WAVES: It’s a Woman’s War Too!

Today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office, is in honor of Women's History Month and looks at the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service program, or WAVES, during World War II. Advertisement poster to join the WAVES. (National Archives Identifier 514649) Less than one year after the United States entered World … Continue reading WAVES: It’s a Woman’s War Too!

Historic Staff Spotlight: Eunice Whyte—Navy Veteran of both World Wars

As we commemorate Veterans Day, we want to thank all of the veterans who have served our country throughout the years. Today’s historic spotlight is on National Archives employee Eunice Whyte, who served in the U.S. Navy in both World Wars.  Only two women served in the U.S. Naval Reserves during both World War I … Continue reading Historic Staff Spotlight: Eunice Whyte—Navy Veteran of both World Wars

Facial Hair Friday: Bushy Beard and Shark’s Teeth

In this Facial Hair Friday photo, Coast Guardsman Kent C. Pompella displays both a bushy beard and shark teeth earrings. His is just one of the many beards featured in a series of Coast Guardsmen at Work in the Records of the U.S. Coast Guard that have been digitized and made available in the National … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Bushy Beard and Shark’s Teeth

Navajo Code Talker: Adolph Nagurski

November 11 is Veterans Day. Visit the National Archives website for more information on related events and resources. Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an expert archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri. The Navajo code talkers were pivotal U.S. Marines in the Pacific Theater of World War II, … Continue reading Navajo Code Talker: Adolph Nagurski

Private Charles Samuel Addams: Creator of the Addams Family

Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an expert archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri. He’s creepy and he’s cooky, mysterious and spooky, he’s altogether ooky, he’s Charles Samuel Addams. Charles Addams for Look magazine, 1952. (Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress) A noted cartoonist and artist whose … Continue reading Private Charles Samuel Addams: Creator of the Addams Family

North Platte Feeds the Troops

Today's post comes from Joshua Cain, an archives technician at the National Archives in College Park, MD. It features digitized videos and images available in the National Archives Catalog highlighting North Platte's role in World War II. In the early to mid-1900s, North Platte, Nebraska, was a small farm town located on the Union Pacific … Continue reading North Platte Feeds the Troops

World War II Internees and POWs in Switzerland

November 11 is Veterans Day, honoring those who served in the United States Armed Forces. Today’s posts come from Jennifer Halpern, an archives specialist in the National Declassification Center (NDC).  PAIR (Pre-ADRRES [Archival Declassification Review & Redaction System] Indexing Review) is one of the tracks the National Declassification Center (NDC) employs to review classified records … Continue reading World War II Internees and POWs in Switzerland

FDR’s White House Map Room

October is American Archives Month! We’re celebrating the work of archivists and the importance of archives with a series of blog posts highlighting our “Archives Across America.” Today’s post comes from Sarah Navins from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library in Hyde Park, New York.  Franklin D. Roosevelt's mind saw in maps. His love of maps can … Continue reading FDR’s White House Map Room

Victory! Americans Everywhere Celebrated the End of World War II in 1945

(Today’s post is from Jim Worsham, editor of Prologue magazine, the quarterly of the National Archives and Records Administration, and is based on a longer article in the Summer 2015 issue.) President Harry S. Truman watched the clock closely, wanting to abide by the agreement to make the historic announcement at the same time as … Continue reading Victory! Americans Everywhere Celebrated the End of World War II in 1945

Hitler’s Final Words

This post comes from Greg Bradsher's latest article “Hitler’s Final Words” in Prologue magazine. Bradsher is a senior archivist at the National Archives and a frequent contributor to Prologue. A little after 11 p.m., Gertrude Junge, the 25-year-old secretary to Adolf Hitler, woke from a one-hour nap, and, thinking it was time for the nightly tea with her … Continue reading Hitler’s Final Words