Today’s post comes from the National Archives Office of Presidential Libraries. King David Kalakaua of Hawaii was the first head of state to be honored with a White House state dinner on December 12, 1874, by President and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant. In the years that have followed, state dinners have come to signify the utmost respect … Continue reading State Dinners at the White House
Today’s post comes from Gregory Marose, an intern in the National Archives Office of Strategy and Communications. Sometimes sharing a good meal is the best way to resolve the differences you may have with another. For the United States and China, this strategy helped normalize relations during the peak of the Cold War. Today, the … Continue reading What’s Cooking Wednesdays: Dinner Diplomacy Thaws the Cold War
Today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office, is in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month and looks at the iconic musician and singer, Gloria Estefan. One of the best-selling female artists of all time, Cuban-American singer Gloria Estefan’s unique sound broke barriers as she fused the musical style of Havana with … Continue reading Gloria Estefan: Forging a New American Sound
August 8th is International Cat Day, and today’s post, from Alyssa Moore in the National Archives History Office looks at the history of household cats at the White House. While cats were likely used to control the mice population in the early years of the White House, Abraham Lincoln was the first President believed to … Continue reading The Office of the First Cat
September is National Piano Month. Today’s post comes from Thomas Richardson, an archives technician at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Many great musicians, composers, and songwriters start their musical training with one particular instrument: the piano. Traditionally it was the first instrument that anyone learning music played since many families had … Continue reading Musical Archives! Celebrating National Piano Month
This week is International Archives Week #IAW2021, time set aside by the International Council on Archives (ICA) to celebrate the founding of ICA in 1948. This year’s theme is #EmpoweringArchives. Today’s post comes from Bryan Cheeseboro, an archives technician at the National Archives in Washington, DC. The National Archives has created a short documentary Charles … Continue reading International Archives Week—Charles Sprout: A Civil War Soldier Revisited
Today’s post comes from Joseph P. Keefe, an archives specialist at the National Archives at Boston. In November 1942, following the Allies successful invasion of North Africa, over 51,000 Italian prisoners of war were sent to the United States to POW camps. On September 3, 1943, Allied forces made amphibious landings on the mainland of Italy, … Continue reading The Italian Service Units of World War II in Boston
April is Jazz Appreciation Month, and today’s Facial Hair Friday honors Washington, DC’s very own mustachioed jazz man: Duke Ellington. Born Edward Kennedy Ellington on April 29, 1899, in Washington, DC, Duke Ellington was the greatest jazz composer, pianist, and bandleader of his time. His career spanned more than six decades during which he composed … Continue reading Facial Hair Friday: Duke Ellington
To commemorate National Women’s Inventor’s Month and celebrate women innovators, we are highlighting Civil War–era inventor Clarissa Britain. Britain secured patents for seven inventions within 18 months. Today’s post comes from Jen Johnson, curator at the National Archives at Kansas City. Clarissa Britain was born into a politically successful, comfortable middle-class family in Brownville, New York … Continue reading Teacher, Principal, and Inventor Clarissa Britain
November is Native American Heritage Month. Visit National Archives News for more information on related events and resources. Today’s post comes from Gwen Granados, Director of the National Archives at Riverside, California. Not only the voices of policy makers and administrators appear in the records of the National Archives, but also those of individual people … Continue reading The Power of American Indian Boarding School Records
