The Library began in 1800 inside the U.S. Capitol.

The Thomas Jefferson Building, built in 1897, is the original separate Library of Congress building.

The John Adams Building was built in 1938 and the James Madison Memorial Building was completed in 1981.

Who does the Library of Congress (LOC) serve and how big is the LOC? Let's ask the Librarian. His name is Dr. James H. Billington at http://www.loc.gov/about/ and I quote:

The Library of Congress is the nation's oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world, with more than 130 million items on approximately 530 miles of bookshelves. The collections include more than 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts.

The Library's mission is to make its resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and to sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations.

If LOC is to serve you and you live in Podunk, Iowa, how can that be? The LOC is in three buildings in Washington DC.

Well, go to: http://www.loc.gov/ and look in the upper left-hand corner. Click on one of the subjects under Resources for:

You are on your way!

Not enough info?

Well, click on Kids, Families.

Click on America's Library.

Click on Amazing Americans and then on Adventurers and Explorers.

Select Amelia Earhart and click and click until you know all there is to know about this great woman aviator.

What do you think happened to Amelia and her radioman?

I think they missed the island and died in the sea.

And, how old was she when she died?

You can see that the LOC can be a great help to you in school. You don't have to go to Washington DC to use it. You can use it right at home at your computer-or anywhere else you can get online, for that matter.