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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Cross this bridge if you dare
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Brain coral
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Quiver trees in Namibia
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American goldfinch
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Tintern Abbey, Wales
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Land ho in New Zealand 250 years ago
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Walruses in Svalbard, Norway
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Edinburgh festivals
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Fiesta at Siesta
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A duckling swimming in a water meadow, Suffolk, England
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Festivus
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National Audubon Society s Christmas Bird Count
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Weaverbird nests at Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve
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A wonder in winter
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A grand event
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Upper Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park
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Here’s why landmarks are going dark
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Go Fly a Kite Day
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National Hispanic Heritage Month
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The Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Italy
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Celebrating freedom
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Gone ‘lightseeing’ in Berlin
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Salmon migration in full swing
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Kjell Henriksen Observatory
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Wild scene on the Merced River
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Yellow-eyed penguins, Moeraki, New Zealand
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Edinburgh Castle, Scotland
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Of balloons and lost pantaloons
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The Girl Scouts celebrate 110 years
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Greece celebrates its independence
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

