Imagine a library so big it would take you 50 years to read every book in it. That library is real. On April 24, 1800, President John Adams signed a law creating the Library of Congress. The new nation's leaders needed reliable information to make good laws. They set aside $5,000 to buy books and maps for Congress to use. The first collection had just 740 books and three maps. In 1814, British soldiers burned the library during the War of 1812. Former President Thomas Jefferson sold his personal library of 6,487 books to replace what was lost. Jefferson's books covered science, history, philosophy, and cooking. His wide interests helped shape the library into something much bigger than a law library. Today the Library of Congress holds more than 170 million items. Its shelves stretch for 838 miles. It preserves newspapers, films, recordings, and even comic books. Any American can request a library card and visit the reading rooms in Washington, D.C.