Had an astronomically amazing time here on a field trip with a group of forty third graders. Due to…read morestaff shortages, the amount of students is limited to forty per day, and we had booked two classroom for two days. Some students were not able to go due to this restriction. We arrived at 9:30 and had to walked around outside and observe the outside exhibits until they opened at 10:00AM. Once inside, we sat for a presentation by a very engaging employee. NASA sent the teachers a video to watched prior to our visit, so the students had some interesting questions for our host. After that, that had about an hour to explore the exhibits. Many were hands-on. Our students loved it, and had a blast. It was nice that we had the whole museum to ourselves. The cost for admission is free for everyone, not just for field trips. They are closed Sundays and Mondays. I plan to come again on my own. The first Saturday of each month they do a rocket launching. Kids can bring their own, or buy one from the gift shop which I would have liked to visit. Next ti

As a professional astronomer, I'm *obviously* biased. I'm also not able to make a distinction…read morebetween what's accessible to the public vs folks who work there, since I was taken on various tours by my colleague. That said, I had a really enjoyable time at GSFC as a visitor. Highlights of my visit included the dinosaur print (who would've thought -- esp. since it was dug up relatively recently, within the past couple decades!), the Nobel Prize from John Mather, the Hubble Space Telescope gallery (which featured many replicas or spare parts from the actual space telescope) and control center (where scientists send commands to the space telescope to make it take various pictures), and my personal favorite, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope that is in assembly phase in the clean room. You can see it behind the glass without entering the clean room. Of course I stocked up on GSFC-specific merch from the gift shops. Really cool place to check out!

This is an art center in PG county where they have periodic art exhibitions and area for artists to…read morecreate art. We were here for the Twelfth Annual Artists on the Rise: Juried Teen Exhibition. There's a garden and the exhibition was on the first floor and could be accessed using a boardwalk. The gardens look nice for a walk. The facility is very neat and well maintained.

I have driven past the sign for Montpelier Mansion numerous times and finally decided to explore…read morethis historical landmark. The grounds are beautiful, with a lovely garden filled with wildflowers. I visited the ironworks exhibit, the carriage house, and the main office/gift shop. The staff are friendly, and there is plenty of parking.

I was proud to take friends visiting from out of state to the Greenbelt Museum. We spent 2 hours…read morethere. They were fascinated and really enjoyed it. This museum does a lot for its size, and it's obvious it could use more room.

Did you know that Greenbelt was built and developed due to one of the New Deal's program? That's…read morejust one thing I learned on my visit here. The museum includes an historic house, which is built in an "international" style. The house has been restored and is filled with items that were used between 1936-1946. Unlike other museums, there are no display cases here. The furniture and decorative items in the house tell the story of the years of the Great Depression and the New Deal. The authentic fiesta ware and depression glass caught my eye, as well as some really neat children's toys. On the walls there are original architectural renderings of the development of this area. A unique way to display city planning, for sure.

As a Regal Unlimited member, I'm always here at this location to watch new movies. I enjoy this…read morelocation because it's closer to where I live and they good restaurants nearby. I prefer coming here during matinees versus at night. I've always received great customer service.

came here after I left marlow heights because they were rude dirty and ghetto... after leaving from…read moremarlow heights and coming here to Róyale I had the best time ever. my girls said this movies is clean beautiful and safe. I love taking my kids to the movies once a month this theater definitely restore my faith. we will be back I love this spot! very kid friendly thank you for making my family have an awesome Saturday

My local library! Not sure why it took me 3 years to get my library card, but I made it hahaha…read more This branch is located in Old Greenbelt near the theater. From the outside, the building looks a bit dated... but that's the vibe of the entire community, haha. The inside is nice! It has everything you'd want -- meeting rooms, silence that you could hear a pen drop, COVID-19 take-home test kits, chairs for reading, and of course books on books on books! I haven't checked one out yet (I have my own backlog as is), but they have quite the selection! It's convenient only being 5 minutes from my house. I can't really compare it to others, but it has everything I need!

I entered the library with purpose. I came all the way, to the northern nether regions of the…read moreBeltway for a lecture on Frederick Douglass and I got there early. Since I had time to spare, I thought I would update my library account and look for a book. Dude at the front desk was nice. He updating my account easily so that was quick and cool. I walked around, kicking myself that I didn't bring my phone charger and lo! There was free charging station! Clutch!!!! Two Stars! Next, I thought I would look for the book I needed. An Eric Foner book. Not the most popular read but, lo and behold 'twas on the shelf!!!! Kill!! Three stars. So I continued to kill time reading about Historic Greenbelt, there was a display for that. I went to one of the self-checkout machines, I saw two, checked my book out and went to find the restroom. Four Stars with the self-checkout. On my way to the restroom I saw this box for donating eye glasses. I loved that for obvious reasons so add another star to my review and that's 5 but, with the men's restroom out of order on election day 2018, I deducted a star. So, I had a good time at the Greenbelt Library. I got more done than I needed and more than I expected. Good stuff, good stuff.

Everything!! Their Saturday dinner special has always been wonderful. The hospitality and…read morefriendliness are great.

Came here with my veteran Pops for an early Thanksgiving meal. My dad has been coming here a very…read morelong time and knows all the staff very well, so we got some choice seating, which is a make of break for my dad (cause he's a little insane). All the staff was super kind and in the holiday spirit. This is not the type of place for everyone as it's selective with it's membership and the service matches the type of crowd it attracts. Regardless of what it's like at any other point of the year, they did a fine job on this day.

Last Saturday, we visited the largest, permanent, model railroad display in the mid-Atlantic, owned…read moreby the Baltimore Society for Model Engineers. The Society was founded in March 1932 and is the oldest exclusively model railroad club in the United States. They maintain 2,500 square feet of model railroad displays of steam and diesel freight and passenger trains and trolleys, plus so much more. It was fun to see all the parts of the display - it really gives you a glimpse into the history of railroading. It is not easy to find, as the doorway is tucked into the left front center of the building and the society is located on the third floor with no elevator. The display is normally open on the second Sunday of each month, except May.

These gentlemen have been around 81 amazing years. Great family environment with extremely…read moreknowledgable guys working. Displays are very detailed and even showcase popular Baltimore landmarks.

Review #239 - 2019 I…read morehonestly do not understand what the whole protesting situation was all about, but then again I don't understand a lot of things that liberals do! But here is a short reading on the upsetting situation: "Five miles from the United States Supreme Court, a 40-foot-tall World War I memorial in the shape of a cross has stood for nearly a century. Now, it is at the center of a battle over the separation of church and state that may end up on the court's docket. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit declared this month that the Peace Cross, which sits on state-owned land in Maryland and has been maintained with public funds, was unconstitutional, a ruling that supporters of the monument warned could result in a "cleansing" of memorials on public grounds across the country." Supreme Court's Ruling as of June 20, 2019: "The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that a 40-foot cross honoring soldiers who died in World War I could remain on state property in suburban Maryland. The cross, the court said, did not violate the First Amendment's ban on government establishment of religion." When my girlfriends & I were driving around looking for it, we were expecting it to be a monumentally gigantic cross that can be seen from miles & miles away; but when we finally arrived, we were like, "Wait! This cross caused that much commotion! Wow! Liberals really are that easy to trigger!" Thank goodness for people who aren't PC or easily triggered by everything or else we won't have anything nice left on this planet.

My review for National Archives is solely based on digitalized search records as ulterior motive…read morefor genealogy research or ancestry records retainment. I personally find familial history and records fascinating including oral history. I plan to sustained these military records perpetually. I sorrowfully wished I have driving skills enabling car ownership to make the long-haul trek to this federal archival material data files record keeper office at 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740 from New York City as I would search deeper obtaining more information. National Archives' website has painstaking digitalized and categorized military personnel records by all military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. It is all personal to me as a next of kin seeking my beloved family member who was a U.S. Army veteran. Searches are further categorized by war periods dating back 250 years American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), War of 1812, Mexican War, Civil War, World War I, World War II including later wars and conflicts Korean War and Vietnam War. Oh! I am highly impressed that U.S. military personnel records dating 250 years are maintained and retained perpetually because my search is dating 83 years ago as it is not in recent years. My online search is very gruesome, daunting, extensive time consuming with high level of patience tolerance as there are many, many layered links and sub-links in a national centralized database. Links take users to more links and further complicated specified links. The records or biographical information are mostly abbreviated as "19" for birth year rather than year 1919 and does not explain rank, title, grade, grade code military jargon or military codes in everyday ordinary civilian language. The DD Form 214 Certificate of Release or "Discharge from Active Duty," is the official discharge paper and Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) which can also be obtained either online or mail. My data search encountered United States, Army Enlistment Records and Flexoline Index Database, by Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) under Department of Justice originated the Alien Registration Act of 1940 which I did successfully achieved basic biographical results from both file units. Further document requests can be obtain by submitting requests either online or U.S. mail for fees as draft registration cards and Records of the Selective Service. National Archives is a federal government official record keeper. These were service members who have names. They are significantly more than Army Serial Number. They lived and served. They have narratives. They are still loved, honored, celebrated and remembered.

Knowing history gives us a sense of perspective. If you think you have it tough, read history…read morebooks. We'd obtained the necessary advance tickets when I was last there in 2013 for further family research. I've done virtual visits there since then. This College Park, Maryland location is Archives II, which is solely a research facility. Archive I is in Washington, DC, which I'd previously reviewed at https://www.yelp.com/biz/national-archives-and-records-administration-washington. I have no complaints. The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent Federal agency of the United States government within the Executive Branch. It's charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. Employees here certainly try to be helpful. Be aware that there are "millions of records, documents, photographs, maps, decrees, charters, videos" so impossible for employees to be an expert on all of them. So, do as much research before visiting so you have something to help you to find what you're looking for. If you are a History Addict such as myself, resist the temptation to read all that cool history that passes before your eyes here or you will never find out what you specifically came to find. The security procedures are different at each National Archives location based on many factors, including function and size of the facility, and are subject to change without notice. Rules can even change from floor to floor and employee to employee. Resistance is futile. When entering National Archives facilities, you must provide valid photographic identification and are subject to inspection upon entering, anytime while there and exiting. Just like at most IRS building, your id may be scanned as you travel from floor to floor. You are very limited on what you can bring in with you, Weapons are prohibited. There are a lot of security guards. If you have a heart pacemaker or other medical device that might be disrupted by the magnetometer (or give a false reading), ask to be screened with a hand-held wand. Surgical implants set off the security machines. If you have surgical implants, bring documentation of them from your doctor with you. On-site parking is limited. Any papers you are allowed to bring in are required to be first approved and then stamped / Permitted. Phones, their cases, and computers cases are prohibited. Computers require a previously obtained Permit. Recommend putting your stuff in clear plastic bags. Large or bulky clothes, hats, even some boots, prohibited due to previous thefts, hence why some requests come back as "unavailable". Has a cafeteria on the ground floor. Has specific times you can make a request to "Pull" an item. Be prepared that it can take a while to fulfill your request, it may be fulfilled damaged, and that it may not even be fulfilled due to previous thefts. There is a cost to get copies of anything. On this day in history 31 December: 1775 - George Washington ordered his recruiters to accept Blacks into the Army. Standing shoulder to shoulder, an ethnically diverse soldiery formed. From free and enslaved Blacks, to Native Americans, native born colonists, to foreign recruits, to women, Washington's integrated Army was a diverse fighting force for the long and grueling eight-year war. One of the most famous units was the 1st Rhode Island Regiment. The Rhode Island Assembly decreed on 14 February 1778, to allow, "every slave, so enlisting, shall upon his passing muster before Col. Christopher Greene, be immediately discharged from the service of his master or mistress; and be absolutely FREE, as though he had never been encumbered with any Kind of Servitude or Slavery." The integrated Army in the American War For Independence was shamefully the last integrated American military until 26 July 1948 (WWII ended 2 September 1945), when President Harry S. Truman signed an executive order banning segregation in the US Armed Forces. For it is essential that there be maintained in the Armed Services of the United States the highest standards of democracy, with equality of treatment and opportunity for all those who Serve in our country's defense. During World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt had responded to complaints about discrimination at home against African Americans by issuing Executive Order 8802 in June 1941. It directed that Black Americans be accepted into job-training programs in defense plants, forbid discrimination by defense contractors and established a Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC) to enforce the policy. Truman had previously appointed the first African-American judge to the Federal bench, and named several other African-Americans to high-ranking administration positions.