Today's blog post comes from National Archives social media intern Anna Fitzpatrick. January 1 marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. While this document is remembered for freeing the slaves in the Southern states, petitioners had been attempting to end slavery since the nation’s founding. Petitions by anti-slavery groups were sent to the newly … Continue reading Emancipation Proclamation: Petitioning for Freedom
These days, pundits, candidates, and party activists like to cite the Constitution of the United States as the moral and legal backing for whatever they’re proposing. But the Constitution is silent on a lot of things you probably thought it said. Here are eight examples. The President can veto a proposed amendment to the Constitution. … Continue reading No, it’s not in the Constitution
In the last post, we brought the Adams-Vergennes story up to their abrupt break in late July 1780. Adams departed for the Netherlands, where he hoped to raise additional funds for the United States war effort and make the United States less dependent on France. Meanwhile, Vergennes appealed to Franklin and through Franklin to Congress, … Continue reading In their own words: Adams, Franklin, and Vergennes (part IIc)
Today's History Crush guest post comes from the National Archives staff in New York City. Sara Lyons Pasquerello, education technician, and Angela Tudico, archives technician, don't care about clichés! Their love for this suffragist will never falter—and might even expand! As we enter Women’s History Month, it is only fitting that we reveal our history crush—Susan … Continue reading History Crush: Susan B. Anthony
Among our extensive collection of Mathew Brady photographs is this one of Josiah Bushnell Grinnell, whose sideburns appear to slide down his cheeks towards his cravat. The Honorable J. B. Grinnell's name may seem familiar if you have ever browsed college catalogs, or if you are an alum of Grinnell College, located in Grinnell, Iowa. … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: A Liberal Arts Education
This Sunday is the anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington. To commemorate the event, the National Archives is displaying a program from the march in the East Rotunda Gallery and screening The March on August 27 and 28. But if you are not in Washington, DC, you can still watch the entire film on our YouTube … Continue reading From Our Film Archives: “The March”
Today's post comes from Gregory Marose, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. As the calendar turns to August and the summer heat sets in, no topic is hotter than the debt ceiling. Congress has voted to increase the debt limit more than 100 times since it was first established. How … Continue reading Patriotic posters and the debt ceiling
The National Archives has over 3,000 employees, but not all of them are archivists. There are educators, social media writers, preservationists, security personnel, and Federal Records Center workers. Some of us handle records all day, but for many of us, our jobs do not bring us into direct contact with the records. That's why it is so exciting … Continue reading Inside the Treasure Vault
The USS Monitor was the Navy's first ironclad vessel, but it was not the only one in Civil War waters. The Virginia had started life in 1855 as the Merrimack, a Union ship that had been burned to the waterline, sunk, and abandoned in the Gosport Navy Yard in Norfolk, VA. The Confederates raised what … Continue reading A Submerged House: Ironclads and the Civil War
Weather has been front-page news across the country for the last couple of weeks. Winter storms have left up to 50 inches of snow in places, and even in Dallas, TX, snow and ice made the Packers and Steelers feel right at home at the Super Bowl. What’s the outlook for sunshine, snow, or rain in … Continue reading Cloudy with a chance of records
