Through the Eyes of the Sleuth:  Setting the Stage for Mystery

Mystery authors rely upon many sources to place a storyline within a locale, a historical setting, or an occupational or social milieu. They research extensively to create a sense of place that lends authenticity and credibility to the plot. You, the reader, move through big city and small town, coastal village or ranch country as the sleuth goes about the day in a museum, antiques fair, archeological dig, catered event, Civil War battlefield, or war-torn London.

Would you like to see what the sleuth sees as the story unfolds? Join Library of Congress staff to discover photographs, maps, and other items that give form to the sleuth’s environment and enrich your reading experience.

Era/ time period:

Civil War (1860-1865)

Civil War Maps, 1861-1865, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/maps/hotchkiss/

Search on the names of battles or locations.

Civil War Treasures from the New-York Historical Society, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpcoop/nhihtml/cwnyhshome.html

Search on the keyword battlefields or names of towns.

Selected Civil War Photographs Collection, 1861-1865, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwphtml/cwphome.html

Search on the keyword battlefields or names of towns.

Washington during the Civil War: The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861-1865, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/tafthtml/tafthome.html

Search on the keyword assassination.

1880s/ Turn of the Century

Before and After the Great Earthquake and Fire: Early Films of San Francisco, 1897-1916, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/papr/sfhome.html

"California as I Saw It:" First-Person Narratives of California's Early Years, 1849-1900, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cbhtml/cbhome.html

The Chinese in California, 1850-1925, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award99/cubhtml/cichome.html

Special Presentation – Topical Overview: Essays and Galleries - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award99/cubhtml/themeindex.html

World War I & Afterwards

Newspaper Pictorials: World War I Rotogravures, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/rotogravures/

Stars and Stripes; The American Soldiers’ Newspaper of World War I, 1918 – 1919, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/sgphtml/sashtml/sashome.html

Veterans Collections, Veterans History Project - http://www.loc.gov/vets/

Location:

America From the Great Depression to World War II, 1935 – 1945, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html

Built in America, 1933 – Present, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/habs_haer/

History of the American West, 1860 – 1920, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award97/codhtml/hawphome.html

Panoramic Maps, 1847 - 1929, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/pmhtml/panhome.html

Panoramic Photographs: Taking the Long View, 1851-1991, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/panoramic_photo/

Portals to the World, Global Gateway - http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html

Places in the News, Geography & Map Division, Library of Congress - http://www.loc.gov/today/placesinthenews/

Touring Turn-of-the-Century America: Photographs from the Detroit Publishing Company, 1880-1920, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/touring/

Occupation:

Antique Print Dealer:

“Floating World of U-kiyo-e: Shadows, Dreams, and Substance”, Exhibitions - http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/ukiyo-e/

Prints and Photographs Online Catalog – http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/catalog.html

Archeologist

The Culture & History of the Americas; The Jay I. Kislak Collection at the Library of Congress, Exhibitions - http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/kislak/\

Portals to the World - http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html

Caterer:

An American Time Capsule: Three Centuries of Broadsides and Other Printed Ephemera. American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/rbpehtml/pehome.html

Search on the keyword menus.

The Emergence of Advertising in America, 1850 – 1920, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/advertising/index.html

Search on the keyword cookbooks.

A First American Cookbook, American Treasures of the Library of Congress, Exhibitions - http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/tri054.html

The Thomas Jefferson Papers: 1606-1827 - American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/jefferson_papers/
Search on the keyword recipe.

Genealogist

History & Genealogy Reading Room - http://www.loc.gov/rr/genealogy/

Bibliographies and Guides - http://www.loc.gov/rr/genealogy/bib_guid/bibguide.html

Museum Curator: Quilts

Quilts and Quiltmaking in America, 1978-1996, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/qlthtml/qlthome.html

Tending the Commons; Folklife and Landscape in Southern West Virginia, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/tending/index.html

Search on the keyword quilting.

Poet

Poetry Home Page, Library of Congress - http://www.loc.gov/poetry/

Library of Congress Poetry Resources - http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/lcpoetry/

Poetry Webcasts, Library of Congress - http://www.loc.gov/poetry/cyberpoet.html

Vintner

The Thomas Jefferson Papers: 1606-1827, American Memory - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/jefferson_papers/

Search on the keyword wine.

Other:

Deft, Daring and Delightful: Mystery Writers Discuss Their Craft, Webcast - http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=3888

Library of Congress Webcasts - http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/

Search on the keyword mysteries for recordings from Library of Congress seminars, panels, and the National Book Festival.