Strange-but-true stories from World War II
No, I'm not talking about January 18, when English Wikipedia went dark in protest of the House's proposed Stop Online Piracy Act and the Senate's PROTECT IP Act. (Just 10 years ago, having no Wikipedia would not have fazed me in the least. We still had a dial-up Internet connection, and I regularly visited a brick-and-mortar library … Continue reading NARA, Wikipedia, and the Day of Infamy
Today's guest post was written by Miriam Kleiman, who works in the National Archives Public Affairs Office. George Clooney’s next film—which he will write, direct, and star in—is based on holdings from the National Archives! Clooney announced last weekend that his number-one priority is to make a film about the “Monuments Men,” a group of … Continue reading George Clooney and the National Archives: One degree of separation
Keith Hill passed away yesterday at the age of 87. He was president of the Navajo Code Talkers Association and Congressional Silver Medal recipient. At 17, he joined the Navajo Code Talkers, a group of men who used their Native American language to communicate and coordinate the movements of Marines in the Pacific Theater during World … Continue reading Unbreakable: Remembering the Code Talkers
As 2011 draws to a close, so does our exhibit "What's Cooking, Uncle Sam?" which will end on January 3, 2012. It's been a great year for food here at the National Archives. We've had amazing guests come and speak, including Chef José Andrés, our neighbor and Chief Culinary Adviser for the exhibit; Chef Roland … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesday: Top Ten Food Records of 2011
I was going to try to find another bearded man to feature, but it's practically Christmas Eve, and let's face it, Santa Claus has the most famous beard (and reindeer) of all. It's like a giant cloud of fluffy white snow around his chin. It's his defining characteristic. In the middle of July when there's an older gentleman on … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: That’s not a real beard, Santa!
Have you visited our exhibit "What's Cooking, Uncle Sam?" Don't wait! The exhibit closes on January 3, 2012. Are you in a sugar coma yet? If not, there's still time to make some sweet desserts straight from the records of the National Archives. These favorite cookie recipes (below) come from the 1966 Forest Service Fire Lookout Cookbook, part of the … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesday: Holiday Sugar Spike
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
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
In the early afternoon of December 7, 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt was just finishing lunch in his oval study on the second floor of the White House, preparing to work on his stamp album. The phone rang, and he was informed that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, shortly before 1 p.m. Washington time, … Continue reading Crafting a Call to Arms: FDR’s Day of Infamy Speech
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
