INSIDE PLUS Rising from the Ashes of 1812 Campaign Posters Through the Years A Centennial of Cinema How the Library Acquires Its Treasures Under Copyright Draft of “The Star-Spangled Banner” LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012 THEN NOW THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WWW.LOC.GOV LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MAGAZINE Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 1 No. 1: September/October 2012 Mission of the Library of Congress The mission of the Library is to support the Congress in fulfilling its constitutional duties and to further the progress of knowledge and creativity for the benefit of the American people. Library of Congress Magazine is issued bimonthly by the Office of Communications of the Library of Congress and distributed free of charge to publicly supported libraries and research institutions, donors, academic libraries, learned societies and allied organizations in the United States. Research institutions and educational organizations in other countries may arrange to receive Library of Congress Magazine on an exchange basis by applying in writing to the Library’s Director for Acquisitions and Support Services, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington DC 20540-4100. LCM is also available on the web at www.loc.gov/lcm/. All other correspondence should be addressed to the Office of Communications, Library of Congress, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington DC 20540-1610. e-mail [email protected] www.loc.gov/lcm/ ISSN 2169-0855 (print) ISSN 2169-0863 (online) James H. Billington Librarian of Congress Gayle Osterberg Executive Editor Audrey Fischer Editor John H. Sayers Managing Editor Ashley Jones Designer Thomas Jefferson’s personal library, purchased by Congress following the burning of the U.S. Capitol by the British during the War of 1812, Abby Brack Lewis is on view in the Library of Congress building named in his honor. Photo Editor Photo | Michaela McNichol Contributing Writers Erin Allen Guy Lamolinara Wendi A. Maloney Julie Miller SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012 InFEATURES This Issue COVER STORY: Out of the Ashes 08 Born of necessity—then destroyed during the War of 1812—the Library of Congress has grown with Congress and the nation. 1812 and its Aftermath 12 The “second American Revolution” set the world on a course away from colonialism and established the U.S. as a player on the world stage. Growing a Library 16 How does the world’s largest library get its books, films, maps and more? Plus, a look at the variety of personal papers in the collections. Centennial of Film 20 Although film captured the American imagination about 15 years earlier, the medium did not become a designated copyright class until 1912. British soliders set the DEPARTMENTS U.S. Capitol (and its congressional library inside) ablaze during 02 13 Numbers at a Glance Experts Corner the War of 1812. The Library houses a huge collection and Julie Miller, Manuscript Division, on the Print | Allyn Cox, 1973, provides extensive services to Congress and impact of the War of 1812 Architect of the Capitol citizens 14 First Drafts 03 Trending at the Library Francis Scott Key and the wartime poem that A look at political campaign posters became our national anthem through history 22 Around the Library 04 Technology at the Library Guests of note: musicians, actors, scholars Goodnight, IRENE: recovering sound 23 from vinyl News Briefs Poet Laureate named, Gershwin and Kluge 04 For You at the Library Prizes awarded 2012-13 concert season 24 How Do I? On the cover: A 05 Online Offerings Simple steps to getting a reader card classroom visit to the Timeless fables in a timely format; also, 25 Congressional Library breathtaking garden photos, online and Favorite Places in 1899, captured by The Main Reading Room, starting point in print photographer Frances for research 06 Benjamin Johnston, Page from the Past 26 Prints and Photographs This publication’s humble beginnings as a Shop the Library Books, bookends, DVDs and more Division, is juxtaposed wartime mimeograph 27 against the same 07 Support the Library Curators Picks structure now known as A window into Georgian England Gems of Armenian literature from Levon the Thomas Jefferson 28 Building. Photo | Abby Avdoyan, African and Middle Eastern Last Word Division James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress Brack Lewis CONNECT ON Twitter: @librarycongress Flickr: flickr.com/photo/library_of_congress YouTube: youtube.com/libraryofcongress Library of Congress blogs: blogs.loc.gov Facebook: facebook.com/libraryofcongress LCM online: loc.gov/lcm SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012 | WWW.LOC.GOV/LCM 1 numbersAT A GLANCE THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, the world’s largest library, provides access to its extensive collections and reference services to the U.S. Congress, the UNPARALLELED COLLECTIONS American public and researchers around the world. The Library of Congress currently contains … 6,454,744 Pieces of printed sheet music 5,446,673 Maps and globes 3,379,634 Audio materials (discs, tapes, talking books, etc.) 15,366,922 Visual materials (photos, posters, films, prints and 34,528,818 Books drawings) (cataloged books, large type, books printed before 1501) monographs and serials, etc. 16,627,084 Microforms In fiscal year 2011, the Library of Congress 66,634,349 Manuscripts (personal papers Provided reference services to 550,590 patrons of notable figures, etc.) Registered 670,044 claims to copyright Provided 1million research products to Congress MORE INFORMATION www.loc.gov/about/ Welcomed 1.7 million on-site visitors Circulated 25 million items to the blind and physically handicapped INVALUABLE SERVICES INVALUABLE Recorded 73.4 million visits to the Library’s website 2 LCM | LIBRARY OF CONGREss MAGAZINE #trending AT THE LIBRARY ELECTION SEASON: KEEP THE BALL ROLLING WITH THE END OF SUMMER came parties of the political kind—the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. The candidates have been selected, so let’s keep the ball rolling. The phrase “Keep the ball rolling” comes from the campaign publicity activity that began in 1840 of rolling a large ball from town to town to bring attention to presidential candidate William Harrison. Recently part of a display at the Library on presidential campaigns dating to George Washington, an 1888 photo depicts a campaign ball that was rolled for presidential hopeful Benjamin Harrison—a replica of the one used by his grandfather. Harrison beat incumbent Democrat Grover Cleveland to become the 23rd U.S. president. More ubiquitous than campaign balls are campaign posters. Drawn from the Library’s collection of poster art, more than 100 ready- to-frame campaign posters spanning more than 180 years have been compiled into a new book, “Presidential Campaign Posters: From the Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress is archiving websites devoted to the 2012 presidential election. Since 2000, the Library’s subject specialists have captured This 1888 photo shows a campaign ball that was more than 2,000 websites associated with each rolled for Republican presidental candidate Benjamin U.S. presidential, congressional, and gubernatorial Harrison. Prints and Photographs Division election. The Library’s Web Archiving project is part of a continuing effort to evaluate, select, MORE INFORMATION A selection of campaign posters from the newly collect, catalog, provide access to and preserve published “Presidential Campaign Posters: From the digital materials for future generations of Library of Congress.” Prints and Photographs Division researchers. — Audrey Fischer MORE INFORMATION Purchase the book http://1.usa.gov/QXHRL7 Visit the web archiving project www.loc.gov/webarchiving/ SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012 | WWW.LOC.GOV/LCM 3 technologyAT THE LIBRARY DOES THE NAME IRENE RING A BELL? NEARLY A DECADE AGO, the Library resolution digital maps of the of Congress initiated a research grooved surfaces of recorded collaboration with the Lawrence discs. Berkeley National Laboratory to In the past year, Library of study how digital imaging could Congress digital conversion be used to extract sound from specialist Peter Alyea, Lawrence phonograph records and other Berkeley National Laboratory grooved media. scientists Carl Haber and Earl The collaboration led to the Cornell and National Museum Laboratory’s development of a of American History Curators sound-recovery process known as Carlene Stephens and Shari IRENE/3D (Image, Reconstruct, Stout worked jointly to recover Erase Noise, Etc.) that is being sound from experimental used by sound preservationists at recordings made more than the Library’s Packard Campus a century ago by Alexander for Audio Visual Conservation Graham Bell and his colleagues in Culpeper, Va., to reconstruct Chichester Bell and Charles damaged or deteriorating Sumner Tainter at the Volta recordings. IRENE uses two- Laboratory in Washington, D.C. dimensional digital-imaging The experimental recordings are technologies to generate high- now available for listening online. IRENE uses high-resolution cameras to capture images of the grooves of recordings. Software then converts those images into sound. Photo | Abby Brack Lewis AT THE LIBRARY CONCERTS FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS FOUNDED IN 1925, the “Concerts from the Library of Congress” series offers a range of genres from classical to pop, jazz to country and American to world music. Most concerts are held in the 500-seat Coolidge Auditorium, considered to be one of the finest acoustic environments in the world. MORE INFORMATION With a theme of “American Voices,” the www.loc.gov/avconservation/ WHAT: Library of Congress concert 2012-13 concert season (October through series and pre-concert presentations May) will offer 38 concerts, plus other Alexander Graham Bell Papers online WHERE: Unless otherwise noted, memory.loc.gov/ammem/bellhtml/ all concerts are held in the Coolidge events such as lectures, films, master classes bellhome.html Auditorium located on the ground floor and conversations with the artists. This of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 year’s season will include works by Guthrie, Listen to the recordings First Street, S.E., Washington, D.C. Sousa, Herbert and Crumb, plus special http://irene.lbl.gov/volta-release.html COST: FREE, but tickets are required music to commemorate the anniversary of the Civil War.