Citizen Archivist Dashboard

Presidential Libraries Road Trip

Join us on a Presidential Road Trip! In honor of Presidents Day, we are virtually traveling the country to bring you a series of Citizen Archivist missions featuring records from the Presidential Libraries across the National Archives.

We’ll make a new stop each day on our Road Trip, unlocking a different Presidential Library tagging and transcription mission. Use the links below to learn more about each Library and contribute as a Citizen Archivist! Every contribution will help make these records more searchable and discoverable in our Catalog.


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Questions? See our FAQ below.

 

February 6: John F. Kennedy Library

John F. Kennedy

Welcome to the Presidential Library Road Trip! Kick off the first day of our virtual Road Trip by transcribing and tagging records from the John F. Kennedy Library located in Boston, Massachusetts.

Records completed. View records from this Road Trip stop.?

February 7: Franklin D. Roosevelt Library

Franklin D. Roosevelt

On day two of our Road Trip we arrive at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library in Hyde Park, New York. What records will you find as you tag and transcribe records from the 32nd president's administration?

Continue to tag and transcribe?!

February 10: Jimmy Carter Library

Jimmy Carter

On day three we virtually travel all the way to Atlanta, Georgia to the Jimmy Carter Library. How many records will you tag and transcribe today?

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

February 11: William J. Clinton Library

William J. Clinton

Are you ready to transcribe and tag records from our 42nd president? Today our virtual Road Trip arrives at the William J. Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. Learn about how to transcribe Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) records in our FAQ section below.

Continue to tag and transcribe!

February 12: Harry S. Truman Library

Harry S Truman

We travel to Independence, Missouri to begin transcribing and tagging records from the Harry S. Truman administration. What interesting records will you find on this stop of our virtual Road Trip?

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

February 13: Dwight D. Eisenhower Library

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Stop number six on this virtual Road Trip heads west to Abilene, Kansas home to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Library. Join us and explore the variety of records we've selected for you to tag and transcribe.

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

February 14: Lyndon B. Johnson Library

Lyndon B. Johnson

Our virtual Road Trip heads to Texas! Join us in transcribing and tagging records from the Lyndon B. Johnson Library in Austin, Texas.

Continue to tag and transcribe!

February 18: George H.W. Bush Library

George H.W. Bush

We're staying in Texas to virtually visit the library of the 41st President George H. W. Bush. Help us tag and transcribe records found in the George H. W. Bush Library in College Station, Texas.

Records completed. View records from this road trip stop. 

February 19: George W. Bush Library

George W. Bush

On our final stop in the great state of Texas we virtually visit the George W. Bush Library on the campus of Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas. How many records will you help us transcribe and tag?

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

February 20: Richard Nixon Library

Richard M. Nixon

On the 10th stop of our virtual Road Trip we arrive in Yorba Linda, California, home to the Richard Nixon Library. Help us tag and transcribe records from the Nixon administration.

Continue to tag and transcribe!

February 21: Ronald Reagan Library

Ronald Reagan Library

Traffic was heavy in Los Angeles, but this is a virtual Road Trip, so we didn't need to decide between the I-210 and the I-5 to arrive at our next stop in California. Join us and transcribe and tag records found at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California.

Continue to tag and transcribe?!

February 24: Herbert Hoover Library

Herbert Hoover Library

On day twelve of our virtual Road Trip we head to West Branch, Iowa, home to the Herbert Hoover Library. Explore the records of the 31st president, including a variety of motion picture films! Learn about tagging films in our FAQ section.

Records completed. View records from this Road Trip stop.?

February 25: Barack Obama Library

Barack Obama Library

Today we virtually visit the newest Presidential Library, the Barack Obama Library. This brand new library will be the first fully digital Presidential Library. Help us make the Obama administration photographs more discoverable by tagging details and features.

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

February 26: Gerald R. Ford Library

Gerald R. Ford

Our 14th and final stop on the virtual Road Trip finds us in Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the Gerald R. Ford Library. How many records can you tag and transcribe from the Ford administration?

Records completed.  View records from this Road Trip stop.

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

 

 

You will need to have an account in the National Archives Catalog to contribute transcriptions, tags, and comments.  Visit our Register and Get Started page for step-by-step instructions.  Check out our Resources page for instructions and videos to help you with your work as a Citizen Archivist.  For the Presidential Road Trip we recommend that you review the video How to Tag and Transcribe Records and What Makes A Good Tag?

Once you click save, your work is done! Your transcription has been added to our catalog and shortly all the words you typed will be searched every time someone conducts a search at catalog.archives.gov.  We suggest saving your work at regular intervals when transcribing. 

The most useful contribution for films are tags.  We encourage you to watch the film and add descriptive details found within the films as you watch.  You can tag the names of people you see in the film, locations, features and anything else you see on screen.  All of these details make these films more discoverable in our Catalog. 

Check out our guide What Makes A Good Tag to help understand what details and features you should look for when tagging films.

Some of our presidential records include a cover sheet or more with Freedom of Information Act [FOIA] information.  You can skip the cover sheet(s) and begin your transcription work with the actual record.

We're excited that you are enjoying this special Citizen Archivist project. We always have a variety of tagging and transcription missions available to work on.  Visit our Missions page to see what's currently featured.  Additionally, you can always tag, transcribe, and comment on any digitized record in the National Archives Catalog.  To learn how to search through the more than 115 million pages of digitized records, watch our video Searching the National Archives Catalog to Find Records to Transcribe.

Presidential Libraries can be found across the country, from Massachusetts to California. Plan your visit today. We look forward to welcoming you!

 

While you're there, but sure to pick up your Passport!

The Passport to Presidential Libraries is a program that gives visitors an opportunity to purchase a special keepsake booklet they can take with them on their travels to Presidential Libraries and Museums across the nation. A visitor receives a commemorative stamp from the library at the time of the purchase and can collect stamps from every Presidential Library visited in the future. Once they collect stamps from all Presidential Libraries, they may visit any of the Presidential Libraries for a special gift.

The Passports can be purchased at any of the thirteen Presidential Museums. The Passport retails for $5.00.

Still have questions? Check out our FAQ page for additional information.

 

 

 

 

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