Library of Congress

Library of Congress on Flickr

Submitted by jajacobs on Tue, 2008-03-25 06:29.

Library of Congress tests Web 2.0 photo archive, By Wade-Hahn Chan, FCW.com, March 24, 2008. "The Library of Congress has turned to the popular online picture-sharing community of Flickr for help with tagging the library's voluminous photo archives."

Library of Congress Photos on Flickr, Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Reading Room. "We invite you to tag and comment on the photos, and we also welcome identifying information—many of these old photos came to us with scanty descriptions!" See also the FAQ.

The Library of Congress' photos, Flickr. "Yes. We really are THE Library of Congress."

See also: EPA Pilot Project Tagging Project.

LOC budget request for FY 2009

Submitted by Susannaleers on Mon, 2008-03-10 04:46.

The Open House Project has a report on the March 5 testimony of Dr. James Billington, the Librarian of Congress. His prepared statement (see attached) presented information on on current LoC initiatives, and described funding priorities. The testimony repeatedly mentions 2008's "deep and painful cuts to the Library’s budget", and the Librarian adds "I feel obligated to say that if we are stretched much farther, we may soon reach a breaking point." Furthermore, the statement adds,
"Demand for online services, increased pressure on web services operations to enhance THOMAS, the World Digital Library (WDL), and the Legal Information Services (LIS) databases, and the need to develop new configurations and applications have severely strained technical assistance and infrastructure support provided by the Office of Strategic Initiatives (OSI) and Information Technology Services (ITS). Since 1995, THOMAS has provided free legislative information on the web. Our congressional and public constituencies have for several years been requesting upgrades to both THOMAS and LIS to enhance content and searchability. ... However, the IT and digital demands on the Library will need support from the Congress in fiscal 2010 to sustain the Library’s ability to provide services to the Congress and its constituents. "

Map Collections - Treasures of the Library of Congress

Submitted by acope on Fri, 2007-05-11 10:57.

The Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress is the "largest and most comprehensive cartographic collection in the world, numbering over 5.2 million maps, including 80,000 atlases, 6,000 reference works, numerous globes and three-dimensional plastic relief models, and a large number of cartographic materials in other formats, including electronic." Many have been converted to digital form.

The focus of digital Map Collections is Americana and Cartographic Treasures of the Library of Congress. These images were created from maps and atlases and, in general, are restricted to items that are not covered by copyright protection.

Map Collections is organized according to seven major categories.

One of my favorite collections at the LOC Map Collections site is the panoramic map collection. The panoramic map was a popular cartographic form used to depict U.S. and Canadian cities and towns during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These maps are also known as bird's-eye views, perspective maps, and aero views.

Panoramic maps are nonphotographic representations of cities portrayed as if viewed from above at an oblique angle. Although not generally drawn to scale, they show street patterns, individual buildings, and major landscape features in perspective.

Oral Histories from U.S. Veterans

Submitted by newkirk on Tue, 2007-04-17 13:23.

Library of Congress and PBS Collect and Preserve Oral Histories of U.S. Wartime Veterans

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