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Here is a little more detail about Release 2 of the George Washington Papers in American Memory. This announcement has been cross-posted to several lists. If you re-post, let me know and I'll inform the digital curators so that they don't post there, too. The Library of Congress National Digital Library Program, in conjunction with the Library's Manuscript Division, announces the second web release of the George Washington Papers, at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/gwhome.html The first release in February 1998 included Series 2, forty-one letterbooks, dating from 1774 through 1799. This second release, also incorporating Series 2, includes Series 3, Varick Transcripts, Continental Army Papers, 1775-1783, and Series 5, Financial Papers, 1750-1796. Series 3, Varick Transcripts, Continental Army Papers, 1775-1783, consists of forty-four letterbooks relating to the American Revolution. Originally transcribed and organized under Washington's direction by Lieutenant Colonel Richard Varick, Series 3 letterbooks are divided into the following correspondence divisions: Continental Congress; Continental and State Military Personnel; Civic Officials and Citizens; Foreign Officers and Subjects of Foreign Nations; Enemy Officers and British Subjects; Continental Army Proceedings; General Orders; and Personal Correspondence. Series 5, Financial Papers, 1750-1796, includes thirty-four volumes of Washington's private and plantation accounts, and his public accounts related to the Revolution and two presidential administrations. Most of these thirty-four volumes have not been published previously. They reveal detailed information on how Washington and his private, public, and military households or "families" lived on a daily basis. Series 2, 3, and 5 can be searched by keywords or phrases. Extensive efforts have been made to render this rich repository of historical material easily accessible to the user. Search output (up to 500 items) is sortable in ascending or descending order. The links generated by searches allow easy navigation of original documents using the National Digital Library's "page-turner" feature. Page images can be viewed as screen-size JPEGs or in larger grayscale formats. Text transcriptions with explanatory footnotes are available for many of the page images. Online help and suggestions are provided for those wishing to modify their search terms. Series 2, 3 and 5 contain detailed information about the digitization of the George Washington Papers, and about their provenance and publication history. Series 5, the Financial Papers, offers a guide accompanied by hyperlinks to original documents and complete explanations for each. There is also a very comprehensive Washington bibliography, subdivided into General Biographies, Books for Young Readers, Mount Vernon and Environs, The Colonial Period, The American Revolution and The Early Republic. In addition, this second release of the Washington Papers has two Special Presentations, one a timeline covering Washington's life from his birth in 1731 to his death in 1799, and the other a set of three essays about the George Washington Papers. The timeline chronicles events in the Colonial era, American Revolution, and in the period of the Early Republic, and contains many pictures and links to Washington's letters. Special Presentation essays include a piece on Washington's letterbooks; "Creating the American Nation," detailing highlights from Series 2 Letterbooks; and a note on the so-called Fairfax Resolves, a resolution written by Washington and George Mason in 1774 challenging the unconstitutional actions of the British government. Teachers and students interested in Washington's life and in the American Revolution will likely find the timeline and the three essays a compelling path of access towards understanding the materials in this extraordinary collection. This second release of the George Washington Papers comprises approximately 23,000 additional images, bringing the total to date to 31,000 (about one fifth of the eventual total). The images are presented online as GIF images, with 200-dpi grayscale JPEG images also available. A further release is planned for January 1999. _________________________________________________________ Elizabeth L. Brown, M.L.S. National Digital Library Program, LIBN/NDL/VC(1300) Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20540-1300 [log in to unmask] telephone: 202/707-2235 Library of Congress American Memory Home Page: http://memory.loc.gov/ _________________________________________________________