In honor of the Veterans History Project's 25th anniversary, we’re highlighting photographs and stories from six compelling collections that offer personal and visual perspectives on military service across more than a century of conflicts, from World War I through the war in Iraq.
Liza Mundy, author of the bestselling "Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II," researched the bestselling 2017 book at the Library's Veterans History Project. She drew on the military service records of thousands of women who served in the war but whose work had been little recognized.
William Munro found time to sketch and draw hundreds of pieces of art while serving during World War II. Working as a medic and supply clerk in the Army's medical battalion in North Africa and Europe, Munro sketched everything from scenes of war to lush landscapes to the camraderie of his fellow soldiers. His letters and some 370 artworks are in his collection at the Veterans History Project.
The Veterans History Project was founded by Congress in 2000. Since then, it has grown into an archive of stories from over 121,000 U.S. military veterans. The service records, letters, diaries, photographs and other memorabilia spans generations and gives a unique, moving view of what it means to serve in the U.S. military.
One of the most famous creations of Caspar Vopel, the German mathematician and geographer, is a armillary sphere, consisting of a terrestrial globe only 3 inches in diameter, bearing a hand-drawn map with names of regions written in red and the location of important cities marked with red dots. Constructed in 1543, the globe is contained within 11 interlocking armillary rings that illustrate the rotation of the sun, moon and stars in the Ptolemaic tradition, with the Earth at the center of the universe. It's preserved in the Library's Geography and Map Division.
Library conservators have been carefully cleaning and restoring a small trove of papyrus writings from ancient Egypt. The writings are mostly decrees, contracts and other pragmatic records, but still offer a window into a world long gone by.
The Library's Crime Classic series now has more than 20 titles to choose from, including “The Cannibal Who Overate,” which came out earlier this month. There's something for every mystery lover in the series, with classic stories that span more than 100 years of American literary history. You can get them from the Library's shop or from any major bookseller.
Johnathan Larson and Leonard Bernstein had huge successes on Broadway, from "West Side Story" to "Rent." Their vibrant careers are preserved in the Library's Music Division, showcasing their generational talents.
Since 1897 the Library's Main Reading Room has been the dazzling center of the Library's collections. Its circular design was inpsired by the British Museum Library, its art based on the classics of Western civiilization and its mission settled on fulfilling the American ideal of knowledge and education. Today, although much of the Library's collections have spread to other reading rooms and are available online, it is still a vibrant research center and the go-to tourist attraction for visitors.
