Description: “Folks at Home: February 17, 1863” was sent to the Smithsonian Institution Archives by The Grove National Historic Landmark. In this letter, Robert Kennicott, co-founder of the Megatherium Club, wrote about his life at the Smithsonian Castle and described his relationship to the club’s members. This letter acts as a great segue into further research of the Megatherium Club and
Description: A twentieth century Renaissance man, Louis R. Purnell lived a remarkable life. His career began in the skies above Italy and Germany, where he flew 88 combat missions as an original member of the Tuskegee Airmen. After the war, while working at the National Museum of Natural History, he traveled the world’s oceans collecting marine specimens, taught himself geology and