On April 11, social media accounts from 20 different libraries, archives, and museums came together to share their World War I records and collections. Organized by the National Museum of American History, activities took place all day on Twitter, Facebook, and across the web, and the National Archives and Presidential Libraries were excited to participate!
On Facebook, archivist Mitch Yockelson shared favorite World War I photos from the Still Pictures Branch in College Park, MD.
Later in the day in New York City, archivist Dorothy Dougherty discussed using World War I records for genealogical research.
And on Twitter, The Presidential Libraries chatted about the presidents who served during the Great War: Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Dwight Eisenhower.
Throughout the day, the new World War I Centennial portal on archives.gov provided a one stop shop for visitors to see photographs, documents, audiovisual recordings, educational resources, articles, blog posts, lectures, and events related to World War I, and invited citizen archivists to tag World War I posters and transcribe Harry Truman’s handwritten notes during training.
World War I Social Media Day was a huge success, and a great example of cultural organizations working together to tell a common story. The National Archives enjoyed participating and can’t wait for more opportunities to deepen engagement by working with partner organizations.