How do the holdings of the Prints and Photographs Division compare to those of the National Archives Still Picture Branch?
Generally, the National Archives is the custodian for permanent records of U.S. government agencies, so it holds images made by and for the U.S. government. With the exception of the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Collection and the Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record, the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division has only scattered holdings of U.S. government images. Because the National Archives receives the records of the U.S. military, for instance, the National Archives Still Picture Branch has more systematic and better indexed holdings for U.S. military units, vessels, and aircraft than does the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
