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Posted by: Erin Allen
The Library of Congress is taking its collections out to the ballgame, reaching a new audience in a new venue. The Washington Nationals in April opened an exhibition at Nationals Park that, through Library photos, explores baseball’s roots and celebrates the game’s traditions – especially in the nation’s capital. “Baseball Americana from the Library of …
Posted in: Baseball, Collections, Exhibitions, History, Photos, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
A Message from the Librarian Today, on the Library of Congress’s 215th anniversary, I want especially to congratulate the Library’s extraordinary staff for their work in building this amazing, one-of-a-kind institution. I am, and always will be, deeply grateful for all they do. The heart and soul of this great library always has been its …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Collections, Congress, Copyright, Education, Libraries, Preservation, Thomas Jefferson Building, Today in History, Veterans History Project, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
This month marks the 150th anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. The 16th president was shot by John Wilkes Booth the evening of April 14 and died nine hours later on April 15. Several days later, Lincoln’s body would begin its long train-trek home to Springfield, Ill., where he would be buried on …
Posted in: Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Collections, Events, Exhibitions, History, Manuscripts, News, Newspapers, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
Headlining Library of Congress news for March was the announcement of new selections to the National Recording Registry. Time called this year’s selections the “most American playlist ever.” “If the Smithsonian is America’s attic, the National Recording Registry is the dusty box of records that America’s parents left up there,” wrote reporter Ryan Teague Beckwith. …
Posted in: Abraham Lincoln, Books, Collections, Exhibitions, Music, News, Newspapers, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
(The following is a story written by Peter Armenti, literature specialist for the Digital Reference Section, found in the March/April 2015 issue of the Library of Congress Magazine, LCM. You can read the issue in its entirety here.) The nation’s most acclaimed poets have helped the Library of Congress promote poetry for nearly 80 years. The …
Posted in: Poetry, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
The Library of Congress presented a special program on Tuesday to honor the Howard G. Buffett Foundation for loaning the Rosa Parks Collection to the Library. A special guest was U.S. Rep. John Conyers, who employed Rosa Parks in his Detroit congressional office for 22 years. Conyers described Rosa Parks as a quiet, humble person …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Collections, Congress, Events, Exhibitions, Pic of the Week, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
(The following is a story written by Audrey Fischer for the March/April 2015 issue of the Library of Congress Magazine, LCM. You can read the issue in its entirety here.) A romance that began at the Library of Congress in the 1930s led to the creation of a national poetry prize. Several years before former president …
Posted in: Capitol Hill, Events, Poetry, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington DC
Posted by: Erin Allen
Walking into the Chicago office of Allan Pinkerton’s detective agency one afternoon in 1856 was a woman of medium height, “slender, graceful in her movements, and perfectly self-possessed in her manner.” Claiming to be a widow, aged 23, Kate Warne was looking for a job, and not as a secretary. One could imagine Pinkerton’s surprise …
Posted in: Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Collections, Events, History, Manuscripts, News, Newspapers, Video, Washington DC, Women's History
Posted by: Erin Allen
(The following is a guest post by Michelle Krowl, Civil War and Reconstruction Specialist in the Manuscript Division. To commemorate the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, for a limited time [March 4-7, 2015] the Library of Congress will display both the four-page manuscript copy and the reading copy of the address in the Great Hall …
Posted in: Abraham Lincoln, Capitol Hill, Civil War, Collections, Curators, Education, Events, Exhibitions, History, Manuscripts, News, Newspapers, Today in History, Washington DC