#bicentennial

Happy Birthday to illustrator and cartoonist Sir John Tenniel (1820-1914), born 200 years ago today (28 February), and perhaps best remembered for his illustrations in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and its follow-up novel Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871). 

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Lewis Carroll,  Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. London: Macmillan and Co., 1866, Alexander Turnbull Library, REng DODG Alic 1866.

Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking-Glass: and What Alice Found There. London: Macmillan and Co., 1872, Alexander Turnbull Library, REng DODG Alic 1872.

A Brontë Bicentennial

17 January marks the 200th birthday of Anne Brontë (1820-1849), youngest of the three Brontë sisters and author of Agnes Grey (1847)andThe Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848).

Anne’s work first appeared in print alongside Charlotte and Emily in Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell (1846). To avoid the prejudice against female authors at the time, they published this collection under male pseudonyms beginning with their first initials: Currer (Charlotte), Ellis (Emily) and Acton (Anne) Bell (Brontë).

Twelve of the poems are credited to Anne, including one of her most acclaimed, ‘Lines Composed in a Wood on a Windy Day’, shown here in the Turnbull Library’s copy of the first edition, second issue.

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Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell [pseud.]. London: Smith, Elder and Co., 1846 [i.e. 1848], Alexander Turnbull Library, REng BRON Poems 1848.   

Whitman at 200

‘I will sleep no more but arise, You oceans that have been calm within me! how I feel you, fathomless, stirring, preparing unprecedented waves and storms’

31 May 2019 marks the birthday bicentennial of one of America’s greatest and most influential poets, Walt Whitman (1819-1892).

Thanks to our founder, Alexander Horsburgh Turnbull (1868-1918), the Turnbull Library is able to honour the occasion by highlighting some key Whitman works  in the collection. Shown here are:

~ Whitman’s first published novel Franklin Evans; or the Inebriate (1842)

~ First editions of Whitman’s groundbreaking (and at the time highly controversial) Leaves of Grass (1855) and Drum-Taps(1865), a collection of poetry about his experiences in and the tragedy of the American Civil War

~ The first edition in original wrappers of his political prose publication Democratic Vistas (1871) in which Whitman condemned America’s ‘Gilded Age’

~ And the first edition of November Boughs (1888), a mixture of poetry and prose published in his 70th year

For more on Whitman and his poetry, visit poets.org/walt-whitman-200.

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Walt Whitman, Franklin Evans’ or the Inebriate: a Tale of the Times. New York: J. Winchester, 1842, Alexander Turnbull Library, qREng WALT Fran 1842.

—–Leaves of Grass. Brooklyn, New York, 1855, Alexander Turnbull Library, qREng WALT Leav 1855.

—–Drum-Taps. New York, 1865, Alexander Turnbull Library, G 811 WHI 1865.

—–Democratic Vistas. New-York: J.S. Redfield; Washington, D.C.: Sold by the author, 1871, Alexander Turnbull Library, G 811 WHI 1871.

—–November Boughs. Philadelphia: David McKay, 1888, Alexander Turnbull Library, G 811 WHI 1888.  

chuckpatch:

Missouri, 1976

Betty Ford * First Momma * 1970s * First Lady * What tags do you see?

We’re continuing our celebration of Betty Ford’s Centennial by tagging photos of her in the National Archives Catalog. Tagging photos is a fun and easy way to help make records more searchable and discoverable. By adding keywords, terms, and labels to photographs, you help identify and categorize records of Betty Ford based on different topics about her life.

New to the National Archives Citizen Archivist program? It’s easy to register and get started. Check out our Resources page where you can learn How to Tag and Transcribe Records, and What Makes A Good Tag. Already have a National Archives Catalog account? Start Tagging! http://bit.ly/BettyFordTagging

Image:  On a Campaign Trip in Texas First Lady Betty Ford, aka “First Momma,” Greets the Crowd Gathered at San Jacinto Battlefield Park for a Bicentennial Celebration, 4/21/1976. @fordlibrarymuseum

Disneyland, 1976.