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Category: Architecture

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Just About “Ready for Research” 

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

The following is a guest post by Helena Zinkham, Chief, and Aliza Leventhal, Head, Technical Services, both of the Prints & Photographs Division. So many exciting collections are in the pipeline for routine access that it’s time for a look ahead. The Prints & Photographs Division works on about 20 “processing” projects at a time …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

The Lincoln Memorial at 100

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

At the end of the month, we mark the centennial of the Lincoln Memorial. This monument to our 16th President was dedicated on Memorial Day (then Decoration Day) in 1922 and its one hundred year birthday falls on Memorial Day this year. The Lincoln Memorial is visited by millions every year in Washington, D.C., and …

Towering over the Landscape

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

Water towers dot the landscape, almost always the tallest structure in the nearby area. When taking long road trips, they catch my eye, especially ones where the tower has been painted to reflect something about the region or when the tower itself is an unusual shape. For example, the tower above, in Gaffney, South Carolina, …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

The Changing Face of Washington, D.C. in the U.S News & World Report Magazine Photo Collection

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

One of the most fascinating and enjoyable aspects of research with visual materials is the wide variety of information you can learn from a single image, from the obvious to the unexpected.  A photographic portrait, for example, has a primary job of showing you what someone looks like. But beyond that, you could learn about …

Documenting Historic American Landscapes – Challenge Accepted!

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

The following is a guest post by Ryan Brubacher, Reference Librarian, Prints & Photographs Division.  In late November, the winners of the 2021 HALS Challenge were announced. The announcement offers a good opportunity to highlight the Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) collection, including the historical reports found within this collection, as well as the National …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Travel Virtually with Roadside America

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

The following is a guest post by Helena Zinkham, Chief, Prints and Photographs Division. The Prints and Photographs Division (P&P) invites you to get your mouse (or your car or bicycle) ready to travel the byways and highways that photographer John Margolies drove along as he created the Roadside America Collection between 1969 and 2008. …

Pointing North in the Historic American Buildings Survey Collection

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

What do a carousel horse, Theodore Roosevelt, and a lighthouse have in common? Look closely at the drawing below from the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) of the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial – can you spot two Roosevelts? There is, of course, the large drawing of the Roosevelt statue featured at the memorial on Theodore Roosevelt …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

One Hundred Fifty Years of Copyright at the Library of Congress

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

The year 1870 is significant for copyright and the Library of Congress. Prior to that year, copyright registration was administered by the U.S. District Courts. Starting in 1870, the copyright registration and deposit system was centralized in the Library of Congress. One of the requirements for protecting your creation with copyright was to send in …