Washingtoniana Division, Martin Luther King, Jr. Library

I had a fruitful afternoon of studying at the Washingtoniana Division, Martin Luther King, Jr. Library.  Archivist Derek Gray has been incredibly helpful as I wade through boxes of photographs  in the Washington Star Collection.  I'm slogging through a long list of subjects that I hope will yield 1968 images.

Today I found beautiful images of Channing Phillips, who, among other things, led the DC delegation to the 1968 Democratic National Convention. I also found a photo of roller skaters on H Street, SE near 6th, enjoying balmy weather in January.  

Gray's colleague, Mark S. Greek, Special Collections Coordinator, wrote a wonderful photographic history of home rule and civil rights movements in DC.  There are gorgeous photos than span the 20th century that offer different and important views of the city.  Most of the images come from the Washington Star and Historical Images collections.  Interestingly, I did not see a single photo from 1968 in his book.  

While at the library, I ran into Matthew Gilmore, who used to work at the Washingtoniana Division, and currently coordinates the annual DC Historical Studies Conference, the H-DC discussion group and writes a monthly column for the InTowner. He suggested that I look at the Evening Star subject guide on microfilm in order to speed up the research process.  

MLK will begin its 3-year renovation soon.  The Washingtoniana Division will close in early March and reopen in May at the Library of Congress and the Historical Society of Washington, DC in order to continue to serve residents.  this is great news!