Black Women in the Wartime Struggle

Members of an NAACP Planning Committee at a recruitment event. Photograph: Library of Congress Black women were on the frontlines of civil rights activism during the war years. The grassroots organizing work of young leaders like Rosa Parks, Juanita Jackson, and Ella Baker helped fuel a dramatic increase in NAACP membership and branch activism. Union … Continue reading Black Women in the Wartime Struggle

The First Lady of the Struggle

Mary McLeod Bethune acted as leader of the Black Cabinet. Bethune was a friend and confidante of Eleanor Roosevelt and FDR held her in high regard. She used her unique connection to the Roosevelts to bring race-related issues directly to the President. Photograph: Library of Congress Much of the success of the Black Cabinet was … Continue reading The First Lady of the Struggle

Irvin and Elizabeth McDuffie

“Throughout the nation today, colored men and women are playing the part in the government under President Roosevelt’s New Deal that we have awaited . . . these seventy years which have passed since President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.”                    —Elizabeth McDuffie, Campaign Speech, St. Louis, Missouri, 1936  Elizabeth and Irvin McDuffie, two Black … Continue reading Irvin and Elizabeth McDuffie

Remembering President Warren G. Harding (1865-1923)

President Warren G. Harding's body lying in state in the East Room of the White House. Image from the Library of Congress https://lccn.loc.gov/2006683674 by Kevin Thomas, Archives Technician August 2, 2023, marks the 100th Anniversary of the sudden death of Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the United States. The news, no doubt, shocked Americans, … Continue reading Remembering President Warren G. Harding (1865-1923)

The Year Of Two Thanksgivings

On Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 1939, Franklin Roosevelt carved the turkey at the annual Thanksgiving Dinner at Warm Springs, Georgia, and wished all Americans across the country a Happy Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, his greeting went unanswered in some states; many Americans were not observing Thanksgiving on the same day as the President. Instead, they were waiting … Continue reading The Year Of Two Thanksgivings

Roosevelt, Commander in Chief

Franklin D. Roosevelt with Winston Churchill at the Casablanca Conference, Casablanca, Morocco. January 18, 1943. NPx 48-22:186 Cooperation, n. 1. Act of cooperating; joint operation; concurrent effort or labor.    -        Webster’s New International Dictionary (Second Ed.) By Kevin Thomas, Archives Technician Since America’s entry into the war in 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt had recognized … Continue reading Roosevelt, Commander in Chief

Look to Norway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToeOpvsHcO4 United News newsreel, September 16, 1942: Presentation ceremonies for the United States’ gift of the escort ship, HNoMS King Haakon VII, to Crown Princess Martha of Norway accepting on behalf of the Norwegian Royal Navy. NAID 38922 “If there is anyone who still wonders why this war is being fought, let him look to … Continue reading Look to Norway

The Children’s Hour

Whistler, James Mcneill, Artist. The wine-glass / Whistler. , None. [Between 1860 and 1903] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2003687838/. By Kevin Thomas, Archives Technician The process of making a cocktail can evoke sensations of confidence and creativity – even before imbibing. The person creating or preparing the cocktail, exerts a certain amount of control. Do they follow the prescribed … Continue reading The Children’s Hour

The Holiday Season of 1943

By Kevin Thomas, Archives Technician New York, New York. Raymond [i.e. Raimondo] Fazio and his family receive a belated Christmas package from one of their four sons in the service. This one is in Africa. Fazio is a journalist and lives on East Tenth Street. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division: https://lccn.loc.gov/2017841930. The end … Continue reading The Holiday Season of 1943

FDR’s Naval Art Collection: History Captured on Canvas

By Paul M. Sparrow - Director, FDR Library Franklin Roosevelt collected more than 5,000 maritime prints, paintings and etchings during his life. Some are still in his home Springwood, but most are in the FDR Presidential Library and Museum.   You can see from this photo of his private study at the White House he … Continue reading FDR’s Naval Art Collection: History Captured on Canvas