The National Archives Museum

Welcome to the National Archives Museum, the formidable neoclassical fortress that safeguards the most critical documentary heritage of the United States. Designed with monumental Corinthian columns and massive bronze doors, the…

Our first major stop is the Public Vaults, a permanent interactive exhibition that invites you to pull back the curtain on the archival process. Here, the National Archives displays over a thousand fascinating artifacts that…

Ascending to the upper level, we arrive at the Lawrence F. O'Brien Gallery. …

Moving forward, we enter the David M. Rubenstein Gallery, a space specifically designed to trace the long, evolving conversation about human rights and the concept of liberty under the law. …

We now approach the most sacred space within the National Archives: the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom. As we wait in the vestibule, it is crucial to understand the architectural and historical significance of the room you…

Step up to the central display case and gaze upon the Declaration of Independence. Drafted primarily by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, this single sheet of animal parchment completely severed the political ties between the American…

Directly adjacent to the Declaration lies the United States Constitution, the supreme law of the land, carefully preserved in its custom-built, argon-filled encasement. Drafted in 1787, these four large sheets of parchment…

Our analytical tour of the National Archives concludes with the final member of the Charters of Freedom: the Bill of Rights. Displayed alongside the Constitution, this document contains the first ten amendments, explicitly…