Description: The Smithsonian Institution Archives will be celebrating African American History Month throughout February with a series of related posts on THE BIGGER PICTURE. “I have engaged in almost Every Branch of work that is usual and unusual about S.I.”[edan-image:id=siris_sic_5597,size=150,left] These words, written by Solomon G. Brown to Secretary Spencer F. Baird on August 12,
Description: In a 1991 issue of the Prophet, the Smithsonian African American Association’s newsletter, Claudine Kinard Brown called on staff to support Black museums across the country.
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="405" caption="Lucille St. Hoyme (1924-2001), J. Lawrence Angel (1915-1986), and Thomas Dale Stewart (1901-1997), 1967, by Smithsonian Institution Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Lucille St. Hoyme (1924-2001), J. Lawrence Angel (1915-1986), and Thomas Dale Stewart (1901-1997), 1967, by Smithsonian Institution
Description: As one of the first women to work in scientific illustration at the Smithsonian, Violet Dandridge made her mark at the United States National Museum.
Description: Most archival “discovery” stories are bogus, but this one (from the Smithsonian’s Joseph Cornell Study Center) is very, very cool! [via Artnet]DCist features some of the objects from the Library of Congress's new Rosa Parks exhibit. [via DCist] [edan-image:id=siris_sic_9968,size=450,center]Medieval medical manuscripts depict unrealistically happy patients. [via Onisillos
Description: Investigating digital files from the 1980s turns up software that let people play matchmaker–for endangered species. Let’s see where this leads.
Description: From the point in 1838 when the United States Congress accepted James Smithson’s bequest, it was recognized as a cultural resource, a public trust held by the federal government. Smithson had stipulated that the funds be used for an “establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” Being a cultural resource set aside for public use, the government bore the
Description: Vicarious research is one of the great joys of the reference desk at the Smithsonian Institution Archives. From our front-row (well, only-row) seat outside the reading room, we catch tantalizing glimpses of our patrons’ manifold research topics.The reference team fields around 6,000 queries per year. Ask us what people have been researching recently, and you’ll get into some