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Category: Thomas Jefferson Building

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

The Library Reimagined, with You in Mind

Posted by: Mark Hartsell

"A Library for You" is the Library's multi-year initiative to connect readers and patrons to our collections in new ways. These new galleries, exhibits and showcases will present some of the Library's most stunning items, whether they are recent or thousands of years old. These include Lincoln's handwritten first draft of the Gettysburg Address, fragments of the ancient Greek epic the "Iliad," cuneiform tablets that are among the oldest examples of writing, pre-Columbian artifacts, Rosa Parks' papers and watercolors by Diego Rivera. They'll begin to open in 2024.

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Indigenous Cultures at the Library: Kislak Family Foundation Gives $10 Million for New Gallery

Posted by: Brett Zongker

The Kislak Family Foundation is donating $10 million to create a new exhibition at the Library that will share a fuller history of the early Americas, featuring the Jay I. Kislak Collection of artifacts, paintings, maps, rare books and documents, the Library announced today. The new Kislak Gallery will be part of a reimagined visitor …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

A New Vision for an Inspiring Location

Posted by: April Slayton

Plans for a new renovation to the Library's Thomas Jefferson Building, designed to offer more members of the public access to the Library's inspiring architecture and comprehensive collections, include an oculus; a circular glass window that will allow visitors to look up to the dome from the orientation center below the Main Reading Room, where visitors will begin their Library journey.

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Dolly Parton: “The Library That Dolly Built”

Posted by: Neely Tucker

Dolly Parton’s documentary about her world-class book giveaway program for young children debuted on Facebook this week, highlighting her Imagination Library’s 25-year history and its ties to the Library. “The Library that Dolly Built” chronicles how Parton, the child of impoverished parents (her father was illiterate) in rural Tennessee, built an international program that has …