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Peniel E. Joseph (“The Sword and the Shield”) and Tamara Payne (“The Dead Are Arising”) will discuss their books on Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. with NPR television critic Eric Deggans.
This event is part of National Book Festival Presents, a year-round series that features high-caliber authors, their books and corresponding Library treasures.
Peniel E. Joseph (“The Sword and the Shield”) and Tamara Payne (“The Dead Are Arising”) will discuss their books on Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. with NPR television critic Eric Deggans.
This event is part of National Book Festival Presents, a year-round series that features high-caliber authors, their books and corresponding Library treasures.
NEWS: Danielle Allen, winner of the Library’s 2020 Kluge Prize, will host a series of events this spring at the Library to explore ideas and actions to strengthen America's democracy in the new campaign "Our Common Purpose: A Campaign for Civic Strength."
More: loc.gov/item/prn-21-009/kluge-prize-honoree-danielle-allen-launches-campaign-for-civic-strength/2021-02-18/?loclr=fbloc
Today in History: Charleston, S.C., surrenders to Union forces during the Civil War, 1865 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-18/?loclr=fbloc
Charleston Surrenders
Explore the family life of Ralph Ellison, novelist, essayist and literary critic. Ellison's experiences of hardship and encouragement early in his life drove him to pursue a college education at Tuskegee Institute. blogs.loc.gov/catbird/2021/02/the-family-life-of-ralph-ellison/?loclr=fbloc
February is African American History Month. Several federal agencies have created this website to honor the generations who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. Resources, exhibits & more: https://africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/?loclr=fbloc
Sissieretta Jones, a popular American soprano, was the 1st African American woman to headline a concert at Carnegie Hall in 1893. She toured around the world & performed at the White House.
Read more about Jones using this Research Guide to our historical newspaper archives. https://guides.loc.gov/chronicling-america-sissieretta-jones/selected-articles?loclr=fbloc
Sissieretta Jones was a popular African-American soprano who toured with her group the Black Patti Troubadors. This guide provides access to...
This Presidents' Day, explore the the original papers of 23 early presidents, from George Washington to Calvin Coolidge. Collections include some of the nation's most treasured documents, including George Washington's first inaugural address and Thomas Jefferson's rough draft of the Declaration of Independence.
More: loc.gov/item/prn-20-085/?loclr=fbloc
Today in History: an explosion sinks the USS Maine in Havana harbor, 1898 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-15/?loclr=fbloc
Remember the Maine!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Do you have a box of bon-bons ready for atonement? Find more Valentine funnies by browsing our Chronicling America historical newspaper archives. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1934-02-11/ed-1/seq-87/?loclr=twloc #ChronAm
Happy Valentine's Day! Here's an early filmed kiss (1900), caught by the Edison Company. https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-14/?loclr=fbloc https://www.loc.gov/item/00694229/?loclr=fbloc
Everyday Mystery: There are five seas in the world, but why do people use the phrase "seven seas"? https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/browse-all-questions/item/what-are-the-seven-seas/?loclr=fbloc
There is no definitive answer to this question. The phrase is a figure of speech and has been used to refer to different bodies of water at various...
Library historians Michelle Krowl and Chris Warren give a short guided tour of the documents & objects in our collections from Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address. More: https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2021/02/lincolns-birthday-and-first-inauguration/?loclr=fbloc
Today in History: 16th US President Abraham Lincoln born in LaRue County, Kentucky, 1809, 1837 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-12/?loclr=fbloc
The Library of Congress has acquired the Aramont Library, a collection of rare books from some of the most prolific authors and artists of the 19th and 20th centuries. The gift by a donor who wishes to remain anonymous marks the first time the Aramont Library has been made available to the public.
More: loc.gov/item/prn-21-006/?loclr=fbloc
Everyday Mystery: The toothbrush you use every day was invented by someone, find out the genius who did it: https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/browse-all-questions/item/who-invented-the-toothbrush-and-when-was-it-invented/?loclr=fbloc
Various peoples. 1938 (modern). Poster from Gellé Frères Perfumers, Avenue de l’Opéra, 6, Paris. J. Cheret, 1889. Prints and Photographs Divi...
Today in History: author Laura Ingalls Wilder born in a "little house" in Wisconsin, 1867 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-07/?loclr=fbloc
Laura Ingalls Wilder
Everyday Mystery: Have you ever wondered how fortunes get inside of fortune cookies? https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/browse-all-questions/item/how-do-fortunes-get-inside-fortune-cookies/?loclr=fbloc
February is African American History Month. Several federal agencies have created this website to honor the generations who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. Resources, exhibits & more: https://africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/?loclr=fbloc
Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden joined journalist Robin Givhan to discuss the Library's work and her trailblazing career in the wake of our country's reckoning over racial justice in this Washington Post Live event.
Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, who made history as the first woman and the first African American to lead the Library of Congress, joins Washington Post senior critic-at-large Robin Givhan to discuss marking this moment in the wake of widespread protests over the death of George Floyd, and how our past informs our understanding of the present.
The Library is convening a public committee to enhance communication with external stakeholders about the U.S. Copyright Office's ongoing modernization initiative. Applications from qualified members of the public are being accepted through March 15, 2021.
More: loc.gov/item/prn-21-005/?loclr=fbloc
The Library of Congress announced this week that it is convening a public committee to enhance communication with external stakeholders about the...
Today in History: Roger Williams, religious freedom advocate & founder of Rhode Island, lands in America, 1631 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-05/?loclr=fbloc
Roger Williams, Rhode Island Founder
Important new books on Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Eleanor Roosevelt and on humanity’s inclination to war will headline the winter literary season of the Library of Congress. The Library will also feature a conversation with the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature and a symposium on diversity in books for young people.
More: loc.gov/item/prn-21-004/?loclr=twloc
Join Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden tomorrow at 1 pm ET for an interview with Washington Post senior critic-at-large Robin Givhan about race in America and the Library's work to ensure that a diversity of experiences is reflected in our historical record. Register for the Washington Post Live event: carlahayden.splashthat.com/
Today in History: the USO is incorporated to serve US military forces on leave, 1941 https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-04/?loclr=fbloc
Home Away From Home
More details and videos of the soldiers who warmed the atrium of the Library’s James Madison Memorial Building with song on a cold recent night, as they guard the U.S. Capitol complex. From Task & Purpose, an online publication for the military community. https://taskandpurpose.com/culture/army-national-guard-capitol-wayfaring-stranger/
Inside the atrium of the Library's Madison building across the street from the U.S. Capitol, Pfc. Paul McGiffin of the Texas Army National Guard sings "Wayfaring Stranger" to boost morale during their long hours protecting the Capitol complex during the past few weeks. Video courtesy of Stephen Hutto.
We are honored to provide support to the soldiers in their important service & thank them for safeguarding our national institutions and treasures.
Soldier singing to boost moral during long hours of guarding the Capital.
American Folklife Center
Happy Groundhog Day! Tradition tells us groundhogs can predict whether spring will come early or winter will deliver more cold weather.
Our favorite song for Groundhog day is this recording of "Groundhog" sung by Ernie Alston in 1940 for collectors Charles L. Todd and Robert Sonkin at the link
https://www.loc.gov/item/toddbib000064/?loclr=fbafc
The groundhog custom has its roots in European animal and weather lore. In Europe, animals such as bears and badgers were credited with the power to predict the weather. It was also believed that a clear day on February 1 or 2 would predict a longer winter, and a cloudy day a shorter one. This is summed up in the rhyme:
"If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Winter has another flight.
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Winter will not come again."
These two traditions combined to one in which an animal was said to predict the weather by looking for its shadow, as in the modern Groundhog tradition.
Image: Woodchuck - Arctomys monax / E.K. (woodchuck is another name for a groundhog). Unattributed lithograph, ca. 1874. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/item/2017660742/?loclr=fbafc
Everyday Mystery: Can a groundhog's shadow really predict if there will be six more weeks of winter? Time to find out: https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries//meteorology-climatology/item/groundhog-shadow/?loclr=fbloc
No, the shadow-observing lore has no scientific basis and will not tell you if there will be six more weeks of winter. However, seeing wild groundh...
February is African American History Month. Several federal agencies have created this website to honor the generations who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. Resources, exhibits & more:
Everyday Mystery: Grapefruits don't look like grapes, so how did it get its name? Find out: https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/browse-all-questions/item/how-did-grapefruit-get-its-name-it-doesnt-look-like-a-grape/?loclr=fbloc
It is believed that the name refers to the manner in which grapefruit grows in clusters on a tree. Grapefruit. SNAP-Ed Connection, U.S. Department ...
American Folklife Center
February is African American History Month. Find events, collections, video, audio and more from the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum at the link. https://www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov?loclr=fbafc
Image: Image Credit: [Rosa Parks] / Donna Terek, '93. (Library of Congress)
Today in History: poet & author Langston Hughes born, 1902. https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/february-01/?loclr=fbloc
THIS WEEK: A new Library blog was launched that will chart our progress as we create ways for more Americans to engage with & add their perspectives to our collections, allowing us to share a more inclusive American story, funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Read & subscribe to "Of the People: Widening the Path" http://blogs.loc.gov/ofthepeople/?loclr=fbloc
Everyday Mystery: Can zebras be domesticated? Find out the answer before you think about owning one: https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/browse-all-questions/item/can-zebras-be-domesticated/?loclr=fbloc
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