Image of US Military personnel stack coffins containing the remains of the victims of the Jonestown Tragedy for transport to Dover Air Force Base, Delaware (NAID 6413436)

Remembering Jonestown 40 Years Later

Today’s post is written by Victoria Otero, an Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. November 18, 2018 marked 40 years since the passing of 918 people in the jungles of Guyana. While debate still exists as to whether or not the event was one of mass suicide or mass murder, the event … Continue reading Remembering Jonestown 40 Years Later

Making Good History: Preserving Records of the February 1893 Negotiations with Hawaiian Commissioners

Today’s post is written by David Langbart, an Archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park. On January 17, 1893, Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani was overthrown in a coup.  The resulting Provisional Government sent five commissioners to Washington to negotiate a treaty of annexation with the United States.  To accomplish that, … Continue reading Making Good History: Preserving Records of the February 1893 Negotiations with Hawaiian Commissioners

Thanksgiving Around the World, 1918

Today’s post is written by David Langbart, an Archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park.  This is a revision of an earlier post. Tomorrow marks the centennial of the first Thanksgiving celebration after the armistice effectively ending World War I.[1]  With the end of the war, Americans had more … Continue reading Thanksgiving Around the World, 1918

The Bureau of Reclamation’s Push to Create the Shoshone Cavern National Monument

Today’s post is written by Cody White, Archivist at the National Archives at Denver. “The cave was discovered by a man and his dog.” So University of Wyoming Professor Emeritus of History Phil Roberts succinctly explained it in a 2015 Wyoming State Historical Society blog post about Shoshone Cavern, Wyoming’s second named national monument and … Continue reading The Bureau of Reclamation’s Push to Create the Shoshone Cavern National Monument

Images of Camp 17.

The General Courts Martial of Lieutenant Commander Edward N. Little

Today’s post is written by William Green, Archives Technician in Textual Processing at the National Archives in Washington, DC U.S.  Navy Lieutenant Commander Edward N. Little was a prisoner of war (POW) from April 1942 until August 1945, as one of the nearly 30,000 Americans interned by the Japanese during World War II. Having survived … Continue reading The General Courts Martial of Lieutenant Commander Edward N. Little

The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month, 1918

Today’s post is written by David Langbart, an Archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park. The Armistice effectively ending World War I went into effect at 11AM on November 11, 1918.  After several earlier false rumors of the suspension of hostilities, official word of the signing of the armistice … Continue reading The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month, 1918

Now Available Online: Burial Cards of World War I Soldiers

Today’s post is written by Suzanne Zoumbaris, an Archives Specialist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park. On November 11, 1918, before hostilities ended, the 313th Infantry Regiment continued to fight along with other Allied units on the front of the Meuse-Argonne offensive. At 10:59 a.m. only one minute before … Continue reading Now Available Online: Burial Cards of World War I Soldiers

Street view of the 1st Battalion Headquarters, 313th Infantry Regt.

“Until the Glad News Comes”: A Letter from Verdun after the Great War

Today’s post is by Jordan Patty, an Archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives in College Park, MD While working on a project with Record Group 391 in the series Records of the 1st Through 338th and the 559th Infantry Regiment, 1/1/1916 - 12/31/1921 (NAID 604387), I came across an interesting letter that … Continue reading “Until the Glad News Comes”: A Letter from Verdun after the Great War