On March 7, 1876 the telephone patent was granted to Alexander Graham Bell. It's clear from the trade catalogue below that it didn't take too long for folks to get more than more »
Category: History and Culture
Leonardo da Vinci diagrammed one of the first parachutes designed in the late 15th century. Since Leonardo da Vinci was a well-known polymath, artist, and engineer, many reference questions about him have come to more »
Edwin H. Land introduced the Polaroid instant camera on February 21, 1947. The Libraries has a great and varied assortment of polaroid trade catalogs in its trade literature collection. Being more »
Now that it’s melting we can all laugh . . . Right? Right? —Elizabeth Periale
I wonder if our nation's first president ever witnessed as snowy a winter—in Washington, D.C., the capital city that bears his name—as we have this winter, the capital he helped more »
In 1917, those wanting ideas for party decorations could turn to The 1917 Party Book from the Dennison Manufacturing Company of Framingham, Massachusetts. Included are ideas for hall and table more »
For Presidents' Day, we'd like to re-run a post from November 19, 2009: During July 1-3, 1863, the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War took place around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. more »