International gif-making competition GIF IT UP returns for the month of October.
Join the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) and partners Europeana, Trove (Australia), and DigitalNZ (New Zealand) to create original gif artwork, be inspired by creative reuse of cultural heritage materials, and celebrate one of the internet’s most beloved art forms.
Gif-makers and gif-lovers of all skill levels are invited to participate by creating original gifs using copyright-free digital video, images, or text from any of the participating digital library collections. Even if you’re not a gif-creator, keep an eye out for new entries on our GIPHY channel and #GIFITUP2018 and share your favorites to help spread the love for cultural heritage gifs.
Find all the rules, tools, and information you need for GIF IT UP 2018 below and on the contest website at gifitup.net.
Find this 2017 GIF IT UP entry on GIPHY.
Labor History for Labor Day
This Labor Day, dig into labor history through DPLA Exhibitions on topics including labor on the World War I home front, the Bread & Roses Strike of 1912, MA’s shoe-making industry, and the work of Montana’s early settlers!Selected images include:
- A 1920 photograph of a shoe shop in Haverill, MA, from Lawrence History Center via Digital Commonwealth and featured in Best Foot Forward: The Shoe Industry in Massachusetts.
- “Proclamation! Is Massachusetts in America?,” a 1912 poster from the Lawrence History Center via Digital Commonwealth and featured in Bread and Roses Strike of 1912: Two Months in Lawrence, Massachusetts, that Changed Labor History.
- A postcard featuring a grain threshing machine near Hobson, Montana, from Hobson Library via Big Sky Country Digital Network and featured in Boom or Bust: The Industries that Settled Montana.
- “For Every Fighter A Woman Worker. Care for her through the YWCA,” ca. 1917, from North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources via North Carolina Digital Heritage Center and featured in Patriotic Labor: America during World War I.
#FridayFeeling: Don’t you just want to make a beach pyramid?
Here’s to Summer Fridays and the art of the sometimes graceful, occasionally dangerous, always fun human pyramid on a beach! View dozens more in DPLA.
These selections come from Springfield College Archives and Special Collections via Digital Commonwealth; Free Library of Philadelphia via PA Digital; and Los Angeles Public Library via California Digital Library.
Happy Birthday, Nikola Tesla!
Ever wonder who those snazzy Tesla cars are named for? Meet inventor, engineer, and electricity pioneer Nikola Tesla, who was born on this day in 1856. View photos, inventions, and writings in DPLA.
Plus, find more resources on Tesla, Thomas Edison, and “Electrifying America” in this Primary Source Set.
Featured images include:
- Nikola Tesla, from New-York Historical Society via Empire State Digital Network
- The title page for one of Tesla’s published lectures, from University of Wisconsin via HathiTrust
- An alternating current electric motor based on Nikola Tesla’s design, from the National Museum of American History via Smithsonian
#ArchivesRoadTrip!
Half the battle of planning an #ArchivesRoadTrip is picking a destination. The other half is figuring out how to get there. Not to worry - our partner, David Rumsey Map Collection has you covered on both counts! Browse thousands of highway and road maps in DPLA.
You might want to double check your route on your phones though – all of these featured maps are 60+ years old!
Featured images include Travel Colorado Highways, California’s Mission Trails, Auto road map of Central United States, and Pictorial Map of the United States with trip planning guide.
Resurrection City and the Poor People’s Campaign
50 years ago, over 3,000 people camped on the National Mall in Resurrection City as part of the Poor People’s Campaign against poverty in America. View materials in DPLA documenting the camp, its residents, and their activism.
Find out how you can support and participate in the new Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival at https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org.
Selected images:
- Resurrection City with view of the Washington Monument, from DC Public Library via District Digital
Bird’s eye view of Resurrection City, from UNC-Chapel Hill Library via North Carolina Digital Heritage Center. - Resurrection City structures, from DC Public Library via District Digital
- Resurrection City residents, from University of Michigan Library via Michigan Service Hub
What will you be wearing for the Royal Wedding?
Are you putting the finishing touches on your Royal Wedding ensemble just in case your invitation got lost in the mail and arrives today? Well, we are and we’re taking inspiration from some historical hats in DPLA!
This feather-adorned hat was designed by Mae Reeves of Mae’s Millinery Shop, a Philadelphia institution and groundbreaking black woman-owned business for over fifty years, from the National Museum of African American History and Culture via Smithsonian.
Choice #2 is a pillbox hat ca. 1965 with sasheen ribbon and flowers, from Minnesota Historical Society via Minnesota Digital Library.
Last but not least, stand out in the crowd with this bumble bee hat designed by Chicago milliners Bes-Ben ca. 1950, from Chicago History Museum via Illinois Digital Heritage Hub.
Still looking for the perfect headwear? View more hats in DPLA!
Welcome, District Digital!
We are pleased to announce that the collections of our newest service hub, District Digital, are now discoverable in DPLA! Led by partners DC Public Library and Washington Research Library Consortium, District Digital brings over 50,000 new materials representing Washington, D.C.’s unique history as a center for education, social and political activism, and culture to DPLA.
View highlighted collections in today’s announcement!
This photograph shows revelers celebrating the US bicentennial on the National Mall in 1976, from the Darrell Crain Jr. photograph collection at DC Public Library via District Digital.
We may have gotten carried away with our baby animal research…
Just kidding–you clearly cannot have too many baby animals on a Friday afternoon!
We’re once again teaming up with @usnatarchives & co. for the #ArchivesHashtagParty and today’s theme is #ArchivesAnimals. Follow on Twitter and Instagram for even more animal adorableness.
These selections come from South Wood County Historical Museum via Recollection Wisconsin; Griffin Museum of Photography via Digital Commonwealth; Los Angeles Public Library via California Digital Library; US National Archives; USC Libraries; UMass Amherst Library via Digital Commonwealth; and Oklahoma Historical Society via OKHub.
National Bike Month Resource Spotlight
In honor of National Bike Month, explore the role of the bicycle in transforming women’s fashion, transportation, and societal independence at the turn of the century!
Check out primary sources on The New Woman and many more resources in DPLA’s collections.
These selections come from New-York Historical Society via Empire State Digital Network; Atlanta History Center via Digital Library of Georgia; Minnesota Historical Society via Minnesota Digital Library; and Montana State University Library via Big Sky Country Digital Network.