Abraham Lincoln, with little formal education, studied a popular textbook, “English Grammar in Familiar Lectures” on his own while in his 20s. Through it, he gained a mastery of the language that would give the nation some of its most enduring speeches.
The Library’s collection of art from the “golden age of travel posters” are copyright-free and can be downloaded and used for any purpose you like.
LeVar Burton, fresh from a hosting “Jeopardy,” turns his attention to hosting a special edition of the Library’s 2021 National Book Festival, a one-hour special on PBS that is studded with some of the world’s brightest literary stars.
George Yu is an award-winning luthier based in Louisville, Kentucky, who models his handcrafted violins on rare Italian instruments, including a 1654 Amati violin at the Library.
The remarkable career of Marie Tharp, the cartographer and scientist who helped map the ocean’s floor for the first time in history, is preserved in her papers at the Library. A pioneering female scientist of 20th century, her work help lay the groundwork for the modern understanding of continental drift and plate tectonics.
The ceramics created by ancient Maya potters make for some of the most vibrantly colored objects that survive in the archaeological record of the Americas. John Hessler, curator of the Library’s Kislak collection, explains how their distinctive blue color has survived for centuries.
Glen Campbell’s hit recording of “Wichita Lineman” is one of the inductees into the National Recording Registry. Here’s how Campbell, songwriter Jimmy Webb and studio musicians put the song together.
Jade Snow Wong was a pioneering Asian American writer, businesswoman and artist. Her memoir, “Fifth Chinese Daughter,” became a mid-century landmark of Asian American letters, while her ceramic works were shown in some of the nation’s premier museums. The Library holds her papers.
The Great American Road Trip — traveling the highways and backroads of the nation — has been a national tradition since the invention of the automobile.
For 30 years now, the Library’s Junior Fellows program has provided undergraduate and graduate students with experiences in everything the world’s largest library has to offer. This year’s class of 42 interns shows off their research projects.