The George W. Bush Library is located on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Part of the large exhibit includes a twisted and distorted metal support beam and other artifacts from the World Trade Center after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack, interactive video stations that help visitors realize the process a President follows when making critical decisions, and a main gallery that is framed on four principles that are important to President and Mrs. Bush, and were stressed during his administration - Freedom, Responsibility, Opportunity, and Compassion.
The George H. Bush Library is located on the campus of Texas A&M in College Station, Texas. Included in the exhibits is an airplane similar to the one that George H. Bush was flying during World War II when he was shot down over the Pacific Ocean (He was recused two days later by a passing submarine.), the presidential limousine used during his administration, and a very informative display on the Persian Gulf War. One of President Bush's quotes displayed was "Any definition of a successful life must include service to others" and many parts of the library place emphasis on service to others.
The Lyndon B. Johnson Library is located on the University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas. The recently renovated Library features new exhibits that incorporate interactive displays using the latest technology to help visitors understand the mood of the country during his presidential term. For those that are baby boomers (or older), the tour brings back many memories of the turbulent 1960s, the "crazy" clothes and hair styles, and the Vietnam War. Most sections of the library are interrelated to some part of the "The Great Society" and President Johnson's belief that "Until justice is blind to color, until education is unaware of race, until opportunity is unconcerned with the color of men's skins, emancipation will be a proclamation but not a fact." People that are old enough to remember President Johnson usually don't think of him as a humorous person, but one section of the library is dedicated to "Johnson Humor." I didn't listen to the entire program, but the one I liked was: "If one morning I walked on top of the water across the Potomac River, the headlines that afternoon would read: 'President can't swim.'"
Looking through my old files, I also found pictures from the Richard M. Nixon and Ronald Reagan Libraries, which are located in California.
The Richard M. Nixon Library is located in Yorba Linda, California, and was privately funded until 2007, when it became one of the thirteen presidential libraries now administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Historically, presidential papers were considered to be personal property of the President, but that changed with passage of the Presidential Recordings and Materials Preservation Act. Presidential papers are now part of the National Archives. The Nixon Library is not located on a college campus; but typical of other properties in California, the flowers and fountains on the grounds are beautiful. The interior of the library contains extensive displays of President Nixon's international relations, which his administration strongly promoted, and his belief that "We must always remember that America is a great nation today not because of what government did for people, but because of what people did for themselves and for one another."
The Ronald Reagan Library is the most spectacular presidential library that we have visited, with a dynamic setting on top of a hill overlooking the Simi Valley in California. The Reagan Library is the largest of the 13 libraries administered by the NARA and contains the airplane "Air Force One" that was used by six presidents. After the plane was decommissioned, it was disassembled, completely restored to museum quality, and reassembled at the Reagan Library. Part of the Berlin Wall is also on display to remind people of President Reagan's famous quote: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall." As with most presidential libraries, part of the library tour includes a reproduction of the Oval Office. President Reagan described presidential libraries as a "classrooms of Democracy" because they are not "libraries" in the usual sense. Reagan considered the libraries to be "archives and museums, preserving the written record and physical history of our presidents, while providing special programs and exhibits that serve their communities." And, if you like presidential humor, there numerous books and tapes available in the gift shop.
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