Records about the Civilian Conservation Corps in the National Register of Historic Places

CCC Camp (National Archives Identifier 281450) When the United States was mired in the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt established the Civilian Conservation Corps, to help improve America’s public lands, forests, and parks.  There are just under one thousand properties in the National Register of Historic Places associated with the CCC, including the Stowe CCC … Continue reading Records about the Civilian Conservation Corps in the National Register of Historic Places

“I Trust You Will Be Able to Assist Me”: Genealogy Researchers Contact the Bureau of Indian Affairs

Today's post is by Rose Buchanan, Archivist and Subject Matter Expert for Native American Related Records On July 20, 1964, Ida Ellen Stansbury Robinson of Merced, California, wrote to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) headquarters in Washington, DC, to request information about her family history. “For a number of years I have been aware … Continue reading “I Trust You Will Be Able to Assist Me”: Genealogy Researchers Contact the Bureau of Indian Affairs

Water, Water, Everywhere – Hydroelectric Power Plants in the National Register

Hydroelectric Power is one of the largest sources of renewable energy and is a popular means of providing power, as long as there was a water source and there was the means to construct a plant to harness the water.  There are more that four hundred properties in the records of the National Register (National … Continue reading Water, Water, Everywhere – Hydroelectric Power Plants in the National Register

You Load Sixteen Tons and What Do You Get? – Coal Records in the National Register

"Mine America's Coal" (National Archives Identifier 515013) Tomorrow, Friday March 16, the exhibit “Power & Light: Russel Lee’s Coal Survey” opens at the National Archives Building in Washington DC.  It features “photographs of coal communities by American documentary photographer Russell Lee. These images tell the story of laborers who helped build the nation, of a … Continue reading You Load Sixteen Tons and What Do You Get? – Coal Records in the National Register

The Story of Two Presidents and One Dam Model

Today’s post is written by Cody White, Archivist at the National Archives at Denver The contractors were given seven years to do the impossible: dam up the mighty Colorado River in Black Canyon, southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. But it only took them five, when in 1936 the completed dam was formally turned over to … Continue reading The Story of Two Presidents and One Dam Model

Norman Rockwell and his Dam Painting

Today’s post is written by Cody White, Archivist at the National Archives at Denver. “That’s a mechanical drawing . . . where’s some human interest?” posed the famous artist as he took in the vista of Arizona’s 710-foot-tall, 1,560-foot-wide Glen Canyon Dam. The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) staffers accompanying the artist—who at that point in … Continue reading Norman Rockwell and his Dam Painting

Mining the Archive for Prospective Research

Today’s post is in honor of National Miners Day, celebrated annually on December 6th. This blog is written by John C. Harris, Archives Technician at the National Archives at Philadelphia. Introduction Amidst the era of New Deal regulation and reform, Congress aimed to regulate the coal industry. The Bituminous Coal Conservation Act of 1935 established … Continue reading Mining the Archive for Prospective Research

Labor [Day] Related Records in the National Register of Historic Places

Labor Day 1903 (National Archives Identifier 6010437) As the calendar turns to September and we pass Labor Day, the unofficial end to summer, you might be wondering about the Labor Day Holiday, the federal holiday that honors and recognizes the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements … Continue reading Labor [Day] Related Records in the National Register of Historic Places