Last month Barack and Michelle Obama officially opened the new Barack Obama Presidential Centre. This is a library, museum and education project in Chicago, commemorating the 44th President of the USA. Included within the centre is a branch of the Chicago Public Library, and the centre plans to work closely with the National Archives, to ensure that many of the documents are digitised. The new building is expected to get over 700,000 visitors each year.
The presidential library system is an official network of 16 libraries which are repositories of papers, records and other historical materials of every president of the USA since 31st President Herbert Hoover. Before the mid 20th century, private papers relating to the position were understood to belong to the president concerned.
Thirty-second President Franklin D. Roosevelt offered to leave his papers to the public in a building donated by him on his New York estate. Since that time, various laws have ensured the keeping of documents and the presidential library system. The libraries are established in each president’s home state. Each offers various public programmes. Together the libraries hold over 400 million pages of textual materials, about 10 million photographs, 5,000 km of film, and half a million museum objects. Several presidents have chosen to be buried at their own presidential library.
Not all presidential papers fall into the network of the Presidential Libraries System and there are some unofficial presidential libraries as well. Today the presidential paper repositories/museums/libraries include those for George Washington (Virginia), John Adams (Massachusetts), Thomas Jefferson (Virginia), James Madison (Virginia), James Monroe (Virginia), John Quincy Adams (Massachusetts), Andrew Jackson (Tennessee), Abraham Lincoln (Illinois), Andrew Johnson (Tennessee), Ulysses S. Grant (Mississippi), Rutherford B. Hayes (Ohio), Grover Cleveland (New Jersey), William McKinley (Ohio), Theodore Roosevelt (Dakota), Woodrow Wilson (Virginia), Warren D. Harding (Ohio), Calvin Coolidge (Massachusetts), Herbert Hoover (Iowa), Franklin D. Roosevelt (New York), Harry S. Truman (Missouri), Dwight D. Eisenhower (Kansas), Lyndon B. Johnson (Texas), Richard Nixon (California), Gerald Ford (Michigan), Jimmy Carter (Georgia), Ronald Reagan (California), George Bush (Texas), Bill Clinton (Arkansas), and George W. Bush (Texas). The Joe Biden Centre will be in Delaware, and the Donald J. Trump Presidential Centre is in the planning stage and will be in Florida (I can hardly bear to think how many images of Trump’s face will be emblazoned all over it).
I have been lucky enough to visit the John F. Kennedy Library (which holds an amazing collection of Ernest Hemingway papers and items), the Ulysses S. Grant centre, and also the gorgeously landscaped Jimmy Carter Presidential Library.
Have you visited a Presidential Library? I’l love to know if you leave a comment.
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Jenifer Tippins
I recently read a book about the collecting of the items for J P Morgan’s collection of early manuscripts and first editions. It was told from the point of view of the secretary who did all the work finding and bidding for the items. A remarkable, almost single-handed effort. I would love to visit some of the presidential libraries after reading your posts. Thank you.
Susannah Fullerton
I have seen that book and thought it looked interesting. Thanks for letting me know about it.
Cheryl
I’ve read and can also highly recommend the novel ‘The Personal Librarian’, based on the life of Belle da Costa Greene and the work she did for J. P. Morgan in establishing his library. It was an excellent piece of historical fiction based strongly on facts. I loved it!
Melody
I haven’t visited a Presidential Library but I have seen Thomas Jefferson’s books (what remains of them after a fire) in the Library of Congress. It’s interesting to see what he had read.
Janet
I only have visited the Ronald Reagan library. I was in California and rented a car to drive there. I liked that as you drive up the driveway to get to the library, they had the names of all the presidents and then you reach the library. It was as if they were saying – culminating in Ronald Reagan.
My favorite thing was letters he wrote Nancy. Every day he wrote her a love letter and they showed some of them. He was a wonderful writer.
Rosemary Shaw
I too have visited the Kennedy Library. He was a great reader himself apparently due to years sick in bed as a child. He also had his university thesis turned into a best seller.
Two strong memories – copies of his typed speeches displayed where he had scribbled extra bits during the evening , often a literary quote. On one he’d handed it to Jackie to complete the line-Tennyson or something- and of course she knew it.
The other was seeing Bobby Kennedy’s recreated office as if he’d just stepped out, with his children’s drawings pinned up.
Wendy
I’ve been to the 2 Presidential Libraries/Musuems in Texas. Lyndon Baines Johnson one was most impressive. He had most of his phone calls recorded and you could pick up a phone and listen. One particular call was from Jackie Kennedy on the day following her husband’s assassination. LBJ was the vice president then, so became the president. Jackie was so respectful of LBJ and his position, and the compassion he has for her was evident. We spent an entire day there – so good! In the basement they had changing exhibitions and we. We were there a Mowtown Exhibition was on. Magnificent clothes owned by Aretha Franklin (a tall and solid lady) were on models as were suits from the Four Tops, the Jackson 5 and so many others.
The George W. Bush Presidential Library/Musuem was smaller than LBJ’s but still extremely interesting. Some of Mrs Bush’s dresses were displayed (exquisite!) and as expected lots of history very well set out.
The Obama Presidential Library/Museum is on my bucket list, but I won’t be going until the next President is in charge.
Susannah Fullerton
Thanks so much for sharing your Presidential Library visits – really interesting. I agree – I won’t be visiting the USA while the current president is in situ!
Graham H.
I can share a groanworthy joke that they tell at the James Madison Presidential Library in Montpelier, Virginia.
Apparently the diminutive 4th President of the United States once entered the library room (it’s in his own old home, 2nd floor), and he asked whether they had any books on “irony”.
“Yes we do” responded his helpful librarian. “They’re on the top shelf …”