Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum (Austin, TX)

On the Longhorn campus of the University of Texas at Austin is a ten story structure dedicated to keeping the records of Lyndon B. Johnson. Parking is free (albeit maybe difficult during a school day, or a football day), and admission is always free. I originally decided to visit the LBJ Library because I had been to the JFK Library in Boston, and was impressed with the extreme detail in the life of JFK and wanted to see another presidential library.

The museum exhibit chronicles his life as well as major work events that were taking place. Generally, the background has large pictures, and in the foreground are images of LBJ and other artifacts from his years. Chronicled are his life growing up in rural Texas, and coming of age in the middle of the Great Depression. In comparision to the life of JFK with a silver spoon in his mouth, the duality of a man who would become president who actually had to drop out of college to make money and earn his tuition is welcoming, as I was not born with a silver spoon. What made me actually think was that my childhood was actually better off than that of LBJ. Maybe one day I’ll be president…

Anyway, there is a small portion of the exhibit that is dedicated to the assassination of JFK as that was how LBJ became president. Artfully, the walls in this section are black and focus on the major details of the events of the day (obviously less than such a dedicated museum as the Sixth Floor Museum) and it focuses on how LBJ rose above the mourning country to raise the country up and pass legislation that JFK had been campaigning for. Through the rest of the museum pertaining to his time in office, a lot of focus is put on his unmatched number of social rights bills that he signed, most notably the Civil Rights Act. Probably my favorite exhibit in this museum is the majority of his bills represented by pens that he signed the bills with (of course the pen for the Civil Rights Act has its own case, rightfully so). What is also addressed is how the Vietnam War overshadowed all of the awesome things he did in office. The more human side of a man who has to accept what he is sending young men into is shown in a small exhibit. An actual limousine is on display as well.

The exhibit continues on the next floor, but before you get to it, a wall of glass is overshadowing the stairs with boxes visible. This is a cross section of the archives of Johnson. As a former student archivist, I can truly appreciate this display of all of the papers that archivists of past have organized and the historians that currently go through the archives through this day. The next floor shows gifts that LBJ received. Part are gifts that the American people gave him, which for the most part is typical Texan memorabilia; boots, belt buckles, anything majorly oversized basically. Other gifts are gifts from travelling ambassadors, which just show a beautiful cross section of the cultures of the world. A rather random but welcome section is a animatronic LBJ in cowboy gear standing by a fence telling jokes. The final floor is on the tenth floor of the building, which has a replica of LBJs Oval Office, and his post presidency. Much of this is dedicated to Lady Bird. There is also a pseudo-tour of Lady Bird’s favorite rooms in the White House. Reflected in this portion are the multi-functional uses of the rooms in the White House, such as the East Room as a reception hall for their daughter’s wedding and the wake of JFK.

The LBJ Library and Museum should top the list of history buffs in Austin. It will take about two hours to go through the museum, and it is an excellent use of time. The curatorial quality of the museum is second to none other museum dedicated to one person I’ve ever been in. They excellently address his life concurrently with events of the day.