Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the biggest library in the world and you can just walk in the door and have a look in possibly the most beautiful building in all of Washington DC - the Thomas Jefferson Library of Congress building. If you are going for a tour of the Capitol building you may as well use the time you have to wait for your tour and go and have a look inside the library.

When you walk in the door you will go and see an amazing building - but there are not many books around you. The only books you are likely to see is a few old bibles - one of them the Guttenberg bible the oldest printed book in the world. It is a bit strange being in the biggest library in the world and not being surrounded by books - but if you go and have a look around you will see a room which is a designated study area for people using the collection of books.

The oldest part of the library's collection is Thomas Jefferson's old personal library which he sold to the library of congress. He did this because in the war of 1812 to 1814 the British burned the original collection of books belonging to the library of congress. Hence after the war it was basically a library without any books and Jefferson had a huge collection which he could sell. Of course Jefferson being Jefferson just started a new collection in his home of Monticello.

World largest library, and probably the most beautiful as well. The building is amazing! There is so many little details that you can spend couple hours just to amazed. There is some free tours during the day and that is the only way to see Thomas Jefferson Buildings amazing Main Reading Hall. Or so that guy told us, but I didn´t stau that tour long because the tour guide was really boring. So I just wandered off. There is always couple exhibitions going on and when I went there they were really interesting and well made. It is really nice place to spend hour or two or even more!

The Library of Congress is the national library of the USA. It is a library, and a vast one, with all sorts of books, maps, photos, films, music, musical instruments, folk music recordings, manuscripts, personal papers and more in its collections. It’s not just for Congress, but is a cultural repository for the world.

The visitor to Washington may want to come to the Library of Congress for two reasons: to see the many exhibits of cultural artifacts from the collections or to actually use the library for personal research.

The Library of Congress was founded in 1800 and was first located in a room in the Capitol building. The collection was destroyed in 1814 when the Capitol was burned by invading troops during the War of 1812. The destruction led to the famous gift by Thomas Jefferson of his extensive personal library to rebuild the Library of Congress.

The Library today consists of three city block-sized buildings on Capitol Hill. The Thomas Jefferson Building, facing the U.S. Capitol and opened 1897, is the most recognizable to visitors. Along with it are the John Adams Building (opened 1939) and the James Madison Building (opened 1980). All three are open to the public, but the Library of Congress Experience (interactive visitor center), the majority of the public exhibits, and the decorative Great Hall are located in the Jefferson Building. It’s here where you can see items like the Gutenberg Bible or the Waldseemüller Map.

Music performances in the Coolidge Auditorium and film series in the Pickford Theater are also held at the Library. Check the Library's web site for current exhibits and schedule of other activities.