Since 1983, the L.A. Economic Roundtable has worked on two primary goals: to build a sustainable economy and to create inclusive communities. Producing solid, reliable data to aid policymakers is the Roundtable's area of expertise. The website's "areas of research" and "current projects" will give visitors a good overview of what types of issues the Roundtable addresses. Industrial policy, the...

This massive collection from the University of Southern California's Digital Library brings together approximately 1.4 million prints and negatives from the Los Angeles Examiner newspaper. The paper shut down in 1962 when it merged with the afternoon Herald-Express. The collection is divided into two sub-collections: Prints and Negatives. Almost every major and minor event during the time period...

Sometimes maligned, often misunderstood, the City of Angels occupies a healthy chunk of Southern California real estate which has been the subject of thousands of thematic maps, dating back to the time of the first European explorers who began to wander around the area some five centuries ago. Recently, the Library of Congress and the Ira Gershwin Gallery collaborated to present a collection of...

The Los Angeles Public Library has thousands of photographs in its archives. Taken as a whole, the archives represent a thoroughly wonderful portrait of the Southland during the past century or so. First-time visitors should click on the Photo Collection Overview area to learn about the holdings here. One particularly noteworthy addition to the collection occurred back in 1981 when Security...

While there is a great deal of scholarly and informed analysis of the various public policy issues within the city of New York, there is much less coverage of the area of upstate New York. Stepping into that literature gap is this recent report from the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy group. Released in September 2004, this 20-page report by Rolf Pendall and Susan Christopherson...

As home to one of the oldest civilizations in the world, the nation of Iraq has some of the most important archaeological museums and institutes, many of which have suffered irreparable damage during the war in that country. In order to help with the recovery efforts, the University of Chicago's esteemed Oriental Institute has created this website which contains a number of very useful resources,...

This compelling digital exhibit pays homage to the life and work of Louis Braille, the inventor of the tactile six-dot reading and writing system which changed the way that blind people were able to understand and contribute to the world. The exhibit was created by the Library of Congress, and it complements an in situ exhibit at the Library's James Madison Building. Clicking on the "Exhibition...

The Louisiana State University Cartographic Information Center currently holds 107,000 aerial photographs of Louisiana taken between 1939-1987. A fascinating collection, these photographs allow users to investigate both the historical and geographical changes throughout the state. If you are interested in the Mississippi Delta region, the loss of coastal lands, or any other number of subjects...

The Louisiana Division of Archaeology is part of the state's Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. Their website offers a multitude of resources, including their homepage "What Do I Do if...?" section that helps those in Louisiana who might find artifacts on their property, an archaeological site, or an old burial site. Another helpful guide on their homepage is the "Are you looking for...

During the 1930s and 1940s, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) set up hundreds of regional offices to document local conditions, history, and culture from Portsmouth, New Hampshire to Seattle, Washington. Along the way, they collected oral histories, talked to farmers, and took thousands of photographs. In Louisiana, the folks at the WPA office managed to document community activities,...