Key Takeaways
- The United States will celebrate its 250th anniversary on July 4, 2026, prompting the need to preserve family photo history.
- The 250 Project encourages families to select and digitize 250 meaningful photographs that represent their personal history.
- Family photos capture everyday life, reflecting how ordinary people experienced American history, making preservation crucial.
- This moment is vital as many historic family photos exist only in physical form, risking loss if not digitized soon.
- Families can participate in The 250 Project by utilizing services like ScanMyPhotos to properly scan and preserve their photo collections.
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
As America Turns 250, Photos History Matters
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary on July 4, 2026, formally known as the Semiquincentennial, museums and institutions across the country are preparing exhibitions to mark the moment. They are selecting objects, framing national milestones, and shaping the official story.
But much of America’s photo history has never appeared on display. It lives at home.
“When a country turns 250, museums build exhibits,” says Mitch Goldstone, chief photo archivist at ScanMyPhotos. “Families already have one. It’s just been sitting in boxes.” That realization sparked The 250 Project, a nationwide call to preserve photographic history rooted in everyday American life.
What The 250 Project Is
The 250 Project asks families to take a clear, meaningful action. As America turns 250, families select and digitize 250 photographs, slides, or 35mm negatives that best represent their personal history.
They are not choosing the most polished images. They choose the most representative ones. Together, those 250 images create a personal record of American life as it actually unfolded, making photo history preservation a deliberate act rather than an afterthought.
Why Family Photos Matter
Photography did not exist for most of the nation’s history. Museums preserve major events. Families preserve daily life. Homes, jobs, moves, school years, vacations, and ordinary days shaped the country just as much as historic moments. Families captured those moments on film and paper, and only they still hold them today.
Those historic milestones exist nowhere else, which is why photo history preservation matters now more than ever. They are also fragile. Slides fade. Negatives crack. Prints curl, stick together, and disappear. Loss happens slowly and often goes unnoticed until it is too late.
Most families already have historic photos without realizing it. Old black-and-white portraits, immigration snapshots, factory jobs, military send-offs, school photos, road trips, and backyard gatherings all reflect what was happening in the country at the time. These everyday pictures show how Americans lived through major moments in history, not from a distance, but up close. Together, they tell the nation’s story through ordinary lives.
Why This Moment Matters
Every major anniversary raises the same question: what do we choose to preserve? Governments preserve documents. Museums preserve artifacts. Families preserve proof.
This anniversary marks one of the last moments when large amounts of analog photo history still exist only in physical form, scattered across homes. Families now face a clear choice. They can act on photo history preservation today, or risk losing irreplaceable records of everyday American life forever.
How to get 250 pictures digitized with free return delivery for $50.
A Practical Way to Begin
To support The 250 Project, the photo scanning company, ScanMyPhotos, introduced the 250 Photo Scan Sampler, designed specifically for this moment.
The sampler allows families to professionally scan up to 250 photo prints into high-quality digital files while safely returning the original photographs.
The cost is $50 for up to 250 photos.
How to Start
There is no single right order. Start with the oldest box. Open the unlabeled slide tray. Look through the negatives you never printed. Select carefully. Choose what feels historic to you that nobody has ever seen before. When you reach 250 images, you have created your exhibit.
How to Share
If you choose to share your participation, post images from your selection on social media and tag it with #The250Project. You do not need to explain it. The image carries the meaning.
Where America’s Photo History Lives
America’s photo history is not finished. It is not centralized. It does not reside in a single institution. It lives at home.
What kinds of photos count as historic family photos?
Historic family photos include everyday images like old portraits, immigration photos, school pictures, military service photos, workplace snapshots, vacations, and home life from past decades. If the photo shows how your family lived at a different time in America, it’s part of history.
Why does preserving family photos matter for America’s 250th anniversary?
The nation’s history isn’t limited to famous events. It’s reflected in how ordinary people lived, worked, moved, and raised families. Preserving these photos preserves a personal record of American life that museums and archives lack.
How can I start preserving my family’s photo history?
Start by selecting photos that best represent your family’s past and ensure they’re safely preserved. Many families begin by scanning their photos with services like ScanMyPhotos, which helps convert physical prints into digital files while returning the originals.
[Edited February 8, 2026].
