Description: Smithsonian Libraries and Archives recently welcomed Tamar Evangelestia-Dougherty as our inaugural director. Join us as we get to know the new leader of our organization!
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="368" caption="The first flight on December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina with Orville Wright at the controls of the Wright Flyer, by Unidentified photographer, Photographic print, Smithsonian Institution Archives Record Unit 95 Box 25 Folder 41, Negative Number: 2002-12169."][/caption] On this day in 1903 the Wright Brothers
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="303" caption="Photographer holding large folding camera, by unidentified photographer, c. 1935, National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center, Archives Center."][/caption] Recently photography has said goodbye to two industry icons. Polaroid stopped production of its instant film, and Kodak announced that it is
Description: A photograph of Charles Greeley Abbot belonging to the Smithsonian Archives was in need of conservation. The photograph is stable, but the board to which the photograph is mounted is broken into three pieces. The board was stabilized and placed into a new housing constructed with rare earth magnets to impose a slight pressure on the object. The new housing holds the object
Description: [edan-image:id=siris_sic_9592,size=200,left]Did you know the Smithsonian was an early adopter of the telephone? In June of 1878, a system of electronic bells and telephones was installed throughout the Smithsonian Castle. The system connected several workrooms and offices to provide instant communications within the building. At that time, there were only 187 telephone lines
Description: For a period of time in the early 1990s, the Smithsonian Institution's Arts and Industries Building played host to an experimental exhibition gallery space.
Description: Link Love: a weekly post with links to interesting videos and stories about archival issues, technology and culture, and Washington D.C. and American history.
Description: [edan-image:id=siris_sic_6861,size=300,right] Some students look forward eagerly to the new school year; others dread the end of summer and the long year ahead. How did the Smithsonian’s founding donor, James Smithson (1765-1829), feel about school? Smithson attended Oxford University in England from 1782 to 1786, receiving a Masters of Arts degree in chemistry and mineralogy.