On April 4, 2017—nearly 100 years to the day after the United States entered World War I—the Library of Congress launched a comprehensive exhibition on the conflict. Entitled Echoes of the Great War: American Experiences of World War I, the exhibition draws on historic documents, photographs, maps, and artifacts from throughout the Library’s collection—including items from the Veterans History Project (VHP). As the home of nearly 400 personal narratives from World War I, VHP’s archive is an unparalleled source of material on the individual experience of the Great War, and we were honored to help tell the larger story of the war from the perspective of those who served in it.

Beginning this Memorial Day, we offer a three-part companion Experiencing War web feature, which presents additional VHP collections in the context of central themes explored in the larger exhibition.