Strange-but-true stories about America’s Presidents from the National Archives and Presidential Libraries.
Today's guest post comes from Susan Donius, Director of the Office of Presidential Libraries at the National Archives. This post originally appeared on the White House blog. Did you know that before the 1940s, Thanksgiving was not on a fixed date but was whenever the President proclaimed it to be? George Washington issued the first … Continue reading Thanksgiving with the Presidents
Today's post is by Duke Blackwood, Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Follow them on their Facebook page. One normally doesn’t associate turkeys with flying. However, in 1966 they became synonymous with flight during Ronald Reagan’s first race for political office—Governor of California. Covering such a large state was advance man Curtis Patrick’s nightmare, … Continue reading Reagan and the “Turkey Bird”
Today's post comes from Sam Anthony, special assistant to the Archivist of the United States. When President Obama visited Thailand on Sunday, he brought a piece of the National Archives as a diplomatic gift. In preparation for the President's trip to Asia, the Protocol Office of the State Department asked for facsimiles of photographs of … Continue reading The King and (Archives) I
Today's post originally appeared in the 2012 Summer Issue of Prologue magazine, and was written by Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero. The Electoral College. Established 1787. It isn’t really a college, and the electors aren’t tenured professors. The electors are really voters, and their votes count in a very big way. The … Continue reading To Choose a President
Today's post comes from Nikita Buley, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum is located in Simi Valley, California—about 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles—and holds over 60 million pages of documents, 1.6 million photographs, hundreds of thousands of feet of audiovisual material, and … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum
Today's post comes from Nikita Buley, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. Happy American Archives Month! Throughout October, we’re running a series of “spotlights” on the many locations that make up the National Archives. Have you done research at a Presidential Library? Unlike the other Presidential Libraries, the Gerald R. … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum
Today's post comes from Nikita Buley, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. Happy American Archives Month! Throughout October, we’re running a series of “spotlights” on the many locations that make up the National Archives. Remember, YOU can use the research rooms at our Presidential libraries. The 13 Presidential libraries are … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Today's post comes from Nikita Buley, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. Happy American Archives Month! Throughout October, we're running a series of "spotlights" on the many locations that make up the National Archives. You can visit the exhibits or use the research rooms. The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
Today's post comes from Nikita Buley, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, New York, was the first Presidential library built in the United States. President Roosevelt led its conception and building, and he is the only President to have … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum
Today's guest post comes from Miriam Vincent, staff attorney at the Federal Register. The founding fathers established the Electoral College in the Constitution as a compromise between election of the President by a vote in Congress and election of the President by a popular vote of qualified citizens. However, the term “electoral college” does not appear … Continue reading The Electoral College: Then and Now
