Today's post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher and Dr. Sylvia Naylor, archivists at the National Archives in College Park, MD. Midway through World War II it became apparent that the United States Government had increasing need for comprehensive financial information on American property interests in foreign countries, particularly enemy and enemy-dominated nations. This need … Continue reading A President Complies with Federal Regulations: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Form TFR-500
By David Langbart. It might surprise some to learn that government bureaucrats have a sense of humor and that it occasionally appears among the records preserved in the National Archives. One such instance was recently located in the files of the World War II-era Office of War Information (OWI). That agency was responsible for formulating … Continue reading Holiday Humor in Wartime: 1942
Today's post is written by Megan Dwyre, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park “Hans Smit Duyzenkunst lent his bicycle for the evaders transport, but never got it back. He request you politely for an other bicycle.” Hans Smit Duyzenkunst Claim While working on a reference request, I came across this claim from the file … Continue reading A Polite Request for a Bicycle
Today's blog is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher and Dr. Sylvia Naylor, Archivists at the National Archives in College Park. The recent movie, The Monuments Men, and the continuing interest in art provenance research, prompted us to share some information about the primary records for research documenting the work of the Monuments Men (actually Monuments, Fine … Continue reading Monuments Men Records at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland
By David Langbart The motto of the National Archives is "What is Past Is Prologue." Recently, while assisting a researcher at Archives II, I ran into my Dad, even though he died several years ago. A bit of background will help you understand. My father's first Government service, like most in his generation, came in … Continue reading A personal prologue at the National Archives
By David Langbart From time to time while working in the records, NARA staff find documents that provide new perspectives on events through which they lived. I recently had that experience. I remember well the terrible humanitarian disaster that befell local populations as Yugoslavia ripped itself apart during the 1990s. I remember, too, how many … Continue reading Yugoslavia 1970: The Writing on the Wall
Today’s post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher. Three years ago, on October 9, 2009, a former member of General Patton’s Third Army, in Room 105 of the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C. returned to the German Ambassador two 16th Century books he had taken from a German mine during April 1945. The story how … Continue reading The Travels of two 16th Century Books from Germany to California, to Washington, D.C., and Back to Germany, 1945-2009
By Jason Clingerman Political cartoonist Clifford Berryman made use of Thanksgiving throughout his career to highlight timely political issues near the holiday. Below are two examples of his Thanksgiving-themed cartoons: Delegates of the allied powers met in Washington after World War I to conduct peace negotiations. In this 1921 cartoon, Berryman utilizes the day before … Continue reading Cartoonist Clifford Berryman on Thanksgiving
Today’s post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher. One clear, chilly evening this week fifteen years I was alone in the foothills above the town of Ascona, Switzerland, wondering “how in the world did I end up here?” The answer begins in December 1996, in the wake of revelations about Switzerland having dormant bank accounts of … Continue reading An American Archivist at Ascona, Switzerland, October 1997
By David Langbart "This is an American soldier – he is your friend." So read the leaflet prepared by the United States for use in Vietnam. Underneath that caption, it pictured several American infantrymen advancing into combat. The time, however, was not the 1960s; it was mid-1945 and World War II in the Pacific was … Continue reading Vietnam and the Ironies of History
