National Archives Public Programs in April
Press Release · Monday, March 27, 2023

Washington, DC

In April the National Archives will present free public programs at the National Archives Museum in Washington, DC, at its Presidential Libraries nationwide, and online. 

(In Person Only) Annual Easter Celebration at the George Bush Presidential Library 
Saturday, April 1, 9:30 a.m.–noon CT
George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, College Station, TX
RSVP  
The Annual Easter Celebration activities will be available for children aged 9 and under and will include an Easter egg hunt, carnival games, face painting, door prizes, balloon animals, complimentary refreshments, and photos with the Easter Bunny.

The Annual Easter Celebration, modeled after the annual White House Easter Egg Roll, has been hosted by the Bush Library and Museum in partnership with the College Station Police Department (CSPD) since 1999, but the event has a long tradition in College Station. The police department has been putting on this event since 1982. 

Visually impaired children can participate in the Beeping Easter Egg Hunt. The CSPD Bomb Unit has created plastic eggs that beep to alert children to their location. The event is held on a separate field to keep the participants safe and to allow them to enjoy themselves at their own pace. 

Special thanks to Academy Sports and Outdoors, Candy 95, Newstalk 1620/94.5, The ZONE 1150/93.7, Maverick 100.9, Willy 97.7, Peace 107, and LaJefa 102.7. 

(In Person and Online) PEN/Hemingway Award Celebration
Sunday, April 2, 2 p.m.–3:15 p.m. ET 
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, MA
Registration required to attend in person or online
Seán Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway’s grandson, honors finalists for the 2023 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel at this celebration. Award-winning author Jennifer Haigh delivers the keynote address. The Kennedy Library is the major repository of Ernest Hemingway’s personal papers. This program is co-presented with the International Hemingway Foundation and Society.

(In Person Only) Sunday Concert Series at the Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
Sunday, April 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30, at 2 p.m. PT
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, Yorba Linda, CA
April 2: SAI Scholarship Winners Concert
April 9: Rixiang Huang - Pianist
April 16: Yorba Linda Quartet Concert
April 23: Esther Back - Baroque Cello and Melody Hui-Chin Lin - Pianist
April 30: Cal State San Bernardino Cello Ensemble Concert                         

(Online Only) Book Talk –The Civil War Political Tradition: Ten Portraits of Those Who Formed It
Wednesday, April 5, at 1 p.m. ET
Register to attend online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
Historian Paul Escott will discuss the key Americans in the years leading up to the Civil War. Escott profiles Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Douglass, Stephen A. Douglas, Jefferson Davis, Abraham Lincoln, Horace Greeley, Albion Tourgée, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, illustrating how these men and women established, embodied, and advanced the opposing political and cultural trends that culminated in the great crisis of the 19th century. Covering figures from across a wide political spectrum, Escott reveals numerous streams and facets of 19th-century American political thought to illuminate the forces, from slavery to suffrage, underlying this greatest of conflicts. Joining the author in conversation will be John David Smith, professor of history, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.

(In Person Only) Food for Thought: Social Media in the Classroom
Wednesday, April 5, 6:30 p.m. –8 p.m. CT
Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum, Austin, TX
Registration is required 
Join the LBJ Library and Emily Glankler for the inaugural session of Food for Thought, where we discuss impactful pedagogy for all ages and content areas. Emily Glankler has taught history and current events courses from 6th grade through high school for over a decade at a variety of schools in Austin, TX. She also has a podcast, YouTube channel, and TikTok account called “Anti-Social Studies,” which teaches history and current events to students (and adults) beyond her classroom.
Teachers who participate in Food for Thought will earn 1.5 CEU hours; a certificate will be available upon completion of the discussion. 
Registration for this event will close at 10 p.m. CT on Friday, March 31, 2023.

(In Person and Online) Book Talk – Frankie Welch and the First Lady with Ashley Callahan
Thursday, April 6, at 7 p.m. ET
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI
Register to attend in person; Register to attend online
Frankie Welch and Betty Ford shared a friendship and a love of fashion. Welch, who was from Georgia, opened a dress shop in Alexandria, VA, in 1963 that became a social and shopping mecca among Washington’s political elite. When she debuted her first scarf design, the Cherokee Alphabet, Ford was one of her models. When Ford needed to select an outfit for her husband’s inauguration, Welch was there to assist her. This lecture will be based on Ashley Callahan’s book Frankie Welch’s Americana: Fashion, Scarves, and Politics. 

(In Person Only) Community Colleges: Can They Be All Things to All Students?
Monday, April 10, at 5:30 p.m. CT 
George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, College Station, TX
Register to attend in person 
Join us for an Education Policy Workshop featuring Dr. Celeste Carruthers, who is the William F. Fox Distinguished Professor of Labor Economics in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee with a joint appointment in the Department of Economics and the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research. Her research centers on education policy with crossovers into public economics, labor economics, and economic history. She will speak about her current research and its policy implications. The Mosbacher Institute’s Education Policy Workshops feature noted academics who are invited to discuss their current research. The workshops are designed to increase understanding of the research underlying current education policy and how those policies can affect the nation’s economic future.

(Online Only) Book Talk – Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin: The Glider Pilots of World War II
Wednesday, April 12, at 1 p.m.
Register to attend online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
In the first major history of American glider pilots, the forgotten heroes of World War II, author Scott McGaugh will discuss the story of no guns, no engines, and no second chances.This book distills war down to individual young men climbing into defenseless gliders made of plywood, ready to trust the towing aircraft that would pull them into enemy territory by a single cable wrapped with a telephone wire. Based on their after-action reports, journals, oral histories, photos, and letters home, the book reveals every terrifying minute of their missions.They were all volunteers for a specialized duty that their own government projected would have a 50 percent casualty rate. None faltered. 

(In Person and Online) Book Talk – Mourning the Presidents: Loss and Legacy in American Culture with David B. Woolner
Wednesday, April 12, at 6 p.m. ET
Henry A. Wallace Center at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, NY
Registration for in-person attendance is required; watch online YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook
The FDR Presidential Library presents a conversation and book signing with David B. Woolner, Roosevelt historian and contributor to Mourning the Presidents: Loss and Legacy in American Culture.

(In Person Only) Book Talk – Chad Williams, author of The Wounded World
Thursday, April 13, at 7 p.m. ET
Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Atlanta, GA
The dramatic story of W.E.B. Du Bois’s reckoning with the betrayal of Black soldiers during World War I—and a new understanding of one of the great 20th-century writers. Drawing on a broad range of sources, most notably Du Bois’s unpublished manuscript and research materials, Williams tells a sweeping story of hope, betrayal, disillusionment, and transformation, setting into motion a fresh understanding of the life and mind of arguably the most significant scholar-activist in African American history.

(In Person Only) Scout Celebration Family Day
Saturday, April 15, 11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. ET
Boeing Learning Center, National Archives Museum, Washington, DC
Calling all Scouts! Join us in the Boeing Learning Center for a day of hands-on learning about topics like citizenship and democracy. Scouts and their families will have the opportunity to earn a custom National Archives patch and meet the founder of the Girl Scouts Juliette Gordon Low, as portrayed by Mary Ann Jung of History Alive. This program is sponsored in part by the National Archives Foundation.

(In Person Only) Yom HaShoah Cine-Concert: The City Without Jews with Alicia Svigals and Donald Sosin 
Tuesday, April 18, at 2 p.m. ET
Henry A. Wallace Center at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, NY
Registration for in-person attendance is required
The FDR Presidential Library and the Jewish Federation of Dutchess County present a silent film screening of The City Without Jews (1924)—featuring live musical accompaniment by Alicia Svigals and Donald Sosin—for Yom HaShoah.

This event is made possible by the Bernard and Shirley Handel Foundation Fund at the Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley and the Sunrise Foundation for Education and the Arts.

(Online Only) Book Talk – This Land Was Saved for You and Me: How Gifford Pinchot, Frederick Law Olmsted, and a Band of Foresters Rescued America’s Public Lands
Wednesday, April 19, at 1 p.m. ET
Register to attend online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
Author Jeffrey H. Ryan will discuss how America’s public lands—our city parks, national forests, and wilderness areas—came into being. The story can be traced to a few conservation pioneers and protégés who shaped policy and advocated for open spaces. Ryan covers the nearly century-long period between 1865 (when Olmsted contributed to the creation of Yosemite as a park and created its management plan) to the signing of the Wilderness Act of 1964. Olmsted influenced Pinchot, who became the first head of the National Forest Service, and in turn, Pinchot hired the foresters who became the founders of the Wilderness Society and creators of the Wilderness Act itself. 

(In Person and Online) Panel Discussion – Before 42
Thursday, April 20, at 7 p.m. ET
Register to attend in person or online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
Join us for a panel discussion featuring Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and Reverend Ray C. Mackey III, Board Chair of the Biz Mackey Family Foundation, author, and grandnephew of Hall of Fame catcher James Raleigh, “Biz” Mackey, as they discuss the story and history of integration and the baseball greats who led the way for Jackie Robinson’s historic career. The conversation will be moderated by Clinton Yates, columnist, television commentator, and host for ESPN. Opening remarks will be provided by U.S. Representative James Clyburn (D-SC).

Presented in partnership with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.  

All American: The Power of Sports and programs presented in conjunction with the exhibit are made possible in part by the National Archives Foundation through the generous support of AT&T, AARP, and Mars, Incorporated. Additional support provided by HISTORY® and the Lawrence F. O’Brien Family.

(In Person and Online) Guitarmania to Beatlemania Laurence Juber
Thursday, April, 20 at 7 p.m. ET
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI
Register for attendance in person. Register for attendance online
Join the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum and Library in welcoming Laurence Juber as he presents an illustrated history of the acoustic guitar and its role in music. This session of “guitarology” focuses on the six-string guitar and its relatives, from its roots in antiquity through its explosive popularity in early 19th-century Europe, and documents the instrument’s subsequent journey to the United States, its mass marketing, social function, and continued utility in popular music.

(Online Only) “Civics for All of US” Teacher Workshop – The First Amendment and You! The Bill of Rights for Elementary Educators
Thursday, April 20, at 7 p.m. ET
Register to attend online
Explore how to engage elementary students with primary sources from the holdings of the National Archives that demonstrate the power of student voices. During this interactive virtual workshop, educators will connect with resources for teaching the Bill of Rights in the elementary school classroom, including interactive distance learning programs, graphic organizers, and DocsTeach activities.

(In Person and Online) Author Talks & Signings – Hudson Valley History Reading Festival 
Henry A. Wallace Center at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, NY
Saturday, April 22, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. ET
Registration for in person attendance is required; watch online YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook
The Roosevelt Library and the Friends of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District will host the 10th annual Hudson Valley History Reading Festival. In four sessions, beginning at 10 a.m., authors of books on Hudson Valley history—including Leslie Melvin, William B. Rhoads, Kathryn W. Burke, Philip Dray, and Anthony Musso—will present talks followed by book signings in the Wallace Center.

(In Person Only) Silver Celebration: 25 Years of George Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Saturday, April 22, 5 p.m.–9 p.m. CT
George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, College Station, TX
RSVP
Join us for the Silver Celebration: 25 Years of the Bush Library and Museum! This community-wide event will feature free museum admission from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. along with special activities from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. The evening activities include musical entertainment and will culminate in a spectacular fireworks display.

Bring your lawn chairs and coolers to enjoy musical entertainment including the Texas A&M Women’s Chorus and the Singing Cadets. You can also sing along with your favorites as the Killer Dueling Pianos rock the plaza. Inside the museum, we’ll have cake along with an opportunity to see the exhibit Mandela: The Official Exhibition for free. 

Special thanks to the George & Barbara Bush Foundation, Texas A&M University, the City of College Station, and Visit College Station for making this event possible. 

(Online Only) Book Talk – The Pirate’s Wife: The Remarkable True Story of Sarah Kidd
Wednesday, April 26, at 1 p.m. ET
Register to attend online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
This is the dramatic and swashbuckling story of Sarah Kidd, the wife of the famous pirate Captain William Kidd. Author Daphne Palmer Geanacopoulos will discuss Sarah Kidd’s transformation from New York socialite to international outlaw during the Golden Age of Piracy. Captain Kidd was one of the most notorious pirates to ever prowl the seas, yet few know that his wife, Sarah, was his accomplice, operating within the structures of polite society in 17th- and 18th-century New York. Using documents from archives in London, New York, and Boston, the author reconstructs the extraordinary life of Sarah Kidd, uncovering a rare example of the kind of life that pirate wives lived during colonial times.

(Online Only) “Civics for All of US” Distance Learning Program for Students
Make Your Voice Count: Learning About the First Amendment (Grades K–2)
Wednesday, April 26, at 4:15 p.m. ET
Register to attend online
During this interactive civics program, students will explore the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights, using primary historical sources to learn about the importance of rights and how to exercise their freedoms.

(Online Only) The National Archives Comes Alive! Young Learners Program—Meet Albert Einstein
Thursday, April 27, at 11 a.m. ET
Register to attend online; watch on the National Archives YouTube Channel
Albert Einstein was a German-born physicist who immigrated to America in 1936 to escape growing Nazi aggression. As a professor at Princeton University, he became a citizen of the United States. As a genius, he made many discoveries, including the theory of relativity, for which he won a Nobel Prize in Physics. Actor Beau Solley portrays Albert Einstein.

This program is made possible in part by the National Archives Foundation.

(Virtual only) Lunch & Learn – Eisenhower and the Korean War Armistice
Thursday, April 27, at noon CT
Watch the livestream on the Eisenhower Presidential Library YouTube Channel
Guest speaker Dr. Edward Keefer will examine and assess Eisenhower’s role in ending the Korean War based on the documentary record and recent scholarship. Lunch & Learn programs are made possible courtesy of the Eisenhower Foundation with generous support from the Jeffcoat Memorial Foundation.

(Online Only) “Civics for All of US” Distance Learning Program for Students
The Bill of Rights Protects You (Grades 6–12)
Friday, April 28, at 2:15 p.m. ET
Register to attend online
During this program, students will explore the Bill of Rights and how it outlines both limits on government and the rights of the people. Students will work together to analyze three case studies that underscore the remedies that citizens can use to address instances where their rights have been violated. This program will introduce students to the Bill of Rights and strengthen their civic understanding.