Today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office, is in honor of Women's History Month and looks at the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service program, or WAVES, during World War II. Advertisement poster to join the WAVES. (National Archives Identifier 514649) Less than one year after the United States entered World … Continue reading WAVES: It’s a Woman’s War Too!
160 years ago on leap day, President Abraham Lincoln nominated Ulysses S. Grant to be Lieutenant General of the Army. Three years into the U.S. Civil War, with no end in sight, President Abraham Lincoln needed to find a commander who could lead the U.S. to victory. Abraham Lincoln, ca. 1861-1865. (National Archives Identifier 530592) … Continue reading Lincoln’s Leap Day Nomination of Grant
Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an expert archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri. Far out in the New Mexico desert, the largest government-funded scientific endeavor culminated in the first nuclear detonation at the White Sands Missile Range. The bright flash followed by intense heat and billowing mushroom … Continue reading Atomic Veterans Commemorative Service Medal
February is Black History Month. Visit the National Archives website for more information on our resources related to African American history. Today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office, looks at the legendary jazz musician Louis Armstrong. Louis Armstrong, 1941. (Records of the United States Information Agency, National Archives) Louis Armstrong was born on … Continue reading Louis Armstrong: Harlem Renaissance Pioneer
Today's post is an oldie but a goodie from our very own public affairs specialist Hilary Parkinson. While searching for images of owls in the National Archives Catalog for #SuperbOwl, I came across this curious photo of an owl wearing safety goggles. In the same search I found photographs of men shaking hands and showing off tiny owl … Continue reading #SuperbOwl: The Wise Owl Club
February is Black History Month! Visit the National Archives website to learn more about our many resources and events related to Black history. Today we're looking at a 1971 exhibit at the National Archives Building of images of African art from one of our donated collections. The National Archives promoted Black history even before February … Continue reading Celebrating African Artists at the National Archives
This Facial Hair Friday photo shows baseball-player-turned-Coast Guardsman Frank L. Lailer sporting a respectable amount of facial hair, albeit not quite as much as some of his bushier-bearded Coast Guard colleagues. His is just one of the many beards and mustaches featured in a series of Coast Guardsmen at Work in the Records of the … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: From Baseball to War
The United States has been accumulating records since the first meeting of the Continental Congress in 1774. As the government grew, the paperwork it was creating grew too—exponentially. But until 1934 there was no national archives to consolidate the papers, so each government department, bureau, or office retained custody of its own records. Some official … Continue reading The First Guide to Federal Records
We are taking a look at past staff and their many contributions to the National Archives throughout its history. Today’s staff spotlight is Evangeline Thurber, who coauthored a major report on National Archives holdings in relation to World War I demobilization in preparation for the end of World War II. Evangeline Thurber (née Evangeline Whitmore) … Continue reading Historic Staff Spotlight: Evangeline Thurber
As we say hello to 2024, we’re taking a look at the most popular posts of 2023. Thank you to the National Archives staff who helped us share our love of history throughout the year! 10. As a big shout-out to our nurses who have had it especially hard these past few years, Jen Hivick’s … Continue reading Top 10 of 2023
