Today’s post comes from Debra Steidel Wall, Deputy Archivist of the United States and Commissioner on the Congressional Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission. As the home of the 19th Amendment, the National Archives invites you to join our virtual commemoration of the centennial of the Constitutional amendment that guaranteed that "The right of citizens of the … Continue reading Commemorating the 19th Amendment Centennial
The National Archives is committed to the health and safety of our visitors and staff, and we continue to do our part to prevent the spread of COVID-19. While our museums and facilities are closed to the public, we are continuing to perform mission essential emergency services to support our nation and citizens. These mission … Continue reading National Archives Operations during COVID-19: Mission Critical Functions Continue
Have you seen the administration’s 2020 Federal Data Strategy? It emphasizes the need for federal agencies to leverage our data as strategic assets. Action 8 of the plan specifically speaks to improving data in order to support artificial intelligence (AI) research in federal agencies. Good data is a critical building block for AI. As you … Continue reading Digital Transformation: Exploring AI
One of the great things about growing up the libraries of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was getting to work with retired faculty. No one ever seemed to really retire at MIT! Most retained their office or lab space, continued their research, and still used the libraries. One of my favorites was Harold “Doc” Edgerton, … Continue reading Remembering Doc Edgerton
Since the Innovation Hub opened in July 2015, many visitors and volunteers have passed through its doors to scan documents from our holdings, attend presentations and conferences, and participate in brainstorming sessions as well as scanathons and editathons. The Innovation Hub accomplishes an important part of NARA's mission to make access happen through digitization, and … Continue reading Recent events at the Innovation Hub
Today NARA is releasing the entirety of our digital preservation framework for public comment. This digital preservation framework consists of our approach to determining risks faced by electronic files, and our plans for preserving different types of file formats. The public is encouraged to join the discussion, September 16 through November 1, 2019, on GitHub. … Continue reading Digital Preservation Framework Released for Public Comment
The Harry S. Truman Presidential Library in Independence, MO, is undergoing a year-long renovation that will result in a new Truman permanent exhibition, new amenities for visitors, and enhanced educational and community programming. Yesterday, I joined Missouri Governor Mike Parson, Missouri State Senator John Rizzo, Clifton Truman Daniel (President Truman’s oldest grandson), and Library Director … Continue reading Truman Library Ground-breaking Ceremony
On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy challenged the nation to land a man on the Moon before the end of the decade, striking a responsive chord with the American people. The Apollo program was created to meet this goal, and on July 20, 1969, astronauts of the Apollo 11 Mission became the first … Continue reading Apollo 11: One Giant Leap for Mankind
This is a story about valuing the hard work that has come before us and thinking innovatively about how we can share that hard work in new ways, using new and emerging digital platforms. Back in 2006, we launched a short feature on our website, which we called Today’s Document. We featured a particular document … Continue reading Making Access Happen in the Digital Era
Last week I hosted our annual Archivist’s Achievement Awards Ceremony, an event I look forward to each year. This ceremony is important to me and gives me the opportunity to highlight the achievements of our staff across the National Archives. But more importantly, it gives me the chance to say thank you. Incredible work happens … Continue reading 19th Annual Archivist’s Achievement Awards
