On April 1, 2022, the National Archives will open the 1950 Census. For more information on the records release, visit the National Archives website. Shortly after the National Archives was established, the Archivist of the United States made an agreement with the Director of the Bureau of the Census to acquire the decennial census records … Continue reading Census Records: The 72-Year Rule
Today's post comes from Joshua Cain, an archives technician at the National Archives in College Park, MD. It features digitized videos and images available in the National Archives Catalog highlighting North Platte's role in World War II. In the early to mid-1900s, North Platte, Nebraska, was a small farm town located on the Union Pacific … Continue reading North Platte Feeds the Troops
This fabulous Facial Hair Friday photo of Coast Guardsman Theophile Baranski, with his bushy eyebrows and stylish facial hair, is just one of the many beards featured in a series of Coast Guardsmen at Work in the Records of the U.S. Coast Guard that have be digitized and made available in the National Archives Catalog. … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Those Bearded Battles of the Blizzard Belt
As we move into the new year, we’re looking back on the most popular posts published on Pieces of History in 2021. We would like to give a big thank-you to the National Archives staff who work so hard to Make Access Happen through their numerous contributions. And thank you all for sticking with us … Continue reading Top 10 of 2021
Today’s post comes from Rachel Bartgis, conservator technician at the National Archives at College Park, MD. In 2019 the National Archives entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to digitize U.S. Navy and Coast Guard deck logs from vessels with Vietnam-era service (1956–78). The more than 200 million images will … Continue reading New Year’s poems from Navy Deck logs
Today's post comes from Dorothy Dougherty, Programs Director at the National Archives at New York City. By current estimate, the National Archives has over 5 million cubic feet of traditional records in its holdings. Those textual records include manuscripts, memorandums, official business letters, and even the occasional personal letter. Today’s post features one such personal … Continue reading Across and Down: An Unusual Civil War Letter
Bill of Rights Day is December 15. Visit the National Archives website for more information. Today’s post comes from Rachel Bartgis, conservator technician at the National Archives at College Park, MD. One of the most frequent questions visitors to the National Archives Rotunda have about the Bill of Rights is why is the word Congress … Continue reading The Long S
December 10 is Human Rights Day, commemorating the date the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The United Nations was formed in 1945 to prevent the atrocities that occurred during World War II from ever happening again. One of the UN's primary goals was, "promoting and encouraging respect … Continue reading Human Rights for All
Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Writers come along and become the definition of a genre. They’re known as masters of science fiction, fantasy, mystery, children’s books, etc. However, some writers reimagine how we read and interpret the world, immersing us in … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Old Man and the Beard—Ernest Hemingway
Today’s post comes from Michael J. Hancock, archives specialist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. The Jimmy Carter Presidential Library has published a new online exhibit, The Iran Hostage Crisis, and an A.P. US History Lesson Plan in support of National Archives civics programming. Through the lens of primary sources, images, and the … Continue reading The Iran Hostage Crisis
