Politics & Government

Library of Congress Web Site is Closed

Government shutdown forces the country's oldest federal cultural institution to close.


If you like to search the Library of Congress online resources, don’t bother until the government shutdown issue has been resolved.

The Library of Congress is closed during the federal government shutdown. 

All public events and websites are inaccessible except for the legislative information sites THOMAS.gov and beta.congress.gov.

Find out what's happening in Wilmingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Library on Congress has more than 32 million books and print materials in 470 languages, more than 61 million manuscripts, the largest rare book collection in North America, the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence, 1 million issues of newspapers from throughout history, 33,000 newspaper volumes, 500,000 microfilm reels, more than 5 million maps, and more than 14 million prints and photos.

The library was established in 1800 and Thomas Jefferson was a key player in its formation. He even gave his personal library to replace the first Library of Congress after it was destroyed during the War of 1812. Congress agreed to pay the former president nearly $24,000 for his 6,487-book library.

Find out what's happening in Wilmingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here