By T. Juliette Arai A common research topic concerns information on military installations, i.e., forts, camps, depots, barracks, etc. Generally, the bulk of the records we have relate to permanent installations, but we do have a few records pertaining to some temporary posts. Records relating to military installations can be found in a number of … Continue reading Researching Forts at Archives I
RIP Betty Ford, April 8, 1918 – July 8, 2011
By Alfie Paul In honor of the passing of former First Lady Betty Ford, we thought we would find her in the records. Obviously, there is more to be found in the Ford Presidential Library but she can be found in our corner of NARA as well. Elizabeth Ann Bloomer Warren Ford, Betty, was First Lady … Continue reading RIP Betty Ford, April 8, 1918 – July 8, 2011
…And Germany in Ruins Surrendered Unconditionally
Today’s post is written by Lopez D. Matthews, Jr., an Archives Technician in the Holdings Management Division at Archives II. Occasionally, as we work with records we come across a document that completely catches our attention. This was the case as we began describing the documents held in Record Group 498, the records of the European … Continue reading …And Germany in Ruins Surrendered Unconditionally
Music at the Archives – John Philip Sousa
Today’s guest blogger is Trevor Plante, a supervisory archivist at the National Archives in Washington, DC. Following up on two recent blog posts from our office by Juliette Arai and Mark Mollan I thought it would be a great opportunity to blog about one of my favorite Marine Corps documents that I often show Marines when we … Continue reading Music at the Archives – John Philip Sousa
Before “Your Show of Shows”: Sid Caesar and the Coast Guard
Today's guest blogger is Mark Mollan, a reference archivist specializing in records of the U.S. Navy and Maritime agencies. Not long ago, an Archives I reference staff member came across a Muster Roll for the USCG unit “Tars and Spars”--a touring entertainment troupe created to bolster the morale and support of World War II USCG … Continue reading Before “Your Show of Shows”: Sid Caesar and the Coast Guard
Music at the National Archives
By T. Juliette Arai RG 93 (War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records), Entry 50 (Music Book, n.d.) As most researchers are aware, the National Archives has many records that are administrative in nature. In some very rare cases, however, we do come across a document that is so much more interesting than the everyday … Continue reading Music at the National Archives
How World War I Also Became Known as The Chemist’s War
Today’s post is the second in an occasional series where we will highlight some of the work of our volunteers. Jean Onufrak is a volunteer with the Volunteer Office at the National Archives at College Park. When you think of the term “chemical weapons”, you probably think of their use nowadays in terrorist actions or contentious … Continue reading How World War I Also Became Known as The Chemist’s War
Seamanship: A Report from the Navy Team
Today's post is written by Dale Jackson, an enthusiastic archives technician with the Navy Records processing team at Archives II. Hello, here at the National Archives we the Archives Technicians have had the opportunity to process, preserve, and repair historical military records, specifically from the United States Navy. My undergraduate major is in Criminal Justice, … Continue reading Seamanship: A Report from the Navy Team
After 200 years, a glimpse into The Art of Secret Writing
Today's post is written by James Rush, a supervisory archivist in the textual processing unit at Archives II. On June 8, 2011, the National Security Agency announced that it had declassified and released to the National Archives and Records Administration over 50,000 pages of historic records relating to cryptology and the history of intelligence gathering. … Continue reading After 200 years, a glimpse into The Art of Secret Writing
No Enemy Contact, but Alien Contact…
Today's post is written by Joe Gillette, a processing archivist at Archives II. During the Vietnam War, American army commands maintained daily journals documenting assorted events. Most entries were relatively mundane, documenting staff meetings, personnel travel, incoming or outgoing messages, and the like. Some were more administratively significant, such as changes in command, the awarding … Continue reading No Enemy Contact, but Alien Contact…