While the British military burned the federal properties of Washington during the War of 1812, some soldiers sought souvenirs to commemorate their conquest of the nascent U.S. capital. Seized by a British officer, one particular American bible in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division bears the marks of its dramatic removal, its captivity, and later its homecoming to the United States.
Published in 1978, Paul Avrich’s "An American Anarchist: The Life of Voltairine de Cleyre" was the first substantial biography of Voltairine de Cleyre (1866-1912), an influential member of the American labor movement at the turn of the 20th century. Donated to the Library of Congress in 1986, the biography refers to de Cleyre as “one of the most interesting if neglected figures in the history of American radicalism.”
Rachel Louise Carson (1907-1964), pioneer in environmental awareness and protection, authored her landmark work, Silent Spring, in 1962. This Earth Day post remembers her legacy as an author who wrote to inspire wonder in her readers.
Humans have always been fascinated by eclipses and other astronomical phenomenon. In anticipation of the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse that will cross the United States, the Rare Book and Special Collections Division presents one small treasure from the collections: a miniature book of 19th-century eclipse photography!
Written by American aviator Amelia Earhart (1897-1937) but compiled and arranged by her husband after her fatal flight, the copy of "Last Flight" in the National Woman's Party Library in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division has a special provenance linking Earhart to the women's suffrage movement.
In 1866, the Smithsonian physically transferred its library of over 40,000 works to the Library of Congress. A notable event in the history of both information institutions, the Smithsonian Deposit included a range of materials which today are dispersed throughout the Library’s divisions. Among them are some unexpected and intriguing materials in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
This post explores the life and work of Chester Himes (1909-1984) and his friendship with fellow African American author Ralph Ellison (1914-1994), as evidenced by Himes' books in Ralph Ellison's personal library.
No vegetable splits opinion quite like the Brussels sprout, which caused a disagreement between President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lady Clementine Churchill in the summer of 1944.
Among the resources on the Lenape language in the holdings at the Library of Congress are two hymnals, published in 1847 and 1874 respectively. Printed at a time when governmental policies in Canada and the United States were actively attempting to destroy tribal languages, these hymnals provided a way for Lenape communities to remain connected to their language even amongst attempted erasure. The Halfmoon hymnal includes new translations into Munsee, a Lenape language that is rarely the focus of such linguistic preservation. Guest post by Meg Nicholas, Folklife Specialist, American Folklife Center.
