Collecting Memories: Treasures from the Library of Congress explores how cultures may guide and honor memory, memorialize the past, assemble knowledge of the known world, create collective histories, recall the events of the day, or recount a life. The exhibition juxtaposes voice recordings, moving images, scrolls, diaries, manuscripts, prints, photographs, maps, books, and so much more…
Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry Ada Limón will be the guest editor for the Academy of American Poets Poem-a-Day series weekdays during April. Of the 20 poems Limón chose for the series, she said, “I wanted poems that felt like they had a life to them; that they were expansive in some way; that they were reaching out…
Students, we have compiled a big list of resources to help you dig deep into National History Day (NHD) projects. Understanding NHD Projects Read the Contest Rule Book carefully. English | Spanish Watch the NHD Contest Rules video. Explore the categories. Click the orange buttons to learn more about each category. Documentary rules video project checklist evaluation…
The 19th annual Library of Congress National Book Festival will be held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center from 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2019. The event is free and open to the public. If you can’t make, don’t worry, as recordings of author presentations will be available at a…
This teaching resource blog was created to help educators and students teach and learn with primary sources from the Library of Congress. There is a lot of material to browse and search on the Primary Source Nexus, but sometimes you just need to go directly to a particular section of the Library website. But how do…
Today in History–November 14–the Library of Congress features the Library Company of Philadelphia, which signed a contract with its first librarian on this date in 1732. The subscription library was actually founded in November 1731 by Benjamin Franklin and friends but they had to wait until books arrived from England. The Library Company’s holdings were later made available to the…
Today in History–May 7–the Library of Congress features Archibald MacLeish, born on this day in 1892 in Glencoe, Illinois. MacLeish’s interest ranged from literature to law. He won a Pulitzer Prize for poetry and drama and served as the Librarian of Congress and Assistant Secretary of State. Find out more about the “poet librarian” by visiting the Today in…
Today in History–April 24–the Library of Congress celebrates its own birthday. On this day in 1800, President John Adams approved a $5,000 appropriation to purchase “such books as may be necessary for the use of congress.” According to Thomas Jefferson, any book would be useful: ” . . . there is in fact no subject to which a member of…
Today in History–April 13–the Library of Congress features Thomas Jefferson, born on this day in 1743. (Actually, he was born on April 2 under the Julian calendar but when Great Britain and its colonies switched to the Gregorian calendar in 1752 his birthday, along with everyone else’s, was shifted 11 days forward.) Find out more about this multitalented man…
Today in History–February 17–the Library of Congress features Thomas Jefferson, who was elected by the House of Representatives on this day in 1801. The House voted to break a tie in the Electoral College. Find out more about this acrimonious third presidential election by visiting the Today in History section, then follow the links below to access more primary…
Today in History–January 30–the Library of Congress features Thomas Jefferson’s Library, which Congress agreed to purchase on this day in 1815. The nearly $24,000 sale more than doubled the original 3,000-volume Library of Congress collection that was destroyed the year before when the British captured Washington D.C. and burned the U.S. Capitol. Learn more by visiting…