United States House of Representatives: History, Art, & Archives
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History, Art & Archives of the U.S. House of Representatives

Gone to Seed

by Archives on May 23, 2016

Seed Distribution
Cucumber, watermelon, parsley, radish, and pea. Congressional seed distribution took root in 1839 to improve domestic agriculture and propagate rare plants. But it didn’t grow organically.

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Categories: Art & Artifacts, House Practice & Traditions, Photography

Through Her Lens

by History on May 18, 2016

With a bounce in her step and a camera in hand, Dolly Seelmeyer walked through the halls of the United States Capitol, from 1972 to 2004, as the first female House photographer, ready to prove she could do anything a male photographer could do—“and do it better.”

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Categories: Oral History, Minorities in Congress, People

Edition for Educators—Asian Pacific Heritage Month

by History on May 10, 2016

Norman Mineta spent nearly four years of his childhood in internment camps for Japanese Americans during World War II. First elected in 1974, Mineta served 11 terms in the House of Representatives and worked to hold the legislative process accountable and address the mistakes of the past. Learn more about the efforts and accomplishments of Mineta and other Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Congress for Asian Pacific Heritage Month.

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Categories: Education, Minorities in Congress

Lawn and Order

by Art on April 29, 2016

Seven workers lowered their scythes and posed for a picture outside the Capitol. In the 19th century, a well-manicured lawn symbolized stability and righteousness—exactly the image of the nation that Congress wanted to project. But it took a lot of work to keep the Capitol’s grounds photo ready. It was a real case of lawn versus order.

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Categories: Art & Artifacts, House Practice & Traditions

Rediscovering Rainey's Reign

by History on April 27, 2016

It’s unclear what prompted Representative Luke Poland of Vermont to leave the rostrum that day and yield the gavel, as the 43rd Congress (1873–1875) debated an Indian appropriations bill. But what is clear is that he set in motion a series of events that seemed the very culmination of the Civil War. When Poland stepped down, Joseph Hayne Rainey of South Carolina—a former slave who had once been impressed into service by the Confederacy before escaping to Bermuda—mounted the Speaker’s rostrum, grasped the gavel, and set Capitol Hill abuzz.

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Categories: Minorities in Congress, People

Ten Trumpets and a Flying Coffin

by Art on April 18, 2016

What did it take to be heard in the House of Representatives? Acoustics were notoriously bad in the House Chamber in the early 20th century. Getting from “wait, what?” to “loud and clear” required three tries, ten trumpets, and a flying coffin.

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Categories: Art & Artifacts, House Chamber
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