[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Page 6802]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                208TH ANNIVERSARY OF LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, the Library of Congress celebrates 
today its 208th anniversary. On this day in 1800, President John Adams 
approved the appropriation of $5,000 for the purchase of such books as 
may be necessary for the use of Congress.
  The original collection included just 740 volumes and 3 maps, which 
are stored right here in the Capitol. In fact, what is now the 
reception area of the Republican leader's office was the Library's very 
first home. When British troops burned the Capitol building in 1814, 
they used the books and maps of the Library to ignite the flames, and 
all 3,000 volumes in the collection were destroyed.
  Several years ago, when British Prime Minister Tony Blair addressed a 
joint session of Congress, he visited the leader's suite and told then-
majority leader Bill Frist that although it was coming a bit late, he 
was sorry for the fire incident.
  Today, the Library of Congress is the largest library in the world. 
There are more than 138 million items, including books, recordings, 
photographs, maps, sheet music, and manuscripts. At the Library of 
Congress, access to this wonderful resource is no longer limited to 
Members of Congress. Today, the general public can browse everything 
from Presidential papers to books in over 470 languages, dating as far 
back as the 15th century.
  Two hundred eight years after its launch, the Library is renowned for 
its original mission of making resources available and useful to the 
Congress and the American people and sustaining and preserving a 
universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future 
generations. Over 3,500 staff members work for the Library, and we 
thank them for doing so much to keep our rich history and heritage 
alive.

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