July 12, 2023, marks 50 years since the disastrous 1973 fire at the Military Personnel Records Center in St. Louis that destroyed millions of military personnel records. To commemorate the occasion, we are featuring a three-part series on the fire and its aftermath. This post comes to you from Jen Hivick, an archives technician at … Continue reading National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: The Fire
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the devastating fire at the National Personnel Records Center, we're featuring a three-part series. Today’s post comes from Jen Hivick, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, MO. July 12, 1973, has loomed large in the history of the National Archives. That day, shortly … Continue reading National Personnel Records Center Fire Series: Origins
Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, MO. It's the first in a series of posts on the National Personnel Records Center. Special thanks to Bryan McGraw, Director of the Personnel Records Division, whose interview provided historical information about the center following the fire, … Continue reading Becoming Bigger and Better: The NPRC After the Great Fire of 1973
Wow--what a year! Our editorial panel tried to limit this list to ten, but eventually we gave up and picked 14 instead. (For more great National Archives moments, check on out the Top 10 Innovative Moments of 2013.) We also want to send a big thank you to the staff members of the National Archives across … Continue reading Top 14 Moments at the National Archives in 2013
Today’s post comes from Sara Holmes, supervisory preservation specialist at the National Archives in St. Louis. Just before 9 a.m. on the morning of July 16, 1973, the fire that had raged over five days was declared out. The firemen’s command post was taken down; engines cleared the scene; and 9700 Page Avenue—home of the … Continue reading After the fire: Peter Waters helps save water-damaged records
Today’s post comes from Sara Holmes, supervisory preservation specialist at the National Archives in St. Louis. (The images below are from the National Archives at St. Louis, with a special thank you to Capt. Dave Dubowski of the Spanish Lake Fire Department and the late Chief Bob Palmer of Mehlville Fire Department.) What happened after … Continue reading One fire, 5 days, and 381 men
This blog post is condensed from the article “Burnt in Memory,” by Marta G. O’Neill and William Seibert, from the Spring 2013 issue of Prologue. By the time it was daylight on July 12, 1973, at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, one thing was painfully clear: the loss of records to … Continue reading Burnt in memory: Looking back at the 1973 St. Louis fire
Today marks 100 years since the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire—a blaze that lasted 18 minutes and left 146 workers dead. Among the many in New York City who witnessed the tragedy was Frances Perkins, who would later become FDR's Secretary of Labor, making her the first woman to serve in a Presidential cabinet. As Secretary … Continue reading A Factory Fire and Frances Perkins
