National Museum of American History

10/22/2026

Objects from “Good Mythical Morning” are now on display. Let’s talk about it!

Acquired by the museum in June 2024, the original desk microphone and two blindfolds used by internet personalities Rhett James McLaughlin and Charles Lincoln (Link) Neal III’s have found a home in the New Acquisitions case on Third Floor of the West Wing.

Come see them and be your best mythical at the National Museum of American History. ☀️

10/20/2026

10/19/2026

Yesterday, the museum received a donation of costumes from the Tony and Grammy Award-winning Broadway musical Hadestown during a ceremony following the show’s 2,500th performance in New York City!

Inspired by the intertwined love stories of Orpheus and Eurydice and of King Hades and Persephone from Greek mythology, Hadestown invites audiences on a hell-raising journey.

Since its premiere on Broadway in 2019, the show has received 24 awards, including Best Musical and Best Original Score among its eight Tony Awards. In 2020, the original cast won a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. This past summer, the film version became the highest-grossing live theater capture in box office history.

The museum will receive Ani DiFranco’s “Persephone” costume and Patrick Page’s “Hades” costume, designed by Michael Krass. Drawing inspiration across periods of American history, the costumes simultaneously construct an imagined world while resonating with iconically American moments.

The costumes will be preserved as part of the museum’s entertainment collections and made available for research and potential future display.

10/19/2026

10/15/2026

Leather, satin, and a little “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom.”

As Hispanic Heritage Month comes to a close, we’re celebrating Selena’s lasting influence on music, fashion, and generations of fans. Selena Quintanilla-Pérez wore this outfit at the 1994 Tejano Music Awards, performing before about 32,000 fans at San Antonio’s Alamodome. Blending cumbia and pop, the “Queen of Tejano” brought a signature sound and style to an international audience.

Inspired by other musicians like Janet Jackson and Madonna, Selena’s outfits broke with the outdated expectations of what female performers in Tejano music should wear. She took the shiny embellishments and form-fitting silhouettes of these pop stars and made it her own, with working-class sensibility and a Texan flair.

10/11/2026

Today we are commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Valcour Island on October 11, 1776.

During the battle, American troops in a ragtag collection of newly built boats faced an advancing line of British ships on Lake Champlain in New York. The Americans, under the command of Benedict Arnold, were forced to retreat, but not before they fought the British to a standstill.

The Philadelphia sank after the battle had ended and rested on the bottom of the lake until 1935. It was recovered that year with much of its equipment intact and came to the museum in 1964, complete with the 24-pound ball that sent the gunboat to the bottom.

By the end of the three-day engagement on Oct. 13, the British had gained control of Lake Champlain, and most of the American fleet had been destroyed. Though a defeat for the Americans, the naval contest for Lake Champlain is considered the foundation for the defeat of British Commander John Burgoyne’s army at Saratoga the following year. The battle delayed the British campaign and kept the spirit of the American Revolution alive.

Discover more about the Gunboat Philadelphia and the ongoing preservation project on display on the 3rd floor East or online.

Lead support for the preservation of the Gunboat "Philadelphia" is generously provided by ; a Save America’s Treasures grant from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the , ; and Rutledge Family Foundation.

10/08/2026

You don’t get a nickname like “Lowrider Mama” by riding in the passenger seat.

Meet Sonia Gonzalez, aka “Lowrider Mama," a member of the Untouchables Car Club, photographed in 2020 working on her 1976 Monte Carlo. The photographer, Amanda López, captured her during a lookbook shoot for the apparel brand Low Ride X Worldwide.

Lowriding grew out of Mexican American communities in the mid-20th century. Lowriders weren’t built for speed. They were made to be seen, dropped close to the ground, covered in custom paint, and cruised slowly through the neighborhood. At the heart of it all were car clubs: places for family, friendship, and pride, where the craft passed from one generation to the next.

Sonia Gonzales carries that tradition forward. Her photograph shows the part of lowriding that rarely makes it onto the boulevard: the hours of hands-on work behind every finished car.



📷: Photo by Amanda López. Museum purchase through the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative.

10/05/2026

Have you ever wondered what 30 feet of lace looks like?

Created entirely by hand, this needle lace table runner illustrates scenes from the Bayeux Tapestry. Along the sides and ends, scenes from before, during and after the Battle of Hastings in 1066 between Harold and William the Conqueror are depicted.

Intricately detailed, its maker(s) used needle and thread to loop each stitch, one at a time. The table runner was probably designed and made by the Melville and Ziffer lace workshop in Le Puy, France in the early 20th century.

This object is part of our lace collection, which began in 1908 to assemble arts and crafts items for the Smithsonian. Initially comprising 500 pieces, it has grown to about 6,000 objects. Most originated in Europe and were donated by American collectors.

📷: Bayeux Tapestry Motifs Needle Lace Runner, 362 1/2 inches x 43 inches, currently not on display. Photo by Karen Thompson.