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Museum Closed

Due to COVID-19, all Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are temporarily closed.

Many Voices, One Nation

How did we become US?

Girlhood
(It's complicated)

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As a public health precaution due to COVID-19, all Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are temporarily closed. No reopening date has been announced; see our website and social media channels for updates.
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Our Mission

Empowering people to create a just and compassionate future by exploring, preserving, and sharing the complexity of our past.

Exhibitions

Exhibitions on a range of topics offer firsthand experiences with treasures of American history.

Collections

We collect artifacts of all kinds—from gowns to locomotives—to preserve an enduring record of our past for the American people.

News and Events

Jazz Appreciation Month

Learn about this year's featured artist, Nina Simone, and discover ways to celebrate jazz in April.

Smithsonian Jazz Sextet: Tribute to the Poll Winners

Enjoy a concert recording featuring tributes to a range of iconic jazz musicians. Free online through April 8.

Latinas Talk Latinas | Latinas hablan de Latinas

This video series introduces you to the lives of 10 Latinas, as told by curators, scientists, and educators across the Smithsonian. Each video is accompanied by online learning resources.

Stories of 2020 | Crónicas del 2020

How does it feel to be part of history? Share your stories and images of 2020 with the future. The museum is collecting stories through April 2021.

Smithsonian Collects Objects From First Known U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Effort

As the nation marks the one-year anniversary of the pandemic, the museum has acquired materials connected with vaccine administered Dec. 14 by Northwell Health, a New York-based health provider.

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci Donates Pandemic-Related Object to the Smithsonian

See full events calendar
See more news items

From Our Blog

Case showing changes in girls' uniforms in exhibition, Girlhood: It's complicated

Why Girlhood?

Three years ago our museum convened a diverse group of scholars and educators to help a team brainstorm a new exhibition about women's history to mark the 100th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment. After two days of presentations, discussions, and workshopping, we had a bold new idea—we were going to create an exhibition about girlhood.
Detail of ten dollar note showing illustration of an interiror iron foundry with figures working

Rebecca Lukens: A woman of iron

A sudden tragedy thrust Rebecca Lukens into the family business and into history, making her the nation’s first woman industrialist and the only woman to run and eventually own an iron mill in the United States during the 1800s.
Photo of the Capitol Building from the National Mall, with a person in a military uniform walking in the foreground

The cold morning of the day after

On January 6, my wife and I watched the live news broadcasts in disbelief at the scenes unfolding on television, as a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol and interrupted the constitutionally mandated joint session of Congress presided over by the vice president to ratify the 2020 election results.
Read more stories from our blog

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