Description: Smithsonian Magazine shares reflections on John Lewis’s legacy at the Smithsonian and beyond. [via Smithsonian Magazine] The newly renovated Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library awaits its first patrons! [via Washington Post][edan-image:id=siris_arc_389626,size=450,center]Paleontologist Lee Hall offers a handy (claw-y) guide to digging up dinosaur bones. [via Mateusz
Description: Exactly 165 years ago today, legislation establishing the Smithsonian Institution was passed by the US Congress and signed into law by President James K. Polk. From today’s perspective, it seems like a “no-brainer” to accept a generous bequest from a little-known Englishman named James Smithson and create an institution in his name. But from the perspective of that era, the
Description: Oral history interviews sometimes reveal the central role that a mentor can play in the life of a young person, changing the road taken in that person’s life.
Description: How can you help the Smithsonian uncover new information about its collections? Try your hand transcribing documents, diaries, and field books at the new Smithsonian Transcription Center.
Description: It's time again to celebrate all the wonderful things archives have and do! The Society of American Archivists declares each October American Archives Month and the Smithsonian theme for this year is "Discover and Connect." At the Smithsonian Institution Archives, we handle over 6000 reference requests per year and have an ambitious digitization plan to serve people worldwide
Description: On the evening of October 1, 1847, while using a small telescope on the roof of the family home, Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) spotted a comet where one had not been before. Word of this achievement spread quickly through the scientific community. The American Journal of Science declared her “the first American entitled to the honor of the original discovery of a comet.” Some
Description: Each week, the Archives features a woman who has been a groundbreaker at the Smithsonian, past or present, in a series titled Wonderful Women Wednesday.