In 1900, Washington, DC was home to bird lovers, bird hunters, bird researchers, bird educators, bird lobbyists, and yes, many actual birds.| birdhistory.substack.com
Though today it holds a visitor’s center, exhibit space, and offices, the Smithsonian Institution Building, or "Castle," once also contained residential spaces. The Castle was home to the Institution’s first Secretary, Joseph Henry, and his family from 1855 to 1878. During the building’s early years it also included apartments for Smithsonian employees and visiting scholars. [edan-image:id=siris_sic_8505,size=200,left]But some other inhabitants of the Castle have been less conventional....| Smithsonian Institution Archives
A hundred years ago, conservationists first identified cats as a serious threat to birds. We’re still dealing with the same challenge today.| birdhistory.substack.com
Before pesticides, birds were a farmer's best defense against bugs. And the government’s economic ornithologists could tell you exactly how much each bird was worth.| birdhistory.substack.com
In the Progressive era, students learned to build birdhouses to end “the cruel sacrifice of birds of song by the truant school-boy”| birdhistory.substack.com