Top 14 Moments at the National Archives in 2013

Wow--what a year! Our editorial panel tried to limit this list to ten, but eventually we gave up and picked 14 instead. (For more great National Archives moments, check on out the Top 10 Innovative Moments of 2013.) We also want to send a big thank you to the staff members of the National Archives across … Continue reading Top 14 Moments at the National Archives in 2013

Executive Order 9981: Equality in the military

Cast your vote for Executive Order 9981 to be displayed first in the new "Records of Rights" gallery. Polls close on November 15! Today’s post comes from Tammy Williams, archivist at the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library President Harry S. Truman spent his entire young adulthood in Missouri, a border state during the Civil War. … Continue reading Executive Order 9981: Equality in the military

Burned and brittle records are in good hands

Over 5,000 requests for veterans' military personnel records are received every day at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, MO. Donna Judd spends each day carefully searching for valuable information for veterans in the documents left burned and brittle by the 1973 fire at the NPRC building. She looks for separation documents … Continue reading Burned and brittle records are in good hands

Burnt in memory: Looking back at the 1973 St. Louis fire

This blog post is condensed from the article “Burnt in Memory,” by Marta G. O’Neill and William Seibert, from the Spring 2013 issue of Prologue. By the time it was daylight on July 12, 1973, at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, one thing was painfully clear: the loss of records to … Continue reading Burnt in memory: Looking back at the 1973 St. Louis fire

It’s why I do what I do

Today's blog post in honor of Memorial Day comes from Michael Pierce, preservation technician at the National Archives at Saint Louis. It’s called “the Forgotten War.” But like any conflict, the Korean War is always remembered by the men and women who fought in it, and by their families. The Preservation Lab at St. Louis … Continue reading It’s why I do what I do

Archives Spotlight: National Personnel Records Center

If you have served in the military or worked for the Federal Government, your personnel file is held at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri. More than 34 million files  are held in this facility, filling 2.3 million cubic feet of records on 385,000 shelves. There are 6.2 billion feet of … Continue reading Archives Spotlight: National Personnel Records Center