Description: A 1936 exchange of letters about the prickly porcupine preserves both a contemporary scientific debate and the wit and wisdom of a young Utah girl with a beloved pet.
Description: Did you know that Joseph Francis invented the first metal life-saving boat? Or that Gail Borden invented the process for creating condensed milk? Neither did I until I heard The World Is Yours episode titled “Unheraled American Inventors,” which originally aired on April 4, 1937.Where most of the episodes I’ve listened to begin with the host walking up to two people while they
Description: When the men and women of the Smithsonian heard the call to duty in World War II, they again took up the call as they had during World War I. Secretaries Charles G. Abbot and Alexander Wetmore provided leadership that brought the Smithsonian’s resources to the aid of the nation, while safeguarding its primary mission: the increase and diffusion of knowledge. Once again,
Description: During debates about the Smithsonian’s founding, the idea of using James Smithson’s bequest for a botanic garden was included in several drafts of the bill considered by Congress. In 1850, President Millard Fillmore commissioned America’s preeminent landscape designer Andrew Jackson Downing to design plans for the National Mall, including grounds around the Smithsonian Castle,
Description: A selection of posters from programs and exhibitions at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (formerly National Collection of Fine Arts and National Museum of American Art) and Renwick Gallery.
Description: The South Yard behind the Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle, is bordered on the east by the Arts and Industries Building and west by the Freer Gallery of Art. In the late 19th century, it was the site of small buildings for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Taxidermy Studio, National Zoological Park, and Aerodrome Studio. After World War I, a Quonset hut