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Celebrating America’s 250th on Google Arts & Culture
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As the United States prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary, we are announcing a unique collaboration between the White House Task Force 250, the National Archives, the National Park Service and Google Arts & Culture. This milestone is a moment to reflect on the stories that define America’s unique history and the shared heritage that connects us.
With the launch of Making of the Nation - America at 250, we are surfacing the archives of our country’s founding using technology to bring history to life for everyone, everywhere. By merging these primary sources with the latest storytelling innovations, we are inviting the world to experience America's story in a new way.
Explore America’s beginning
Our dedicated hub serves as the digital front door to the 250th anniversary, bringing together hundreds of years of history, from landmark 18th-century documents to Benjamin Franklin’s groundbreaking electrical experiments and personal artifacts like George Washington’s dentures and inaugural suit.
To help you dig in, we’ve highlighted four must-see stories that showcase the breadth of this collaboration:
- Explore untold stories, such as the feats of the Culper Spy Ring, who used invisible ink to share messages with Washington, in 10 Things You Never Knew About the American Revolution.
- Meet the people behind the scenes, including printers and document influencers, who left their mark on American Independence in Behind the Ink: The Declaration of Independence.
- Learn about the secretive alliance of men and women that challenged an empire in Who Were the Sons and Daughters of Liberty?
- Discover how a deadly winter at Valley Forge helped form the modern American army and how The Great Cow Chase saved a starving infantry.
Barry Faulkner, "The Declaration" (1936). Courtesy of the National Archives.
Dive into the Founders Museum immersive gallery
In collaboration with the White House Task Force 250, we’ve created a virtual version of the Founders Museum. This special edition 3D gallery features a comprehensive visual record of the individuals who forged the nation, highlighting both the famous and overlooked people who laid the foundation for the American journey and the pivotal moments that turned a collection of states into a unified power.
The Founders Museum Pocket Gallery is an immersive 3D virtual exhibition space
Go inside the National Archives with NotebookLM
The U.S. National Archives houses the foundational records of the U.S. government with more than 180,000 documents available at Founders Online. Now, using NotebookLM, we’re bringing some of these primary sources to life as interactive experiences and educational resources, offering a deep dive into the personal correspondence of a selection of nation builders. Additionally, we have worked with the Royal Society on a notebook drawing from Benjamin Franklin’s scientific documents. You can browse:
- Revolutionary Privateer: George Washington: Examine the personal and political correspondence of the nation's first president, getting a glimpse into his leadership and the challenges of a fledgling democracy.
- Revolutionary Women: The Unsung Founders: Engage with the letters of figures like Abigail Adams and Mercy Otis Warren, whose intellectual contributions were essential to the birth of the nation.
- Revolutionary Blueprints: The Founders: Interact with the personal correspondence of Washington, Jefferson, Adams and more, revealing the human stories behind these larger-than-life figures.
- The Science of Benjamin Franklin: Step into the science of Benjamin Franklin, a key natural philosopher of the Enlightenment, with the Royal Society.
Use NotebookLM to explore unique histories, like Revolutionary Women: The Unsung Founders
Discover America’s natural wonders
Celebrating America also means honoring its parks, forests and sweeping landscapes. To include the great outdoors, we’re launching a new One Minute Guides Lab Experiment drawing from the National Park Service’s API to offer AI-enriched explorations for some of America’s most iconic natural wonders. Whether you are a romantic, an artist or an adventure seeker, you can discover your own short, personalized interactive visual guide. From the granite peaks of Yosemite to the depths of the Grand Canyon, these guides use Google AI to help you get lost in the breathtaking beauty and geological stories of our national parks.
Virtually visit some of America's most breathtaking landscapes with One Minute Guides Experiment
“Through this partnership, we’re using AI and immersive technology to ensure that the artifacts of America’s founding story remain accessible and inspiring for the next 250 years,” said Amit Sood, VP and Founder, Google Arts & Culture.
History is a living narrative that belongs to all of us. We invite you to visit Making of the Nation - America at 250 or experience the records in person at The American Story exhibition at the National Archives Museum.
