Top of page
Posted by: Neely Tucker
The elaborately engraved powder horn was the prized possession of any gunman in colonial America, the elegant solution for hunters and soldiers who (literally) needed to keep their powder dry. The Library preserves 10 of these relics of the era, with etchings depicting everything from military victories to cityscapes to elaborate personal motifs.
Posted in: American Revolution, Geography and Maps Division, Maps
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Because George Washington and King George III were on opposite sides of America’s war of independence from Britain, we have learned to think of them as opposites. Our research for an upcoming Library of Congress exhibition, “The Two Georges: Parallel Lives in an Age of Revolution,” however, has turned up something much more interesting: They were surprisingly alike in temperament, interests and, despite the obvious differences in their lives and experiences.
Posted in: American Revolution, Exhibitions, George Washington, LCM, Manuscripts, Researcher Stories, U.S. Presidents, Washington DC
Posted by: Neely Tucker
A family Bible in Washington, looted by a British soldier during the War of 1812 and kept in his family for generations, was eventually returned to the nation more than a century later. It is now preserved by the Library, an artifact of two nations of war and then in peace.
Posted in: American Revolution, LCM, Rare Book and Special Collections, Washington DC
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Author and academic Ned Blackhawk has been studying Native American history for a long time, and he thinks there are reasons to be optimistic about the future. He says that groundwork laid over the past several decades, particularly in the 1970s protest movements, has established a growing recognition of Native American influence on the foundations of U.S. culture and society, resulting in a cultural renaissance. His latest book, “The Rediscovery of America,” won the National Book Award for nonfiction this year, and his panel discussion at the National Book Festival was packed.
Posted in: American Revolution, Books, National Book Festival, Native Americans, Writers
Posted by: Neely Tucker
The Library kicks off Black History Month with a new By the People crowdsourcing project -- transcribing the papers in the William A. Gladstone Afro-American Military Collection.
Posted in: African American History, American Revolution, Civil Rights, Civil War, World War II
Posted by: Neely Tucker
Julie Miller, the Library's historian of early America, explains in this short video how Americans began the tradition of presidential inaugurations with the ceremonies for George Washington.
Posted in: American Revolution, U.S. Presidents
Posted by: Neely Tucker
The Library is the 2021 recipient of the Bernardo de Galvez award, given by the Fundacion Consejo Espana-Estados Unidos to American citizens or institutions who help promote and nurture relations between Spain and the United States.
Posted in: American Revolution, Hispanic Division