In honor of this week's holiday (yes, I'm a few days behind), I thought I'd look a few decades beyond my usual focus on the 1920s and 30s.

I am still elbow-deep in the Albert M. Greenfield papers (collection 1959), which includes materials on an impressive array of topics, events, and notable people. Even Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Though I'm now working with more recent materials, I couldn't resist one last Civil War-related post as we approach the 150th anniversary of the war.

Much attention will be placed on the anniversary of the start of the war: April 12, 1861, the date that Confederates opened fire on the federal Fort Sumter in South Carolina. But obviously tensions had been rising for years before that final breaking point.

Our processing work for the Digital Center for Americana pilot project is winding down. Over the last year, we’ve processed, conserved, described, and selectively digitized 51 collections at HSP that have ties to the Civil War.