Next Topics in Preservation Series lecture from the Library of Congress: The Digital Restoration Initiative -- Reading the Invisible Library

Click here for more information and to register for the live webcast.

Lecture Event

Science Meets Music: Technical Studies of Musical Instruments

Tuesday April 10, 3:00-5:00 pm

Whittall Pavilion (Jefferson Building, Ground Floor)

Library of Congress Jefferson Building

10 First St. SE

Washington, DC 20540

An afternoon of lectures featuring recent in-depth collaborative musical studies by curators, conservators, musicians, and cultural heritage scientists.

Click here for more information and to register for the webcast.

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On Monday, April 23, come on a behind-the-scenes tour of Preservation at the Library of Congress.

Tours start at 9:30 am and at 3:00 pm at the Information Desk at the front of the Library's James Madison Memorial Building (101 Independence Ave SE).

Limited space, registration required.

Click here to register and for more information about the rest of the day's program to celebrate Preservation Week.

We're celebrating Preservation Week with a lecture and open collection display with conservators and archivists that showcase the value of preserving the first-person accounts of those we send to fight in wars.

Monday, April 23 from noon-2:00 pm in the Whittall Room (Jefferson Building, Ground floor)

Click here to register for the live webcast of the lecture and for more information about the Library's Preservation Week programming.

Watch Library of Congress preservation scientist Andrew Davis discuss Centuries of Cellulose: Lessons Learned from the Molecular Analysis of Cellulose in Aged Paper Collections.

Click here to watch the video and for more information.

Watch veteran preservation expert Randy Silverman (Head of Preservation, University of Utah, Marriott Library) discuss A Mold Outbreak in Tbilisi, Georgia: Technical and Interpersonal Challenges

Click here to watch the video and for more information.

Join us for the next Topics in Preservation Series lecture:

Cartography and Code: Incorporating Automation in the Comparison of Medieval Toponyms Across Maps

Wednesday, May 16, 2018
1:30 pm EDT

Library of Congress James Madison Memorial Building
Pickford Theater (third floor)

Register for the live webcast by Tuesday, May 15 at 5:00 pm. 

Click here for more information and to register for the live webcast.

April 22-26, 2019, the Library of Congress celebrates Preservation Week with programming throughout the week, including behind-the-scenes tours of Preservation at the Library, a Preservation takeover of the Library’s main Twitter account, and tips presented by Library conservators in the Baseball Americana exhibit.

Click here to register for the tours and for more information about the programs to celebrate Preservation Week.

On Friday, June 21st, the Library’s preservation staff will be hosting two (2) behind the scenes tours of preservation labs and services in the James Madison Building. The tour is free, but registration is required and space is limited.

• For the morning tour - Friday, June 21 at 10:00-11:30 am – register here.
• For the afternoon tour - Friday, June 21 at 1:30-3:00 pm – register here.

Click here for more information about preservation programming throughout the week of ALA, including behind-the-scenes tours of Preservation at the Library, an information pavilion at the Exhibition Hall, and an open house in the Jefferson Building.

The Library of Congress Preservation Directorate is excited to present a Topics in Preservation Series (TOPS) for Preservation Week 2020! From April 27-May 1, we are hosting webinars every day at 11am (EST). The five, hour-long webinars will feature preservation related projects conducted at the Library of Congress. Register now for any, or all, of the following webinars at http://LOCPreservation.eventbrite.com or at the links below. For more information and resources related to preservation at the Library of Congress, visit https://www.loc.gov/preservation/

Keeping it Cool – Designing the Library’s New Gutenberg Bible Display Case

Monday, April 27th, 11am – 12pm Register here

The Library of Congress’ Gutenberg Bible is on permanent display in the Thomas Jefferson Building. Even though its three volumes are displayed on a rotating basis, the concerns about the adverse effects of long-term display required the Library’s’ conservation staff to create a purpose designed display case that would mitigate these adverse effects. The speakers will talk about the design process, present various features of the new case, and share with the audience some lessons learned now that the case is fully functioning for a little over a year.

Presented by Elmer Eusman, Chief, Conservation Division and Nancy Lev-Alexander, Head, Collection Stabilization Section

Acquiring and Developing an Offsite High Density Collections Storage Facility

Tuesday, April 28th, 11am – 12pm Register here

In addition to operating state-of-the art preservation quality storage facilities at Ft. Meade, the Library operates a rental property which meets its needs for interim storage.  This webinar discusses the Library’s experience in acquiring and developing this facility.  Cabin Branch (located in Landover, MD) shows a way to control costs without compromising on collections care.  The webinar will explain how the Library of Congress designed an interim storage warehouse with collections safety foremost in mind, while keeping cost under control by working with the developer to focus on the features most critical to safeguarding our collections.

Presented by Steve Herman, Chief, Collections Management Division; Rohn Roache, Assistant Chief, Collections Management Division; Nancy Lev-Alexander, Head, Collection Stabilization Section

Assessing the Condition of the United States National Collection

Wednesday, April 29th, 11am – 12pm Register here

A national research initiative funded by the Mellon Foundation “Assessing the Physical Condition of the National Collection” is undertaking the task to objectively assess the condition of books held in collecting institutions of the United States by performing an in-depth scientific analysis on a representative sample.

The research focuses on analyzing the same 500 volumes from five different research libraries in five different climatic zones through the time period 1840-1940. Research to date has shown some extremely interesting trends. This presentation will focus on the analytical techniques used in the program and show what this means to the preservation of print collections throughout the United States.

Presented by Fenella France, Chief, Preservation Research and Testing Division

Environment, Housing & Building Materials Testing to Protect our Collections

Thursday, April 30th, 11am – 12pm Register here

Challenges to preserving the national collection come from both inherent risks in the collections themselves and from materials in the immediate environment. The Library’s quality assurance program is focused on analyzing all materials that come into contact with collections or are part of the surrounding environment. The quality assurance (QA) program involves testing of materials used for housing, storage, and in conservation treatments, as well as evaluation, definition, and dissemination of standards for the use of these materials.

 This presentation will give specific examples of QA testing, new developments in quantification and identification of volatile organic compounds, fast and accurate test methodologies, examples of collection inherent material challenges, and assessment of off-gassing from potential building and housing materials to determine safety for special collections.

Presented by Dr. Eric Monroe, Supervisory Physical Scientist

Would You Like to Save Your Game?

Friday, May 1st, 11am – 12pm Register here

Libraries, archives and museums are facing an ever increasing amount of interactive media in their collections, including software applications, time based artworks and video games. These materials provide unique challenges in regards to acquisition, description and preservation, and many institutions are working to develop new approaches to ensuring the long term preservation of and access to born digital cultural artifacts. The Library’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center (NAVCC) holds over 5,000 videogames amassed through copyright deposit and private donation. This collection contains not only a wide array of formats from 5.25” floppy disks to modern console cartridges, but also packaging, documentation, and adjacent materials such as magazines. The Preservation Reformatting Division and NAVCC work together to describe, reformat, and preserve these complex digital objects and preserve this important part of culture. This webinar will highlight different aspects of the preservation workflow.

Presented by Amanda May, Digital Conservation Specialist; David Gibson, Processing Technician; Laura Davis, Project Specialist

Click here for more information about the webinars.

In 1800, as part of an act of Congress providing for the removal of the new national government from Philadelphia to Washington, President John Adams approved an act of Congress providing $5,000 for books for the use of Congress—the beginning of the Library of Congress.

Since that beginning 220 years ago, the Library has grown to become the largest library in the world with a collection of more than 170 million items that document human creativity and achievement across the centuries and around the globe.

Collecting and providing access to these collections takes on a new meaning and significance in our current world. With social distancing as the norm, and more time spent at home, we want to continue to highlight ways to connect with our content, our knowledgeable staff, and each other during these times. From April 24 to 30, you can celebrate the Library’s 220th birthday by participating in online programs from across the Library, reading themed posts on our blogs and social media channels, and downloading our brand new app to explore the Library’s digital collections from home.

The Library of Congress buildings remain closed to the public, with all public events currently canceled through July 1. Visit our web site for full, up-to-date information about our response to COVID-19. In the meantime, we invite you to our virtual birthday celebration and to continue to engage with us through some of the resources listed below. We look forward to continuing to serve you during this season and beyond.

Sincerely,
Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress

SPECIAL 220th BIRTHDAY VIDEO EVENTS

Citizen DJ Premiere & Virtual Masterclass
Friday, April 24, 3 p.m. ET

Preview the new Citizen DJ app from Innovator-in-Residence Brian Foo, and discover how to make Hip Hop using the Library’s music collection. Presented by LC Labs.

America's Greatest Library: History of the Library of Congress
Saturday, April 25, 1 p.m. ET

Write. Right. Rite. A "Grab the Mic: Tell Your Story" video series with Jason Reynolds, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.
Tuesday, April 28, 10:30 a.m. ET

Awareness to Action: Innovate for a Green Future
Wednesday, April 29, 11 a.m. ET

Join the U.S. Copyright Office for their next Copyright Matters lecture that will explore how creators—who through the copyright system can earn a living from their work—can play a key role in creating a vision of a green future and its untold benefits. Registration required.

Social Movement Changing America: The Legacies of the 19th Amendment
Thursday, April 30, 3:30 p.m. ET

A Law Day 2020 event presented by the Law Library of Congress and the American Bar Association. Registration required, space is limited.

Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic
Thursday, April 30, 7 p.m. ET

Prize-winning science writer David Quammen discusses his book "Spillover," in which he tracks the animal origins of human diseases through the centuries, with National Book Festival Co-Chairman David Rubenstein.

Discover more ways to engage with the Library during our birthday week and beyond:
https://www.loc.gov/engage/

Celebrate National Poetry Month with 50 Newly Available Audio Recordings

The Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress dates back to 1943 and contains nearly two thousand recordings of poets and prose writers participating in literary events at the Library’s Capitol Hill campus as well as sessions at the Library’s Recording Laboratory. New recordings added for 2020 include a 1978 reunion reading featuring 13 of our Consultants in Poetry, and Gwendolyn Brooks reading poems (including the iconic “We Real Cool”) in the Jefferson Recording Laboratory in 1961.

Visit the archive site.
Discover more on this blog post.

Try Activity Kits for the Whole Family

Encourage kids of all ages to use their creativity to complete activities inspired by the Library’s collections. With simple items found around the house and items from our website, kids can Cook Up History, Make a Mini-Book, Color Our Collections, and so much more. Visit the Resources for Family Engagement page to download activity kits and get started today.

https://www.loc.gov/families/

Join the Effort: By the People

We are grateful to all those who transcribe and review pages on the Library's virtual volunteering project By the People launched in 2018. As of the Library’s 220th birthday today, volunteers have transcribed over 125,000 pages from the papers of suffragists including Mary Church Terrell, Lucy Stone, and Susan B Anthony, civil rights activist Rosa Parks, poet Walt Whitman, President Abraham Lincoln, and many others. Once a whole item such as a journal or letter is complete, it is brought back to loc.gov where it radically improves search and discovery for patrons, and accessibility those who use screen readers.

https://crowd.loc.gov/

Preservation Week

National Preservation Week is April 26 – May 2. Preservation of the world's largest collection is accomplished through a broad range of activities distributed across the Library. Learn more about these preservation activities and the work to keep the collections available for the next 220 years and beyond.

https://www.loc.gov/preservation/

Coronavirus Updates from the Copyright Office

The Copyright Office has announced updated flexibility surrounding registration deposits and timing provisions for those affected by COVID-19 as outlined in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Visit the Copyright Office COVID-19 page for more info.

https://www.copyright.gov/coronavirus/

Support the Library

We are more grateful than ever for all that you do to keep us strong. Whether you support the Library with a gift or simply by spreading the word about what we do, you help us in our mission to connect millions of people around the world with the stories of our collective past, present, and future.

If you haven't yet had a chance to give and you're in a position to donate, please consider making a gift at loc.gov/donate/.