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Tag: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Joe Froggers: The Weight of the Past in a Cookie

Interested in culinary history and books? Join us on Wednesday, November 16th for our Annual Adopt-a-Book Evening, featuring a food and drink theme!

Slavery and freedom, the Revolutionary War, New England’s maritime culture and life, Colonial revivalism, trade, women’s role in the economy, the development of regional cuisines, the not-fully-explored history of African Americans in the North. More than just molasses, spices and rum, there is a heady mix of history in the Joe Frogger. Can all these ingredients of America’s past be found in a cookie?

Celebrating African American History and Culture

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Portrait of Josiah Henson from Father Henson’s story of his own life.

In celebration of the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture this weekend, we’ve put together a special digital collection of titles related to the African American experience.  Many of these books come from our National Museum of African American History and Culture Library, which will open in the museum later this year.  Below are a few highlights from the collection. To see the entire collection, visit Celebrating African American History and Culture in our Digital Library.

A Dream Realized: The National Museum of African American History & Culture Library

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View of the NMAAHC construction site, January 2014

Shauna Collier, Librarian for the National Museum of African American History & Culture, contributed this post.

Late last year my dream of becoming the librarian for the National Museum of African American History & Culture (NMAAHC) came true, and a month ago I returned to the Smithsonian Libraries (I worked here years ago as the Anacostia Librarian).  After receiving the warmest welcome from my library and museum colleagues, I started receiving the question “So what’s happening with the NMAAHC Library?”  Well, it is all still coming together, but I will use this opportunity to give a brief update.

Planning for the NMAAHC branch library

NMAAHC ConstructionWhen The President of the United States and the Director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) break ground on February 22, 2012, it will be the beginning of a new adventure for Smithsonian Libraries.  Plans for the museum include locating the library in wonderful space on a public floor with direct public access.  Mary Augusta Thomas and Bill Baxter have been working with the staff of the NMAAHC space planning team, including representatives from the education department, the center for media arts and collections. We all enjoy the challenges of planning for a highly interactive information commons and a research library with a program that is only now being defined.  Our joint vision is for a place that visitors will come with questions raised by their time in the exhibitions.  These might be about objects in the collections, or the location of a museum or cultural center in their vicinity.