Today's post for Women's History Month comes from Jessie Kratz, Historian of the National Archives. I was intrigued when Alan Walker discovered those wonderful ID cards of former Archives employees in Record Group 64. I noticed many were women, which makes sense given the time period, and thought it would be nice to highlight a … Continue reading Margaret M.H. Finch, War Records Keeper
Today's post comes from Alex Nieuwsma, an intern in the National Archives History Office in Washington, DC. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990, forbids employers from discriminating against mentally or physically disabled employees. It also instituted accessibility requirements for buildings and public transportation, such as … Continue reading On Exhibit: Americans with Disabilities Act
Today’s post comes from Samantha Payne, intern in the Center for Legislative Archives in Washington, DC. In August 1791, two men received identical patents from the Federal Government. John Fitch and James Rumsey claimed to have invented the same technology: a steamboat. After a two-year battle for exclusive rights to their discovery, with Fitch calling Rumsey … Continue reading Inventing in Congress: Patent Law since 1790
Today's post comes from Zach Kopin, an intern in the National Archives History Office in Washington, DC. On March 4, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln delivered his second inaugural address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC. Dr. Charles A. Leale, a doctor and army surgeon in town from New York, listened with rapt attention to … Continue reading On Exhibit: Report concerning the death of Abraham Lincoln
Today’s post comes from Zach Kopin, intern in the National Archives History Office in Washington, DC. On May 28, 1943, a B-24 airplane crashed into the Pacific Ocean leaving only three survivors. The survivors floated on the sea for 46 days with almost no food or fresh water. On the 47th day, they were picked up by … Continue reading Unbroken, Part II
Today’s post comes from Samantha Payne, intern in the Center for Legislative Archives in Washington, DC. The Constitution requires that Congress conduct a census every 10 years to determine the representation of each state in the House of Representatives. When the authors of the Constitution allocated seats in the House for the First Congress, they had no … Continue reading Congress Counts: History of the U.S. Census
Today's post was written by Damani Davis, reference archivist at the National Archives in Washington, DC. On March 3, 2015, the National Archives will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Freedman’s Savings & Trust Company, better known as the "Freedman’s Bank.” The founding of the Freedman’s Bank was spearheaded by John W. Alvord, a Congregationalist … Continue reading 150th Anniversary of the Freedman’s Bank
On February 20, 1933, President Herbert Hoover and First Lady Lou Henry Hoover left the White House by car just before 2:30 p.m. with an escort of nine motorcycle policemen. Their destination was the corner of 7th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, to lay the cornerstone of the National Archives Building in Washington, DC. The event … Continue reading Temple of Our History
Today’s post comes from Natalie Rocchio, an archives specialist in the Center for Legislative Archives at the National Archives in Washington, DC. One of the most contentious issues facing our nation in the early years was slavery. Unsurprisingly, the First Congress received a series of antislavery petitions as part of the first unified campaign to the new Federal Government. … Continue reading From Ben Franklin to the Civil War: Antislavery Petitions in Congress
Today's post comes from Zach Kopin, intern in the National Archives History Office in Washington, DC. On May 28, 1943, Army Air Force bombardier Louis Zamperini’s B-24 airplane went down over the Pacific Ocean. Given the size of the Pacific and the distances covered by U.S. bombers, recovering downed aviators in the Pacific Theatre during World … Continue reading On Exhibit: Unbroken
