NATIONAL ARCHIVES MUSEUM: Washington, DC, A Treasure Trove of American History

 

National Archives, Washington, DC , viewed from the Navy Memorial

The National Archives Museum in Washington, DC, is home to the United States Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, and millions of other historic documents. I recently visited, joining crowds of people clustered around the displays in the rotunda to view the signatures on the Declaration of Independence. In a side gallery, working copies of the Bill of Rights revealed the editing marks as the representatives worked out the details of the wording. Like almost every piece of writing, it is never perfect the first time.

Photographs are not allowed in the museum, but posters on the bus stop outside provide a hint to what you will find inside the museum.

Permanent galleries in the Archives Museum focus on aspects of American history ranging from wartime, civil rights, women’s rights, politics, and more. Current special exhibits are All American: The Power of Sports (September 16, 2022 to January 7, 2024) which explores the power of sports to embody our national ideals and the power of athletes to challenge us to live up to them, and the 50th Anniversary of Title IX (June 21, 2022 to September 7, 2022), about the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.

1919 poster promoting school gardens

The Archives Museum Shop on the first floor of the museum is filled with American history themed items ranging from books and posters, to games, gifts and much more. I was intrigued by a reproduction of a Uncle Sam poster promoting gardening in wartime: Follow the Pied Piper, Join the United States School Garden Army (1919) in light of my recent book about a school garden, Planting a Garden in Room 6.  It seems that school gardens have been around for a long time.

A page from Juliet Nichols' Angel Island Light Station Log Book, kept in the National Archives

In the museum shop I was also impressed by the wide selection of books, especially for children, about men and women who have played a role in American History. My newest book for children, KEEPER OF THE LIGHT: JULIET FISH NICHOLS FIGHTS THE SAN FRANCISCO FOG (CameronKids/Abrams, 2022) is based on the lighthouse log book of Juliet Nichols, which is kept in the National Archives. I spent several days in the Archives when I was researching the book. The story focuses on the summer following the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 and Juliet's heroic ringing of the fog bell when the automated machine failed.

The National Archives are located at 701 Constitution Avenue NW. I got there by taking the Metro train, getting off at the Archives/Navy Memorial station.

For information about visiting the National Archives Museum, go to https://museum.archives.gov/visit

The National Archives are on the Federal Triangle Heritage Trail

 

VOTES FOR WOMEN: A PORTRAIT OF PERSISTENCE, Exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.

Photo from the 1913 Women's March at the Capital at the entrance to the Votes for Women exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.

In anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution giving women the right to vote, the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. has organized a special exhibition tracing the more than 80-year movement for women to obtain the right to vote as part of the larger struggle for equality. It is called Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence. 

Map of states and women's suffrage in 1920. White indicates states with full suffrage, black no suffrage. Some states gave women limited rights to vote. The 14th Amendment gave all women the right to vote in every state.

On my recent trip to Washington, I had a chance to see the exhibit–a wonderful array of photos, videos, paintings, posters, books, pennants and much more. From a 19th century portable ballot box to a Suffragette cookbook, every object in the exhibit has a story. A few of the items that particularly fascinated me are below. But the best way to get a sense of the breadth of the exhibit is at the Google Arts and Culture website with its slide show of selected items. The accompanying book for the exhibit, Votes for Women: A Portrait for Persistence by Kate Clarke Lemay, who also curated the exhibit, is available at the museum shop and online.

Winning poster design by Bertha Margaret Boye for the San Francisco College Equal Suffrage League, 1913. It is on the cover of the exhibition book by Kate Clarke Lemay.

In 1917, women who picketed the White House and refused to pay the fine after being arrested were sent to the Occoquan jail. One of them, Natalie Gray, embroidered her name and those of fellow picketers onto this scrap of fabric as a record of their time there.

Ida B. Wells-Barnett, journalist. In 1913, at the suffrage parade in Washington, D.C., she famously refused to march in the back with the other African American women. Instead, she marched at the front of the Illinois suffrage delegation.

Belva Ann Lockwood. She was the first woman to campaign for the presidency (1884 and 1888). Her platform focused on women's rights issues, particularly suffrage, temperance, and reform for divorce and marriage laws.

In Belva Ann Lockwood's presidential campaign in 1888 she had satin ribbons with a rebus puzzle, picturing her name with images of a bell, the letter "v", a lock, and a log of wood, thereby assisting illiterate voters. Belva, a trained lawyer, testified in Congress helping to achieve the 1872 equal pay bill for government employees. Her efforts also led to legislation enabling married women in the District of Columbia to retain their property rights and the passage of a bill to empower widows to claim full guardianship of their children.

These are just a small sample of the items in this exhibit. Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence will be on exhibit until January 5, 2020. If you are in Washington, D.C., it is well worth a visit.

The National Portrait Gallery is part of the Smithsonian. Admission is free.
National Portrait Gallery:
8th and F Streets NW
Washington, D.C. 20001