A new Veterans History Project Welcome Center recently opened in the Library's James Madison Building. The center is open to the public between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. Two Veterans History Project (VHP) staff members will be on hand to greet Library staff and visitors, including veterans of all wars, members of Congress and their staffs and constituents and the general public.
The center is a place in which visitors may learn about the Veterans History Project and browse its database (www.loc.gov/vets/), which contains descriptions of each veteran's story as well as fully digitized audio and visual samples from more than 2,000 online stories; pick up free materials, such as field kits, brochures, forms and guidelines to participate in the VHP; and drop off recorded first hand recollections to be donated to the VHP collection. Eventually, space may be scheduled for trained Library staff volunteers to conduct oral histories with veterans.
Visitors wishing to access the VHP collections on site will continue to be served in the American Folklife Center Reading Room, by appointment. For more information, call the Welcome Center at 202-707-7188, the Veterans History Project main number at (202) 707-4916, or visit the Web site at www.loc.gov/vets/.
