Transcriptions Reveal Life in the Trenches

If you are familiar with our Citizen Archivist program, you know that we encourage online volunteers to transcribe digitized historical records held in the National Archives Catalog. We often say that these transcriptions help unlock history by improving search results, readability, and access to historical records. So how exactly are your contributions unlocking history? A … Continue reading Transcriptions Reveal Life in the Trenches

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Wikipedia Edit-a-thon on May 8, 2019

This Asian Pacific American History Month, join archivists, historians, and the public for a Wikipedia edit-a-thon on Wednesday, May 8, 2019 from 10 AM - 1:00 PM in the Innovation Hub at the National Archives in  Washington, DC. Register for this free event on Eventbrite. Two of the nine American soldiers of Japanese ancestry ... … Continue reading Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Wikipedia Edit-a-thon on May 8, 2019

Become a Wiki Scholar!

Today’s post comes from Pamela Wright, Chief Innovation Officer. In March 2019, the National Archives Museum will launch an exhibit commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment: Rightfully Hers: American Women and the Vote. Visitors will learn more about the history of suffrage in the United States, basic civics, suffragists, why voting matters, the … Continue reading Become a Wiki Scholar!

Tag it! Introducing the National Archives Facebook Chatbot

Today's post comes from Pamela Wright, Chief Innovation Officer. What do you get when you have an audacious strategic goal to have one million records enhanced by citizen archivists in the National Archives Catalog and an idea to try something new on a social site? You create a Facebook Messenger Chatbot, of course! This American … Continue reading Tag it! Introducing the National Archives Facebook Chatbot

Why do we engage Citizen Archivists?

Today's post comes from Pamela Wright, National Archives Chief Innovation Officer. Earlier this week we posted an invitation to help transcribe records in our holdings and it has sparked some thoughtful conversations about the role of crowdsourcing at the National Archives. For this specific crowdsourcing campaign we featured several “missions” that we wanted citizen archivists … Continue reading Why do we engage Citizen Archivists?

Private Mohammed Kahn: Civil War Soldier

Today's post comes from Kate Mersiovsky, National Archives Technician Since I’ve become an archives technician in the Innovation Hub Scanning Room at the National Archives, I’ve seen my fair share of interesting records. Researchers have digitized the pension of presidential widow Lucretia Garfield, the pension of Harriet Tubman, and the Supreme Court cases In Re … Continue reading Private Mohammed Kahn: Civil War Soldier

Teaching from the Archives

Today’s post comes from Meredith Doviak, Community Manager for the National Archives Catalog.  Meredith recently spoke to Dr. Jaime Cantrell, Visiting Assistant Professor of English at The University of Mississippi. Dr. Cantrell has introduced undergraduate students to the importance of archival research and materials by encouraging them to become citizen transcribers for the National Archives … Continue reading Teaching from the Archives

Join us for a Gender Equality Edit-a-thon on October 22, 2016

Come out and join us on Saturday, October 22, 2016 from 10:00 am - 5:00 pm for a Wikipedia Edit-a-thon on Gender Equality in the Innovation Hub at the National Archives Building in Washington, DC. Register for this event today!     Help us improve Wikipedia entries related to gender equality with the National Archives and … Continue reading Join us for a Gender Equality Edit-a-thon on October 22, 2016

Your First Thoughts on the Social Media Strategy

This post is written by Jeannie Chen, Mary King, and Hilary Parkinson and is part of our ongoing series about our social media strategy. We welcome comments from staff, other cultural institutions, and the public, and will continue to update the strategy as a living document. When we introduced NARA’s new social media strategy in August, … Continue reading Your First Thoughts on the Social Media Strategy

Hands-on Research with THATClass and the National Archives

Today’s post comes from Dina Herbert, Innovation Hub Coordinator. Dina recently chatted with Patrick Cronin and Thomas Neville about THATClass, their project-based archival education program for Washington, DC students. Tell me about THATClass.  What do students learn by participating in THATClass that they wouldn’t necessarily get from their regular school year lessons? THATClass (The Humanities … Continue reading Hands-on Research with THATClass and the National Archives