Editor’s note: The Museum is currently conducting a conservation project, funded by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, to improve the accessibility of and preserve our extensive collection of Civil War photographs. Here, the Museum’s paper and photograph conservator Carol Turchan reveals how the project started.

This Civil War photograph, one section of George N. Barnard’s panoramic view of Knoxville, Tennessee, taken in March 1864, is in pristine condition.
CHM, ICHi-21578

During the summer of 2011, a researcher contacted me requesting access to the Museum’s vast collection of Civil War photographs. The request was unusual because it was addressed to me, the paper conservator, not the Research Center. The researcher, Susan Williams, was seeking photographs by Captain Andrew J. Russell, one of the earliest to document the Civil War.

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Although women’s wear was the predominant feature of the Ebony Fashion Fair, Mrs. Eunice Johnson also introduced the latest designs in menswear, including a 1972 sequined evening suit by Guy Laroche. Prior to exhibition, the garment required careful assessment and conservation.

Behind-the-scenes photographs by CHM staff

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May 2013: Charlene Mires. Capital of the World: The Race to Host the United Nations. New York: New York University Press (2013).

When New York was chosen as headquarters for the United Nations, it became the putative capital of the world. Chicago had also been a contender along with San Francisco and Philadelphia. No surprises there, but the Black Hills of South Dakota? The Michigan and Ontario twin towns of Sault Sainte Marie? The placement of the United Nations was a key post-war decision that, until this book appeared, had dropped out of view. Where else will you be able to read about small-town hucksters and polished diplomats all in the same astonishing story?

> Get the behind-the-scenes story from author Charlene Mires

> Read more United Nations history

> Purchase Capital of the World

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