This collection, with bulk dates from 1950-1994, documents the life of Ralph Rinzler and his professional activities as Director of Field Programs for the Newport Folk Festival, Director of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival (formerly the Festival of American Folklife) and the Office of Folklife Programs (now the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage), and the Smithsonian Institution's Assistant Secretary for Public Service. Includes personal papers, business records, correspondence, notes, photographs, audiotapes and field recordings.

This collection includes postcards from 45 African countries. Subjects include agriculture; animals; artists; body arts; cityscapes; cultural landscapes; dance; education; expeditions; flora; industry; leaders; marketplaces; medicine; military; missionaries; music; portraits; recreation; rites and ceremonies; and transportation, among many other topics.

A collection of approximately 28,000 glass plate negatives showing views of a variety of subjects.

These records document an important change in the scope of the Smithsonian's concerns. Four of the bureaus and offices represented in these records existed in some form prior to 1964: the National Museum of American History, the Freer Gallery of Art, the National Museum of American Art, and the National Portrait Gallery. All the others we...

The records of the American Federation of Arts (AFA) provide researchers with a complete set of documentation focusing on the founding and history of the organization from its inception through the 1960s. The collection measures 79.8 linear feet, and dates from 1895 through 1993, although the bulk of the material falls between 1909 and 1969. Valuable for its coverage of twentieth-century American art history, the collection also provides researchers with fairly comprehensive documentation of the many exhibitions and programs supported and implemented by the AFA to promote and study contemporary American art, both nationally and abroad.

This accession consists of records that document the administrative activities of the Office of the Secretary during the tenure of Ira Michael Heyman, Secretary (1994-1999). They document the expansion and development of the Institution, its museums, programs, projects, research activities, and significant events. Materials include corresponde...

These records concern the operation of the Office of the Secretary from 1972 to the end of S. Dillon Ripley's tenure as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. The records document the Smithsonian's on-going operations -- internal, with other government Offices and departments, and with foundations, universities, and other outside organizat...

This accession consists of event files documenting special events and conferences at the Smithsonian Institution. The records, with earlier material dating back to the Office of Special Events, primarily include memoranda, guest/participant lists, event summaries, program brochures, photographs, and budget information.

This collection contains over 37,000 35mm slides, 3,000 glass lantern slides and garden files that may include descriptive information, photocopied articles (from journals, newspapers, or books), planting lists, correspondence, brochures, landscape plans and drawings. Garden files were compiled by Garden Club of America (GCA) members for most of the gardens included in the collection. Some gardens have been photographed over the course of several decades; others only have images from a single point in time. In addition to images of American gardens, there are glass lantern slides of the New York Flower Show (1941-1951) and trips that GCA members took to other countries, including Mexico (1937), Italy, Spain, Japan (1935), France (1936), England (1929), and Scotland. A number of the slides are copies of historic images from outside repositories including horticultural and historical societies or from horticultural books and publications. The GCA made a concerted effort in the mid-1980s to acquire these images in order to increase its documentation of American garden history. Because of copyright considerations, use of these particular images may be restricted.

An extensive and comprehensive collection of posters from World War I and World War II.