On today’s date in 1785 the Continental Congress set the dollar as the official currency of the new United States. Also on this date it was Resolved “That the several pieces shall increase in a decimal ratio.” As a side note Thomas Jefferson wrote on this very topic in “Notes on the establisment[!] of a …
234 years ago the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence announcing the colonies’ separation from Great Britain. It has been estimated that there were approximately 2.5 million people in this new nation at that time. [1] Today a celebration of our independence takes place every year on the anniversary of the signing of …
Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist. In a letter to Samuel H. Smith offering his collection to Congress to re-establish the Library after it was burned in 1814, Thomas Jefferson wrote “I do not know that it contains any branch of science which Congress would wish to exclude from this collection …
Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist, with another in our “Favorites from the Fifth Floor.” We get many questions about business from around the country and often we utilize credit reference books. The most well known, and one I have previously written about, is Dun & Bradstreet. This title has gone …
Masking tape, transparent (cellophane) tape, duct (or duck) tape… we use tape when we paint, wrap gifts, mend things, and create clothing. Yes clothing! My daughter made a dress from duck tape for her junior prom – it is quite the competition. Where did it all begin? An engineer by the name of Richard Drew …
The 2010 calendar in my office is from The Economist. It is quite colorful and full of little tidbits of information and has, on more than one occasion, provided me with ideas for this blog. The entry on the calendar for today is “1st McDonald’s Opens, San Bernardino, California, 1940.” Those of you who may …
In these tough economic times, many U.S. states and the Federal government have pulled together a number of great resources for their residents to use in getting career help. In an effort to help get the word out, we have begun an effort to compile websites in the areas of general resources, resume help, job …
Our guest author today is Ellen Terrell, Business Reference Specialist with another in our “Favorites From the Fifth Floor” series. Quite early in my tenure here at the Library I realized that “history” in terms of business research was not 5 years or less but 50, 100, or 200+ years ago. Coming from the private …