Yesterday was the anniversary of the Atlanta premiere of Gone with the Wind. The National Archives has at least two connections with this movie, and one of them is a mustache. The National Archives was given a copy of the award-winning and controversial film. It was given to the first Archivist in 1941 by Senator Walter F. … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Gone with the Wind
Although it's been a while since our last caption contest, these young men are still sitting patiently in class. We had a hard time choosing from the comments here and on Facebook. Would we speak quietly and carry a big ruler? Or should we choose the suggestion from the National Archives in Alaska, that back in … Continue reading Thursday Photo Caption Contest: LOLcat edition
Although the National Archives Building was nearly completed in 1935, the Rotunda sat empty. Then, on December 13, 1952, an armored Marine Corps personnel carrier made its way down Constitution Avenue, accompanied by two light tanks, four servicemen carrying submachine guns, and a motorcycle escort. A color guard, ceremonial troops, the Army Band, and the Air Force Drum … Continue reading A homecoming for six pages of parchment
Today's guest post comes from Tammy Kelly at the Truman Presidential Library. This week’s Facial Hair Friday photo is a most unexpected person: Harry S. Truman, before he became President! At the Truman Library, we know of only two photographs of Truman wearing any kind of facial hair, so this is a rare photo, indeed. … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: A Letter from Hairy Harry
The National Archives holds many records that tell the story of the attack on Pearl Harbor. To commemorate the 70th anniversary of that day, we've gathered links from across our blogs and on Tumblr to show you some of these moving documents that we hold in safekeeping. Memo to the President This memorandum was one of the … Continue reading Records from the Day of Infamy
We've got lots of artists in the building today. If you visit the National Archives Building from December 2 to 6, you can partake of history and do your Christmas shopping and support local artists and support the programs of the National Archives! The holiday fair is officially titled "The Way We Worked" American Artisans Fair. Local … Continue reading Artists at work in the National Archives
One of the themes throughout our "What's Cooking Wednesday" posts has been war and food rationing. American citizens were asked to grow their own food, ration sugar, and eat less meat so that there would be more supplies for soldiers fighting overseas and for people with little food left in their war-torn country. As a result, … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesday: Flour Sack Art
About 20,000 women volunteered in military hospitals during the Civil War. Unfortunately, the majority of them left little or no written evidence of their sacrifice in the war. Louisa May Alcott, renowned 19th-century author of Little Women, was one of them, and her service is documented in a Washington, D.C., hospital’s muster roll. Alcott was … Continue reading Little Women in the Civil War
What do you if you love Thanksgiving but it falls on a day when you can't eat turkey? In 1947, President Truman faced an awkward dilemma. Truman took up the office of President during World War II, but even after the war ended, the plight of the Europeans was on his mind. Americans were still urged … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesday: Truman and the no-turkey Thursday
Today's post is by Miriam Kleiman, public relations specialist at the National Archives. Jack Kerouac—American counterculture hero, king of the Beats, and author of On the Road—was a Navy military recruit who failed boot camp. Navy doctors found Kerouac delusional, grandiose, and promiscuous, and questioned his strange writing obsession. I learned this in 2005, right … Continue reading Hit the Road, Jack!
