Library Of Congress

Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” introduces the epic poem attributed to Homer to a new generation of moviegoers, turning a nearly 3,000-year-old story into a fresh cultural touchstone. The Library’s vast collections, covering centuries of time, document how artists, cartographers and translators around the world have translated and reimagined Odysseus’ journey anew.

This May saw the completion of our remote metadata program from the 2025-2026 school year. Participants for this academic year captured the metadata of Congressional Research Service (CRS) bill summaries for all bills added to Congress.gov since 1935. Historical bill summaries are in older PDFs, so project participants manually captured the metadata of the summaries to connect them to the bills and make them machine-digestible.

2026 marks the commemoration of the 250th birthday of the founding of the United States of America and the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. In celebration of this momentous occasion, the African and Middle Eastern Division (AMED) of the Library of Congress embarked on a retrospective journey, exploring the many blogs it has published over the years and highlighting just a few to add to the festivities.

WRITTEN ON THE WIND (Universal, 1956). Directed by Douglas Sirk. Screenplay by George Zuckerman. With Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, Dorothy Malone, Robert Keith. (99 min, color, 35mm print from the BBC Archives Collection) Archetype of the modern melodrama, director Douglas Sirk’s “Written on the Wind” follows the operatic dynamics of a Texan oil family, the Hadleys.

Today’s interview is with Ella Patterson, an intern working in the Public Services Division of the Law Library of Congress. Describe your background. I am from Cary, North Carolina. I grew up with my parents and two sisters. Cary is home to my favorite park, Downtown Cary Park, which is overlooked by a beautiful public library. What is your academic/professional history? I am a rising senior at Duke University, pursuing a double major in history and political science.

Lan An is pursuing a master’s degree in library and information science at San Jose State University. She is interning this spring and summer in the Preservation Services Division at the Library of Congress. Tell us about your background? I am originally from Beijing, China, where my family has lived for more than 350 years, and moved to the United States after high school.

Welcome to the latest post in the Homegrown Plus series, featuring Sephardic music with singer and songwriter Lily Henley and her trio. Just like other blogs in the series, this one includes a concert video, a video interview with Lily Henley, and connections to Library of Congress collections. We presented this concert back in May, in celebration of Jewish American History Month. In addition, the entire Homegrown series this year celebrates the 50th anniversary of the American Folklife Center.

Today’s blog interview is with Librarian-in-Residence at the Law Library of Congress, Joanna Colclough. Describe your background. I live in Maryland, but grew up moving around a lot as an Army brat. Most of my extended family lives in Michigan, so the Midwest is a big part of my background and my favorite region. I took many summer trips to Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Museum. What is your academic/professional history?

Today’s blog interview is with Joanna Colclough who participated in the Leadership Development Program (LDP) at the Library of Congress. Her detail assignment during the program was at the Law Library of Congress. Describe your background. I live in Maryland, but grew up moving around a lot as an Army brat. Most of my extended family lives in Michigan, so the Midwest is a big part of my background and my favorite region. I took many summer trips to Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Museum.

The shores of present-day Alaska, home to indigenous peoples for thousands of years, have been visited across various centuries by Russian, Spanish, and British expeditions, arriving at the mercy of sea winds. In the 19th century, sailing ships gave way to steamships, revolutionizing maritime travel and opening Alaska to new levels of interest from the outside world. Maps from the Geography and Map Division help to chart the history of steamship journeys to Alaska.