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Posted by: Wendi Maloney
What do parades, shamrocks, and green beer bring to mind? Saint Patrick’s Day, of course. The first Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations in the United States took place in the 18th century in Boston and New York, and festivities expanded in the 19th century as more and more Irish immigrated to the country. Today, Saint Patrick’s …
Posted in: Copyright, Pic of the Week
Posted by: Wendi Maloney
Author and journalist Cokie Roberts visited the Library’s Young Readers Center on March 6 to read from her new children’s book, “Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation,” adapted from her bestselling adult work of the same title. Illustrated by Caldecott Honor-winning artist Diane Goode, the book features biographies of 10 influential women …
Posted in: Literacy, Pic of the Week, Women's History
Posted by: Wendi Maloney
Eighteen fifth-graders from Hendley Elementary School in Washington, D.C., visited the Library’s Young Readers Center this week to test the scientific method under the direction of Dr. Svetlana Kotliarova, a cancer researcher who is now a scientific review officer at the National Institutes of Health. She talked about her difficult childhood in Ufa, Russia, her …
Posted in: Education, Literacy, Pic of the Week, Women's History
Posted by: Wendi Maloney
A performer competes in a “dance battle” in the Coolidge Auditorium on February 22 during a Homegrown Concert Series event of the American Folklife Center. Dance battles are an urban dance tradition that celebrate individual talent while helping to keep diverse forms of urban musical and dance expressions alive. In the Coolidge, pairs of dancers …
Posted in: American Folklife Center, Events, Pic of the Week, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
The Young Readers Center in the Library of Congress hosted a series of events Jan. 28 to celebrate its new Saturday hours of operation, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The center, which opened in October 2009, will offer more young people and their families the opportunity to experience the wonders and resources of the nation’s library. “It …
Posted in: Books, Capitol Hill, Education, Libraries, Photos, Pic of the Week, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
The Library is highlighting presidential inauguration history in a temporary display on view through Saturday, Feb. 4 in the rooms known as Mahogany Row, LJ-110 to LJ-113, on the first floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building. Presidential treasures like the handwritten speeches of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln are featured along with collections on …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Collections, Curators, Exhibitions, History, Manuscripts, Photos, Pic of the Week, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
The Library of Congress welcomed new members of Congress and their family families, friends and supporters at events marking the start of the new term of the 115th Congress last week. Five new members of Congress – joined by about 800 guests – held receptions in the Jefferson or Madison buildings: Reps. Anthony Brown (D-Maryland), Tom O’Halleran (D-Arizona), Jamie …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Congress, Events, Photos, Pic of the Week, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
As is our tradition, the Library of Congress has once again decorated the Great Hall with a tall tree for the holidays, full of lights and ornaments for the enjoyment of visitors. I’m not sure exactly how tall, but it takes staff using a small cherry picker to put together and decorate the tree. Set amidst …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Photos, Pic of the Week, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
Luthier John Montgomery inspects the strings on the 1697 “Castelbarco” cello made by Cremonese master Antonio Stradivari, one of five Stradivari instruments originally donated to the Library by Gertrude Clarke Whittall in 1935. According to her bequest, the instruments would be played from time to time, as they were intended. To that end, she established …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Collections, Music, Photos, Pic of the Week, Washington DC