Browse Projects
100% Complete
2 Total pages
2 Contributing members
Wightman Cup Medal
In 1959, Althea Gibson’s autobiography “I Always Wanted to Be Somebody” hit the shelves. According to the NY Times Book Review, “you can read all about the girl from Harlem they call the Jackie Robinson of tennis. Her book is amazingly candid…The language is the language Althea uses, and the frankness with which she speaks of her life is not only refreshing but fascinating.” Gibson was one of the most formidable sportswomen of the mid-20th century. She was the number-one-ranked female tennis player in the world in 1957 and 1958, a two-time Wimbledon ladies singles champion, two-time U.S. Open ladies singles champion, winner of multiple doubles and mixed doubles tournaments, and a professional golfer. Gibson took to tennis as a teen and despite her skill was often prohibited from playing in elite tournaments because of her race. In 1950, lobbying by the American Tennis Association and former tennis player Alice Marble forced the U.S. Tennis Association’s hand and Gibson became the first African American to compete in the U.S. Nationals. Help us transcribe her 1957 Wightman Cup medal and several congratulatory telegrams so that we can learn how others described this fascinating woman in their own words.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
19 Total pages
8 Contributing members
Wilberforce versus Tuskegee College Football Program
College football game day is an iconic part of American culture. Each team and its fan bases have their own set of traditions and events. This program from a 1944 game between Tuskegee Institute and Wilberforce University is not any different. Filled with photographs and fight songs. The program represents two of the early football powerhouses at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Help us transcribe and get into the game day spirit.
Browse projects by National Museum of African American History and Culture
100% Complete
185 Total pages
40 Contributing members
William and Lucile Mann - Diary, 1937
In 1937, Superintendent of the National Zoological Park (1925-1956) William Mann traveled with his wife Lucile Quarry Mann as part of the National Geographic Society-Smithsonian Institution Expedition to the Dutch East Indies. An editor, Lucile kept this typed account of their daily activities during the expedition including specimen collection efforts, interactions with people there and other observations. From time to time, she added in handwritten notes of interest, description of events and short stories. Please help us transcribe this record of Mann's zoological work in the Dutch East Indies.
100% Complete
40 Total pages
16 Contributing members
William and Lucile Mann - Diary, Cruise to South America, 1939
How did some wild animals, from habitats across the globe, get to the National Zoological Park in Washington D.C.? In 1939, it was thanks to the efforts of the intrepid married duo, zoologist William M. Mann and his wife, Lucile. During Mann's time as Director of the National Zoo, he and his wife often traveled abroad to visit other zoos and collect new animals from the wild--with Lucile, a gifted writer, documenting their journeys along the way. Lucille's diary from the couple's 1939 cruise to South America starts off with their departure from New York ("At noon [William] dashed in, grabbed a raincoat, and we were off for the Argentine." and follows their collecting trip through Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Cordoba, and San Carlos de Bariloche. Join other digital volunteers in transcribing Mann's vivid account of the couple's time abroad! You can also help transcribe Mann's incredible diary from 1940, too.
100% Complete
83 Total pages
23 Contributing members
William and Lucile Mann - Diary, Firestone Expedition to Liberia, 1940
What was it like to be the wife of the Director of the National Zoological Park, traveling in the midst of World War II? For Lucile Mann it meant long ship voyages and adventures across the globe, working alongside her husband, William, as they collected animals for the National Zoo. Lucile, who was previously an editor for the USDA's Bureau of Entomology, worked side by side with her husband, leading expeditions, and writing books and scientific articles about their travels. She put her writing skills to other good uses, too, keeping diaries of their collecting trips. Read her account of their 1940 expedition to Liberia to learn more about their travel and collecting practices, as well as vivid insights into Liberian politics and European zoo conditions during World War II. Help us transcribe Lucille Mann's diary to make her work accessible to new readers and researchers! You can help transcribe and read Mann's diary from 1939, too.
100% Complete
146 Total pages
35 Contributing members
William and Lucile Mann's South American trip, 1939
What memories do you capture in a scrapbook? Lucile Quarry Mann compiled this scrapbook about a 1939 trip to Argentina and Brazil with her husband William Mann, then Director of the National Zoological Park. The trip's goal was collecting and exchanging live animals with zoos in South America and the scrapbook includes a variety of items to capture many different aspects of the trip: photographs, news clippings, menus, passenger lists, postcards, original artwork (by Newbery),and advertisements for theatrical events. Transcribe with other volunteers and discover the memories Lucile Mann chose to safekeep in this scrapbook.
100% Complete
36 Total pages
8 Contributing members
William Christopher diary
WILLIAM R. CHRISTOPHER (1924–1973) PAINTER In March 1965, artist-activist William Christopher traveled to Selma, Alabama, in support of the Civil Rights Movement.
100% Complete
275 Total pages
115 Contributing members
William D. Stone General Store Ledger Book, 1865-1867
Do you have an interest in U.S. History, the Civil War or life after the Civil War? Then this project is for you. Help us transcribe this very interesting document which details the daily business of a Civil War era dry goods store. **NOTE** Please detail what " [ditto] represents as [[ditto for]]. Do not delete notes left by other volunteers; if you make an adjustment, please add a note explaining your edits. Thank you!
100% Complete
125 Total pages
106 Contributing members
William H. Dall - Catalogue of collections, 1871-1872
Who keeps track of what on an expedition? Well before becoming the Curator of Mollusks for the United States National Museum, William Healey Dall (1845-1927) was a member of the Western Union Telegraph Expedition's science corps. Western Union Telegraph was interested in finding a route to lay telegraph wires from America to Europe and Asia. This Expedition was to explore a route from San Francisco, through Alaska to Russia. William Dall kept this catalogue to of expedition supplies and the scientific specimens collected between 1871 and 1872. We invite you to join a corps of volunteers to transcribe this catalogue and learn a bit about practical matters on an expedition.
100% Complete
42 Total pages
5 Contributing members
William H. Dall - Field Book, 1871 (No. 2)
Do you ever have trouble keeping track of all your important thoughts and observations? William H. Dall, a well-respected naturalist, recorded his observations and records of specimens collected in field books. In 1865, he had been selected to take over leadership of the science corps during the Western Union Telegraph Expedition to Alaska. In 1871, he was working with the United States Coast Survey in the Bering Sea and Unalaska. This field book mostly contains notes from September 1871 on methods of use and placement of survey equipment for acquiring needed data for survey work and the collected survey data, plus a draft of a report on meteorology. Another Dall field book from 1871 covers a larger span of time, from early fall into the winter. Help us transcribe this Dall field book and learn about the field work many scientists undertook at the end of the 19th century to better understand that region of the world.
100% Complete
70 Total pages
24 Contributing members
William H. Dall - Field notes, 1871
Alaska has been a target of American scientific inquiry for well over a century now. In the early 1870's, William Dall's fieldwork in Alaska was part of the much larger the United States Coast Survey. Dall's field notes from 1871-1872 reflect his diary-like style while listing specimens collected by his fellow survey participants Detailed descriptions of observed specimens including mammals, birds and shells along with measurements, terrain and other geological characteristics. Help us transcribe this first of six Dall field books and learn about life on the survey as well as about Unalaska and Arctic fauna.
100% Complete
97 Total pages
23 Contributing members
William H. Dall - Field notes, 1871-1872
Following from William H. Dall's earlier fieldwork in Alaska as part of the Western Union Telegraph Expedition, Dall continues his research in the area as part of the United States Coast Survey. This book of his field notes from 1871-1872 reflect his diary-like style and include discussions about placement of survey equipment weather details, sketches, and the people in different communities. Please help us transcribe this second in a series of his US Coast Survey field books. Difficulty: medium. The beginning of the field book is largely weather-related notations with more narrative entries later on.
