Happy 217th Birthday, Library of Congress

On April 24, 1800, John Adams signed a Congressional Act authorizing the transfer of the nation’s capital from Philadelphia to Washington, DC. Tucked into this bill was a provision of funds "for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress . . . and for fitting up a suitable apartment for containing them."

Thus, the Library of Congress was born. The library’s first collection was destroyed when British troops burned the Capitol on August 24, 1814. Thomas Jefferson offered his vast personal library as a replacement, and several months later, Congress approved the purchase of the former president’s collection of 6,487 books.

This became the core of a new collection that has now grown to more than 164 million items, including more than 38 million books that range from American classics that left an imprint on history to contemporary works from all over the world, and more than 70 million manuscripts.