ABSTRACT
The Library of Congress occupies a unique place in American civilization. Established as a legislative library in 1800, it grew into a national institution in the nineteenth century. In the first decades of the twentieth century, soon after it moved from the U.S. Capitol into its own spacious building, it became a leader among national libraries and one of the largest libraries in the world. Since World War II, it has become an international resource of unparalleled dimension. With the creation of the National Digital Library in the mid-1990s, it began to assume a new educational role.
