s Cooking Wednesday–Exploding Ketchup!

These records are featured in our new "What's Cooking, Uncle Sam?" exhibit which opens this Friday! To celebrate the opening, the Foundation for the National Archives is giving away a free copy of the exhibit catalog. Leave a comment below telling us what food you like to put ketchup on, and the Foundation will randomly choose a … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesday–Exploding Ketchup!

Mapping Out A Mystery

In this guest blog post, Dr. Mark Stegmaier, Professor of History at Cameron University in Oklahoma, discovers that sometimes even professional researchers find answers to questions when—and where—they aren't looking for them! In the Winter 2009 issue of Prologue magazine, Dr. Richard McCulley of the National Archives and I published an article titled "Cartography, Politics, … Continue reading Mapping Out A Mystery

Treating D-Day’s Wounded

D-day conjures up all kinds of images: the thousands of boats making their way across the English Channel, the men leaping off the landing craft and wading ashore under heavy fire, and the dangers once they got onto the beach and headed for the cliffs. It must have been terrifying to be part of the … Continue reading Treating D-Day’s Wounded

What a beard! What a name!

If this Friday's facial hair star lived in present times, he would be so very easy to Google. Yes, "Bezaleel Armstrong" would be pretty easy to find on Facebook and the Internet. In fact, even now a quick name-check in the Google search box pulls up plenty of hits on his unique name. He would also be pretty … Continue reading What a beard! What a name!

Thursday Photo Caption Contest

Congratulations to John W, who has won 15% off at our eStore! It was a tough choice between Stepford babies, "a head" puns, Hamlet, and Oprah references.  But our guest judge Diane LeBlanc, Regional Adminstrator for NARA's Northeast Region, thought that your caption captured a curious moment between man and and doll. Our guest judge is based at our … Continue reading Thursday Photo Caption Contest