| − | The Library of Congress, located in [[Washington, DC]], began on April 24, 1800 to do research for legislators. It received an initial grant of $5,000 from Congress. The British burned it during the [[War of 1812]], and soon afterwards [[Thomas Jefferson]] sold the Library his personal collection of over 6,400 volumes for around $24,000 in order to repay his creditors. | + | The Library of Congress, located in [[Washington D.C.]], began on April 24, 1800 to do research for legislators. It received an initial grant of $5,000 from Congress. The British burned it during the [[War of 1812]], and soon afterwards [[Thomas Jefferson]] sold the Library his personal collection of over 6,400 volumes for around $24,000 in order to repay his creditors. |
| | It is now the largest library in the world. It contains over 130 million items, including 1,470 Bibles and one of three existing copies of the original Gutenberg Bible on vellum.<ref>http://www.loc.gov/about/</ref> | | It is now the largest library in the world. It contains over 130 million items, including 1,470 Bibles and one of three existing copies of the original Gutenberg Bible on vellum.<ref>http://www.loc.gov/about/</ref> |