March 2009
Washington, DC, Area Events

Program Highlights

• BIG!
  Programs in connection with our new exhibit, “BIG! Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the National Archives.” (March 18, 28)
• Women in Political Leadership
  A panel discussion on women’s journeys to political leadership (March 5)
• Environmental Film Festival
  The Washington, DC, premiere of Built for the People: The Story of TVA. (March 17)
• Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial
  The 12th Annual Abraham Lincoln Institute Symposium (March 21), a book lecture (March 4), and a film. (March 14)
• Know Your Records Programs
  A variety of programs explore records held by the National Archives. (March 3, 4, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 21, 24, 25, 26, 31)

BIG!

The National Archives Experience is pleased to present programs in connection with our new exhibit, “BIG! Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the National Archives.” The exhibit features big records, big events, and big ideas.

Thursday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m.
William G. McGowan Theater
Big Strides, Diverse Paths: Women’s Journeys to Political Leadership
The influence of women has redefined the nature of politics, but how did they get there and what are the stories of their political journeys? Join moderator Eleanor Clift, weekly panelist on The McLaughlin Group and author of Madam President, as she moderates a panel of women who have come from a variety of backgrounds, represent different levels of political activity, and have played leadership roles in politics. Panelists include Mazie Hirono, U.S. Congresswoman from Hawaii; Grace Napolitano, U.S. Congresswoman from California; Madeleine Kunin, former Governor of Vermont and author of Pearls, Politics, and Power; Jennette Bradley, former Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, and Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Congresswoman from Tennessee. Presented in partnership with the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Boston’s McCormack Graduate School.

This program is generously supported by the William G. McGowan Charitable Fund, Inc.

Tuesday, March 17, at 7 p.m.
William G. McGowan Theater
BIG Ideas, BIG Projects
Built for the People: The Story of TVA (2008) was produced by Academy Award®-nominated Washington documentary filmmakers Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine (War/Dance). The film chronicles the transformation of the vast and magnificent Tennessee Valley—devastated by flooding, deforestation, poor farming practices, and forest fires—through the Tennessee Valley Authority, established by Franklin D. Roosevelt and Congress in 1933. President Roosevelt called the TVA, which helped lift the region out of the Great Depression, “one of the great social and economic achievements of the United States. ” With the establishment of the TVA, the Tennessee River watershed began a resurgence, reducing the risk of flooding, providing electric power, and promoting agricultural and industrial development. (86 minutes.) Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine will join us to discuss the film and answer audience questions.

Washington, DC, premiere in participation with the 2009 Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital

Wednesday, March 18, at noon
Jefferson Room
The Great Decision: Jefferson, Adams, Marshall, and the Battle for the Supreme Court
In 1800 the United States teetered on the brink of a second revolution. The Presidential election between Adams and Jefferson was a bitterly contested tie, and the Supreme Court had no clear purpose or power. In The Great Decision, David McKean tells the riveting story of John Marshall and the landmark court case Marbury v. Madison, through which he empowered the Supreme Court and transferred the idea of the separation of powers into a working blueprint for our modern state. A book signing will follow the program.

Saturday, March 28, at noon
William G. McGowan Theater
King Kong
Skull Island natives capture aspiring movie star Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and offer her as a sacrifice to their god, King Kong. But Ann’s movie crew rescues her, captures King Kong, and brings him to New York. This ape of epic proportions, of course, escapes and terrorizes the city. (1933, 109 minutes)

Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial

Saturday, March 21, 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
National Archives at College Park, MD
The Latest in Lincoln Scholarship
12th Annual Abraham Lincoln Institute Symposium

Sessions:

“The Life of Abraham Lincoln: New Findings, Fresh Perspectives”
Michael Burlingame

“Lincoln’s Fox: A Companion in Time of Crisis”
Ari Hoogenboom

“Lincoln at the Turning Point—From Peoria to the Presidency”
Lewis Lehrman

“Lincoln, the North, and Secession”
Russell McClintock

“Becoming Lincoln: Making of an Emancipationist”
James Oakes

Award Presentations
Presentation of the Abraham Lincoln Institute Book Award and the Nicolay-Hay Award.

Advance registration is required. Register by e-mail, at secretary@lincoln-institute.org; by mail, at Abraham Lincoln Institute, Inc., c/o John R. Sellers, 30333 Portobago Trail, Port Royal, VA 22535; or by phone, at 202-707-1085. Please provide contact information for each registrant, including e-mail and postal addresses and phone number.

The National Archives Experience is pleased to present this film and lecture series in celebration of the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth.

Wednesday, March 4, at noon
William G. McGowan Theater
The Great Comeback: How Abraham Lincoln Beat the Odds to Win the 1860 Republican Nomination
In the fall of 1858, Abraham Lincoln appeared to be anything but destined for greatness. He was depressed over his loss to Stephen Douglas in the 1858 senatorial campaign and was taking stock of his life. In The Great Comeback, Gary Ecelbarger describes the journey of Abraham Lincoln from the last weeks of 1858 until the end of May in 1860, on the road to his unlikely Republican Presidential nomination. A book signing will follow the program.

Saturday, March 14, at noon
William G. McGowan Theater
The Prisoner of Shark Island
A few short hours after President Lincoln has been assassinated, Dr. Samuel Mudd gives medical treatment to a wounded man who shows up at his door. Mudd has no idea that the President is dead and that he is treating his murderer, John Wilkes Booth. But that doesn’t save him when the Army posse searching for Booth finds evidence that Booth has been to the doctor's house. Dr. Mudd is arrested for complicity and sentenced to life imprisonment, to be served in the infamous Shark Island. (1936, 95 minutes)

Noontime Lecture Series

Wednesday, March 25, at noon
Jefferson Room
Andrew Jackson
On the 180th anniversary of Andrew Jackson's election to the Presidency, Historian of the United States House of Representatives Robert V. Remini discusses Andrew Jackson, his book focusing on Jackson’s military career and how his bold leadership as a general led to his election as President of the United States in 1828. A book signing will follow the program.

Know Your Records Programs:  March

Tuesday, March 3, at 11 a.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
Tips & Strategies on the Updated Archival Research Catalog (ARC)
Jill James will show researchers how to find records in the National Archives’ updated online Archival Research Catalog (ARC). (This lecture will be repeated at the National Archives at College Park, MD, in Lecture Room B, on Thursday, March 5, at 11 a.m.).

Wednesday, March 4, at 11 a.m.
Saturday, March 21, at 10 a.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
Introduction to Genealogy
Archives staff will present a lecture on basic genealogical research in Federal records. This lecture occurs on select Saturdays and the first Wednesday of the month. (Next month’s lectures will take place on Wednesday, April 1, and during the Annual Genealogy Fair on April 22 & 23.)

Tuesday, March 10, at 11 a.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
Civil War Pension Files at Footnote.com
Laura Prescott from Footnote.com will discuss the Civil War pension files recently scanned and published online through the partnership between the National Archives, Family Search, and Footnote.com. (This lecture will be repeated at the National Archives at College Park, MD, in Lecture Room B on Thursday, March 12, at 11 a.m.)

Tuesday, March 17, at 11 a.m. and noon
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
From the Records Book Group and Lecture
Following a related presentation at 11 a.m., the From the Records Book Group will discuss The Harp and the Eagle: Irish-American Volunteers and the Union Army, 1861–1865, by Susannah Bruce. Please check the Archives Shop (202-357-5271) for book availability and a special discount for book group participants. The May book selection will be Railroads in the Civil War: The Impact of Management on Victory and Defeat by John Elwood Clark.

Thursday, March 19, at 11 a.m.
National Archives at College Park, MD, Lecture Room B
Exodus to Kansas: The 1880 Senate Investigation of the Beginnings of the African American Migration from the South
Damani Davis examines Federal records relating to the “Kansas Exodus” (the Exoduster movement), which was the first instance of voluntary, mass migration among African Americans and resulted in a major Senate investigation. (This lecture will be repeated at the National Archives Building, Washington, DC, in Room G-24, Research Center, on Tuesday, March 24, at 11 a.m.).

Saturday, March 21, noon–4 p.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
“Help! I'm Stuck”
Not sure where to begin your research? Is there a genealogical or historical problem that has stumped you? On select Saturdays, an archivist will be available from noon to 4 p.m. to answer questions. Look for the sign at the Research Center desk reading, “Help! I'm Stuck.” The next opportunity will be at the Annual Genealogy Fair on April 22 & 23.)

Wednesday, March 25, 10:15 a.m.–12:45 p.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
Effective Internet Searching
Elizabeth Kelley Kerstens will lead a workshop on how to use the Internet and genealogy software to increase research capabilities. Reservations are required, and a fee of $20 is payable by cash or check (payable to NATF) at the door. E-mail KYR@nara.gov or call 202-357-5333.

Thursday, March 26, 10:15 a.m.–12:45 p.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
U.S. Sources for Beginning Irish Research
Elizabeth Kelley Kerstens will teach research strategies using original sources to track the origin of Irish immigrants. Sources include passenger lists, immigration records, military records, census records, city directories, and more. Reservations are required, and a fee of $20 is payable by cash or check (payable to NATF) at the door. E-mail KYR@nara.gov or call 202-357-5333.

Tuesday, March 31, at 11 a.m.
Room G-24, Research Center (Enter on Pennsylvania Avenue)
Privacy Act
Ramona Branch Oliver will discuss provisions of the Privacy Act and how the statutes affect public access to both archival and operational records at the National Archives. (This lecture will be repeated at the National Archives at College Park, MD, in Lecture Room B, on Thursday, April 2, at 11 a.m.).

Exhibits

Permanent Exhibits

Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom:The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are on permanent display in the Rotunda. "A New World Is at Hand" surrounds the Rotunda's centerpiece cases. Presenting a selection of milestone documents, the exhibit chronicles the creation of the Charters of Freedom in the 18th century and their impact on the course of history in the United States and around the world.

The Public Vaults: This interactive exhibit invites visitors into the stacks and vaults of the National Archives to explore the raw material from which history is made. From Washington's letters, Lincoln's telegrams, and FDR's fireside chats to UFO reports and declassified secrets of World War II, these documents chronicle both great national events and the lives of individual Americans.

Magna Carta: This foundation document of English common law was confirmed by Edward I in 1297. Only four originals of the 1297 Magna Carta remain, and only one permanently resides in the United States. Purchased by David M. Rubenstein in 2007, it is on loan to the National Archives. West Rotunda Gallery.

Special Exhibit in Washington, DC

Exhibit Opening, March 13
BIG!

To celebrate a big anniversary—our 75th—the National Archives presents an exhibit featuring big records, big events, and big ideas. See the nation’s original records in their full-scale glory, including the 13-foot scroll of the Articles of Confederation (never before displayed unrolled) and a 13-by-13-foot map of the Gettysburg Battlefield. Also featured are a gigantic footprint of a dinosaur and the size 22 sneakers of basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal. Embodying America's biggest idea, the first printing of the Declaration of Independence produced on the night of July 4–5, 1776—one of the greatest treasures in our holdings—is a special highlight of the exhibit.
Lawrence F. O’Brien Gallery through January 3, 2010

Special Exhibit in College Park, Maryland

Auditorium Lobby at the National Archives Research Center:

"The Long View" features digitally produced facsimiles of historic panoramic photographs from the Still Picture holdings.

The exhibit not only showcases the wide variety of panoramic techniques, but also includes National Archives records such as cartographic maps and patent drawings that relate to the photographs. Thirty-four panoramas and other records are on display and span the period from 1864 to 1997.
See more panoramas online.

Online Exhibits

Dozens of exhibits can be experienced online. Visit Now!

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