EDM in the history museum: Steve Aoki gear travels the world and finds a home at the museum
Music blasts toward the audience as concertgoers dance to Steve Aoki's pounding bass rhythms and bright LED displays. The DJ throws cakes...
You're invited to a Bowl of Rice Party
Wartime often catalyzes developments in philanthropy. In 2017, the museum added the Bowl of Rice party banner, from fundraising efforts to...
6 Jewish American objects for Jewish American Heritage Month
In April 2006, President George W. Bush proclaimed May to be Jewish American Heritage Month. Jewish American objects in our collections...

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Today, the "Dog Vacuum." Tomorrow, who knows?
Recently, the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation partnered with ePals, an online network for K-12 students, parents...
Groats, euros, and eagles, oh my!
Editor’s note: This is the third of a nine-part series that follows the European tour of one of the Smithsonian’s most treasured coins, the...
Donor Spotlight: 2,656 miles, round-trip
How far would you drive to visit the National Museum of American History? When I first met Museum donor David Garrett, I was amazed to hear...
Grant Ichikawa being interviewed by Noriko Sanefuji
Day of Remembrance: An interview with Grant Ichikawa
Editor’s note: This blog is the third in a three-part series on the 70th anniversary of Executive Order 9066. Read about the...
God Save the Queen (and James Smithson)
Editor’s note: This is the second of a nine-part series that follows the European tour of one of the Smithsonian’s most treasured coins,...
A new face at the museum: Omar Eaton-Martinez
Omar Eaton-Martinez started at the National Museum of American History in November as the new intern and fellows manager, ready to continue...
Have coin, will travel: An American legend’s epic European tour
Editor's note: This is the first of a nine-part series that follows the European tour of one of the Smithsonian's most treasured...
Donor Spotlight: A gift for the future
As a museum employee, I have come to appreciate the amount of work, time, and expense that goes into developing an exhibition. The current...
A day of remembrance
Editor’s note: This blog is the second in a three-part series on the 70th anniversary of Executive Order 9066.  The museum and the...
A group of casually dressed people stand around a table, holding hands
Teaching with drama
For the past four years, the museum’s History Alive! Theater Program has used theater in the museum as a tool to promote dialogue on...
Snowboarding shreds into the Smithsonian
Note: the Snowboarding Artifact Wall is now on view on the first floor of the Museum. The Superpipe is a 567 foot long, 22 foot deep, U-...
Titian Ramsay Peale: Washington, D.C., in collodion
As an intern in the Photographic History Collection at the National Museum of American History in the summer of 2010, I set out to survey...
Filming the Jefferson Bible
I must admit I was skeptical. Very skeptical. As the new person tasked with finding compelling topics for Smithsonian...
Wedding gown with long sleeves and rouching
Love, historically
It’s Valentine’s Day and we sure do love history. On this day of cards, flowers, and chocolate, we wanted to take some time to celebrate...
Day of remembrance: 70 years after Executive Order 9066
With the signing of Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt authorized the creation of designated...
Record album with black and white photo of the Beatles
Feb. 11 1964, the Beatles' first concert in the United States
Eric Jentsch in our Division of Culture and the Arts shares the story of the first Beatles concert in America, which took place right here...
Jacket patch designed to look like a baseball with text: “World Monarchs Champions 1942”
1942 Negro World Series: Two legends face off
While volunteering with the Smithsonian’s sports collection for the past three months, I ran across a jacket patch worn by the manager of...
Hartford, Connecticut: a "Places of Invention" tour
Colt Armory DomeAs I drove down an unfamiliar street in Connecticut’s capital city, I wondered whether a self-guided tour of Hartford’s...
Curator Dwight Blocker Bowers on Hollywood and history, part II
Editor’s note: Beginning February 4, the museum, in partnership with Warner Bros. Studios, will bring quintessential American movies to the...
Curator Dwight Blocker Bowers on Hollywood and history
Editor’s note: Beginning February 4, the museum, in partnership with Warner Bros. Studios, will bring quintessential American movies to the...
Digging into the museum's collections
Editor's note: This post is the third of three submitted by students as part of a Museum Studies class co-taught by Shari Stout,...
Forgotten early sound recordings given a voice
Editor’s note: This blog is the second of a two-part series exploring the process of bringing early sound recordings to life for the first...
Preserving plastics
Editor’s note: This post is the second of three submitted by students as part of a Museum Studies class co-taught by Shari Stout,...
The Italian soul of Steve Jobs
As far as anybody knows, Steve Jobs did not have a drop of Italian blood, even by osmosis from his adoptive parents. Yet he clearly had a...
Trilled R's and the dawn of recorded sound in America
Editor’s note: This blog is the first part of a two-part series exploring the process of bringing early sound recordings to life for the...
A fascination with shoes
Editor’s note: This post is the first of three submitted by students as part of a Museum Studies class co-taught by Shari Stout, Collection...
Donor Spotlight: A passion for political history
How do you want to be remembered after you’re gone? People often wonder what kind of legacy they will leave behind. Wanda Shalett found an...
Designing history: lighting, color, and video technology
Editor’s note: This is the fourth and final installment in a series of posts about designing the new exhibition The First Ladies, which...
Slideshow: 2011 year in review
2011 was a remarkable year for the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Thanks to supporters like you, we were able to...
Designing history: design intention and inspiration
Editor’s note: This blog is the third in a series of posts about designing the new exhibition The First Ladies, which opened on November 19...
Top 10 posts of 2011
As the year draws to a close, we like to look back at the blog posts you seemed to enjoy the most. This year we've added a few new...
Designing history: creating an appropriate space
Editor’s note: This blog is the second in a series of posts about designing the new exhibition: The First Ladies, which opened on November...
Gift of the artist: photographers as donors
This blog is reposted from the Smithsonian Collections Blog.This blog is a virtual exhibition, based on the small exhibition of original...
Tips for your holiday visit
One of the perks of working in a museum is being able to commune with objects in the quiet hours of the morning before the doors open to...
Last-minute gifts for history lovers
The holidays are upon us, and in case you’re still hunting for that perfect gift for the history lovers in your life, we have some ideas:...
Julia Child's Kitchen
7 ways to survive while Julia Child’s kitchen is closed for 7 months
On December 3, the museum announced the temporary closing of Bon Appetit! Julia Child’s Kitchen at the Smithsonian. The last day to see...
Designing history: the day of an exhibition design intern
Editor’s note: This blog is the first in a series of posts about designing the new exhibition The First Ladies, which opened on November 19...
Paper repair
Treating the Jefferson Bible
Editor’s note: This blog is the fifth in a series of posts about the Jefferson bible conservation project.After careful analysis, it was...
Person with gloves and specialized equipment and fact mask in lab setting
The anatomy of a discovery: Q&A with HIV researcher Dr. Jay Levy
It’s been 30 years since the first cases of HIV and AIDS were reported and, since then, the disease has created a...
Electric cars: 100 years ago and today
“At slow speeds it runs on battery power,” transportation curator emeritus William Withuhn explained during my first ride in his 2003...
Black Friday and the missing retail amenity
“Black Friday”—the day after Thanksgiving when holiday shopping goes into high gear—promises to start even earlier this year on Thursday,...
The View From Up North: Americans experience Mexico, circa 1890-1945
In the years prior to World War II, most Americans had limited first-hand experience of their southern neighbor. Mexico primarily was known...
Moving Beyond Earth: Innovations in Space
Editor's note: Listen to Matthew Hersch discuss the history behind the development of the space suit. From early high altitude suits, to...
At the Heart of the Invention: The development of the Holter Monitor
You probably know someone with a heart condition, someone who had a heart attack or even heart surgery. I know I do. According to the...
Hands-on history: Folding a national symbol
Have you ever seen an American flag up close? I don’t mean the kind you can wave at parades. How about an American flag that’s 30 feet tall...
Honoring our veterans: Returning to the battlefields
Every year over a million visitors tour Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania, site of the Civil War ...
Moving beyond Earth . . . and traveling light
On November 18-19, Moving Beyond Earth: Innovations in Space, the Lemelson Center’s symposium, held this year in collaboration with...
Old patterns, new socks: A DIY story
It’s a little tough to find a Civil War sock . . . that a few hundred people can touch each year. The museum does a lot of hands-on...

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