| On This Day in American History |
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On April 24, 1800, President John Adams establishes the Library of Congress using $5,000 appropriated by Congress. The first books were ordered from London and arrived in 1801. They were kept in the U.S. Capitol. In 1802, the library had 964 books and nine maps. During the War of 1812, the Capitol was burned down causing the loss of 3,000 books. In order to replace the loss, former President Thomas Jefferson sold his extensive library of nearly 6,500 volumes to Congress to rebuild the collection. Another fire in 1851 destroyed about two thirds of the then 55,000-volume library, including many of Jefferson’s books. These losses were replaced within a few years. Today, the library has about 38 million books as well as photographs and recordings. |
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