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Latino History
Latino history is American history. Latinos trace their origins to Latin America and other Spanish colonies, both in the Caribbean and in the contemporary United States. These groups include, but are not limited to, Indigenous, Mestizos, Afro-Latinos, and other mixed-race people. Currently representing the largest ethnic minority in the country, Latinos have participated in the creation and growth of this nation well before it was named the United States. Complex stories of colonization, immigration, and slavery make Latino history an infinite source for inquiry and knowledge. Explore many complex Latino narratives through our exhibits, collections, archives, programs, and blogs.
Image credit: Julio Javier Morales
Selected Exhibits and Collections
Social Media 5Hide All
Art & Architecture 21Hide All
- Artists Rule: How a feathered serpent god presided over a forgotten golden age of Mexican art (National Endowment for the Humanities)
- An Evening of Collective Art-making with Chicano Artist Mario Torero (Library of Congress)
- The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain (National Gallery of Art)
- Artwork by Chicano Movement “Artivist” Mario Torero (Library of Congress)
- Documents of 20th-century Latin American and Latino Art: A Digital Archive and Publications Project (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Carol M. Highsmith Archive, photographs of Cuba (Library of Congress)
- The Cubist Paintings of Diego Rivera: Memory, Politics, Place (National Gallery of Art)
- El Greco Online Tour (Spanish, 1541-1614) (National Gallery of Art)
- Folk Arts of the Spanish Southwest from the Index of American Design (National Gallery of Art)
- Francisco de Goya Online Tour (Spanish, 1746-1828) (National Gallery of Art)
- Heritage Documentation Programs Highlights Hispanic Architecture (National Park Service)
- Life and Experiences in the U.S/Mexico Borderlands Virtual Exhibition (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Mesilla, New Mexico: History and Architecture of a Border Town (National Park Service)
- Mission Gráfica/La Raza Graphics--Collection Overview (Library of Congress)
- National Register of Historic Places (National Park Service)
- "El Otro Lado" (The Other Side): Border Art Histories of the MexiCali Biennial (Library of Congress)
- Picasso: The Early Years, 1892-1906 (National Gallery of Art)
- ¡Printing the Revolution! The Rise and Impact of Chicano Graphics, 1965 to Now (Smithsonian Institution)
- Santos & Ofrendas: Ten Highlights of Latinx Art at the Smithsonian (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Spanish Painting in the Seventeenth Century Online Tour (National Gallery of Art)
- Unapologetically Maya: Ubaldo Sánchez’s Ephemeral Alfombras (Smithsonian Folklife)
The Era of Exploration 6Hide All
- 1492: An Ongoing Voyage (Library of Congress)
- 1562 Map of America by Diego Gutiérrez (Library of Congress)
- East Florida Papers (Library of Congress)
- English Exploration of the Americas: Kraus Collection of Sir Francis Drake (Library of Congress)
- Exploring the Early Americas (Library of Congress)
- Hans Peter Kraus Collection of Spanish American Documents, 1433 to 1877 (Library of Congress)
Culture and Ethnography30Hide All
- Afrolatinidad: Art & Identity in D.C. (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Altered Altars: The Changing Traditions of Día de los Muertos (Smithsonian Institution)
- American Latino Heritage Projects (National Park Service)
- Aquí Estamos (Here We Are) Digital Collection (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Caribbean Americans (Smithsonian Institution)
- Chicago Ethnic Arts Project Collection (Library of Congress)
- Crack the Cascarón: A Texan Mexican Easter Tradition Continues (Smithsonian Institution)
- La Cultura Cura: How Latinos Are Reclaiming Their Ancestral Diets (Smithsonian Institution)
- The Cultures and History of the Americas: The Jay I. Kislak Collection (Library of Congress)
- Cultural Exchanges in Quechua Dictionaries (Library of Congress)
- Documenting Ethnobiology in Mexico and Central America, Gettysburg College (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Ethnography and Folklore: Alan Lomax Collection (Library of Congress)
- Guadalupe Murals: Devotion on the Streets of Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles (Smithsonian Folklife)
- A Guided Listening Journey: Yorùbá Heritage Abroad (Smithsonian Folklife)
- On Language and Colony (Library of Congress)
- Lowell Folklife Project Collection (Library of Congress)
- Making Cuban Pastel de Pollo (Chicken Pie) at Home (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Memories of the Fields: Mexican Migrants in the Imperial Valley 1935-1944 (Library of Congress)
- Mexican & Mexican American Traditions (Smithsonian Institution)
- New Mexico Folklife Project (Library of Congress)
- New Roots/Nuevas Raíces: Voices from Carolina del Norte (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Nuestras Raíces: Community Pláticas & Story Gatherings (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Our Family Guide to a Puerto Rican Christmas Feast (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Parallel Histories: Spain, the United States, and the American Frontier (Library of Congress)
- The Portuguese in the United States (Library of Congress)
- Smithsonian Latino Center
- The Social Power of the Taco (Smithsonian Folklife)
- There’s a Baby in My Cake! Luck of La Rosca de Reyes on Three Kings Day (Smithsonian Folklife)
- U.S.-Mexico Borderlands (Smithsonian Institution)
- Winged Messengers: How Monarch Butterflies Connect Culture and Conservation in Mexico (Smithsonian Folklife)
Economics 2Hide All
- Records Relating to the Mexican Labor ("Bracero") Program, 1950 – 1964 (National Archives)
- Voices of Centro Humanitario: Labor, Barriers and Hope in COVID-19 Times (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
Government, Politics & Law 7Hide All
- Herencia: Centuries of Spanish Legal Documents (Law Library of Congress)
- Hispanic Americans in Congress (Library of Congress)
- Hispanic Americans in Congress (U.S. House of Representatives)
- Mexican Border Crossing Records (National Archives)
- Platt Amendment 1903 (National Archives)
- Spanish Legal Documents (15th-19th Centuries) (Library of Congress)
- Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor -- Legal opinions, writings and confirmation documents (Law Library of Congress)
Poetry & Literature 4Hide All
- Cuarderno de Ortographia, The first book published in New Mexico in 1834 (Library of Congress)
- Sacred Monsters: The Poetry and Fiction of Elizabeth Acevedo (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Six Hispanic Literary Giants: Sonnet Masters of the Spanish Golden Age (National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Spotlight on U.S. Hispanic Writers (Library of Congress)
History 39Hide All
- 1950 Census: Forma P93, Censo de Población y Viviendas: 1950, Puerto Rico (National Archives)
- 1950 Census Finds: Housing Schedule for Six Puerto Rico Dwellings! (National Archives)
- Aerial Photograph of Missiles in Cuba, 1962 (National Archives)
- The Amador Family Papers (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Aerial Photograph of Missiles in Cuba, 1962 (National Archives)
- Anthony Acevedo donates artifacts to the Holocaust Museum (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Facebook)
- Aztecs and the Making of Colonial Mexico (Site supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Castillo de San Marcos National Monument -- Fort Matanzas (National Park Service)
- Chamizal National Memorial – English | Spanish (National Park Service)
- A Continuous Line: The Journey and Artistic Practice of Porfirio Gutiérrez (Smithsonian Folklife)
- De Lôme Letter, 1898 (National Archives)
- “¡De última hora! Latinas Report Breaking News” (Smithsonian)
- Digitized Spanish Mission Records from Tumacacori National Historical Park 1684 – 1848 (National Park Service)
- The Great Inka Road: Engineering an Empire (Smithsonian Institution)
- The Guiding Thread: Women Weave Legacies in the Peruvian Andes (Smithsonian Folklife)
- ¡a la huelga todos! - The 1942 Sugar Industry Strike in Puerto Rico (Library of Congress)
- Hispanic American Records on Historypin (National Archives)
- Hispanic American Webpages Preserved in Library of Congress Web Archives
- Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology and History of the Early Americas (Library of Congress)
- New Mexico, New Spain, Old Cultures: Historic Spanish‐Language Newspapers in Chronicling America (National Endowment for the Humanities)
- Mexican Border Crossing Records (National Archives)
- The Mexican Revolution and the United States in the Collections of the Library of Congress -- English version -- Version en español
- The Mexican Revolution and the United States in the Collections of the Library of Congress English version
- Version en español
- Military Resources: Mexican War, 1846-1848 (National Archives)
- National Archives on Flickr
- Platt Amendment, 1903 (National Archives)
- Poesias e historias del Caribe (Library of Congress)
- Puerto Rico at the Dawn of the Modern Age (Library of Congress)
- Rare Spanish Manuscript Map Showing the Western Borders of the Louisiana Purchase Arrives at the Library of Congress (Library of Congress)
- The Red that Colored the World (National Endowment for the Humanities)
- San Antonio Missions National Historical Park (National Park Service)
- The Spanish-American War in Motion Pictures (Library of Congress)
- Telling All Americans' Stories: American Latino Heritage (National Park Service)
- The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (National Archives)
- Vitality in Mexican Colonia: Water Sources for Mexican Settlement in San Antonio, Texas, March 1939 (Library of Congress)
- The World of 1898: The Spanish-American War (Library of Congress)
Music & Performing Arts 24Hide All
- Alberto Nepomuceno Collection (Library of Congress)
- California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties (Library of Congress)
- A Dance of Devotion: The Matachines of Bernalillo, New Mexico (Smithsonian Institution)
- Daughter of the Sea: An Intimate Portrait of Yoruba Traditions on Film (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Hispano Music and Culture of the Northern Rio Grande: The Juan B. Rael Collection (Library of Congress)
- How REBOLU’s Afro-Infused Rhythms Bridge New York City and the Colombian Coast (Smithsonian Folklife)
- How Urban Corridos Became the Soundtrack to South Central L.A. (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Inter-American Music Festival Foundation papers (Library of Congress)
- Laurindo Almeida Papers (Library of Congress)
- Lauro Ayestarán Collection (Library of Congress)
- The Legacy of Santa Claus and His Mariachi Family (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Luiz Heitor Corrêa de Azevedo Collection (Library of Congress)
- A Mariachi Opera? How Two Art Forms Combined to Celebrate the Immigrant Story (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Music Industry's “Biggest Day” Marks a Mariachi Milestone (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Musical Migrations: The Creative Travels of César Castro (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Gershwin Prize: Emilio and Gloria Estefan to Receive 2019 Award
- Nuestra Música: Latino Chicago (Smithsonian Institution)
- The Perplexing Origins of George Washington's Birthday Celebration in Laredo, Texas (Smithsonian Folklife)
- The Sound of Resistance in Puerto Rico: Bomba Connects La Perla Community (Smithsonian Folklife)
- The Sounds of California in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles (Smithsonian Folklife)
- Spanish language newspapers available in the Chronicling America Historic American Newspapers Online Collection (Library of Congress)
- Trezoro Ladino: Treasures of Ladino at the Library of Congress [PDF, 890KB] -- special display accompanying this performance: Ladino Songs from Sephardic Diaspora [webcast ]
- A Tribute to Tito Matos in Music and Film (Smithsonian Folklife)
- William P. Gottlieb Collection, Latin Jazz photographs (Library of Congress)
Sports 3Hide All
- All American: The Power of Sports (National Archives)
- Baseball Brotherhood (National Endowment for the Humanities)
- "¡Pleibol! In the Barrios and the Big Leagues" / "En los barrios y las grandes ligas" (Smithsonian Institution)
Resource Guides and Collection Overviews from the Library of Congress 13Hide All
- About the Hispanic, Portuguese, and Caribbean Collections: Overview and Researcher's Guide
- Collections Overviews - American Studies: Hispanic American Studies
- Cortés, Vicenta, Informe sobre la colección de manuscritos relativos a la América Latina en la Biblioteca del Congreso.
- Handbook of Latin American Studies (HLAS) Online
- Hispanic and Portuguese Collections: An Illustrated Guide
- Ladino Books in the Library of Congress (Finding Aid)
- Latin America and the Caribbean in Photographs at the Library of Congress
- Latin American Composers: A Guide to Resources at the Library of Congress
- Latinx and Chicanx in STEM
- A Latinx Resource Guide: Civil Rights Cases and Events in the United States
- Latinx Studies: Library of Congress Resources
- Primary Sources for Latin American Composers at the Library of Congress
- Yo Soy (I am): The Historical Trajectory of Language in Puerto Rico
Guides from the National Archives 3Hide All
Guides for Kids from the National Gallery of Art 3Hide All
Guides, Itineraries, and Historic Trails from the National Park Service 10Hide All
- El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail (National Park Service)
- Blog posts related to National Hispanic Heritage Month from the Library of Congress' blog: 4 Corners of the World: International Collections
- El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail
- Hispanics and the Civil War -- Guide
- Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
- Old Spanish National Historic Trail
- Santa Fe National Historic Trail
- Travel Itineraries
• Spanish Colonial Missions of the Southwest
• Travel America's Diverse Cultures: Hispanic Heritage Sites
• Travel El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro Trail