Today’s photo–taken in 1953–depicts the dedication required to keep the Smithsonian Institution going and growing. This national treasure is made up of 19 museums and galleries and the National Zoo, as well as several research facilities. Admission to all Smithsonian museums in Washington is free, so that anyone can visit to learn about the US, and the world beyond it. It was this day in 1846 that President James K. Polk signed the legislation establishing the Smithsonian. Getting there took some doing, as Englishman James Smithson had donated the funds for an educational institution to the US in his will 20 years earlier. After the deaths of Smithson and his last surviving relative, Congress inherited 104,960 gold sovereigns as start-up money for the museum that would later bear Smithson’s name.
Assembling the Smithsonian
Today in History
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World Oceans Day
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World Population Day
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Wild and beautiful Alaska
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Bird s-eye view on World Environment Day
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Chapel on the rock
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A red knot on the Shetland Islands, Scotland
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Cousins Day
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Great Backyard Bird Count
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Lionfish off the coast of Indonesia
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National Library Week
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Working for that cliffside view
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Folegandros Island, Cyclades, Greece
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Labor Day parade in 1915 Chicago
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Over and under the delta
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Leap day
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National Bison Month
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Welcome to the Alien Egg Hatchery
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River Quoich in Aberdeenshire, Scotland
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A new tradition in London
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Rockin with the rockhoppers
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A stunning national park in winter white
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It s time for spring
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Scottish Blackface sheep, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
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A cutting-edge art gallery opens in Paris
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Union Square, Manhattan
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Seasonal lights dazzle in Japan
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75 years of the United Nations
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Channel Country, Australia
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Bohemian waxwings in Canada
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International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem