Exploring the Libraries of the U.S. Presidents

By Leonard V. Kalkwarf

What a thrill it was to visit our first presidential library. It was the beginning of an incredible journey that resulted in visiting all of the presidential libraries, which we seek to share with you in this book. As of this date, there are thirteen presidential libraries, which belong to the National Archives and Records Administration.

We would like to take you along on this journey, giving you our impressions and underscoring some of the historic events these visits called to remembrance. The libraries are a glimpse into the lives of the men whose decisions and actions have made our nation what it is today.

What a fascinating and revealing journey this has been. To visit one or all of the presidential libraries is an extraordinary experience and has heightened not only our understanding of the presidents but also of American history.

It did something else. It gave us a destination, making it possible for us to visit some very interesting places across the country. Both of us are now retired after each of us spent fifty years in our chosen professions. Not only do we have the time to travel but the continuation of our life-long pursuit to learn.

Shortly after we began our visits, we broadened our goal to visit at least one or more historic sites associated with each of our former presidents, frequently that would be their birthplace or some major event associated with their life. Eight years later we have achieved our goalwe have visited all thirteen libraries and one or more sites related to each of our forty-three former presidents.

We hope you enjoy visiting the presidential libraries through the reading of this book.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Sep 8, 2015
• ISBN: 9781512711202

Leonard V. Kalkwarf

Leonard V. Kalkwarf is a Minister of the Word and Sacrament in the Reformed Church in America, the oldest protestant denomination on the North American continent. He served as a parish minister for 50 years and continues to be active in the ministry preaching, teaching and writing. He is the author of a number of books including the book Dear Craig, a series of creative letters addressed to their grandson as though they were written in the twenty-first century by well-known and lesser known personalities who were involved with the crucifixion of Jesus. He also published the book Exploring the Libraries of the U.S. Presidents One of his hobbies is studying presidential history. He has an in-house television program regarding the presidents which he presents to the residents in the retirement community of two thousand residents where he and his wife Beverly reside in Northern Virginia. For six years he served as a White House volunteer in the Presidential Correspondence Department. Len, as he is known to his friends, received his theological education at the New Brunswick Theological Seminary, New Brunswick, N.J. He has a Masters of Education from New York University, a Masters of Sacred Theology from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, an earned doctorate from Princeton and an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Central College in Pella, Iowa. He is listed in Whos Who in America. He is an avid bowler, horseshoe player, and enjoys billiards and competing each year in the Northern Virginia Senior Olympics. He and his wife Beverly, a Registered Nurse, have been married sixty four years and have three adult children, three grandchildren and three great grandchildren. Len and Beverly live in Springfield, Virginia, and spend their summers at their cottage in Readfield, Maine..

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Copyright © 2015 Leonard V. Kalkwarf.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Cover designed by Verna Finly. Vern B. Finly studied art in Sweden, where she specialized in theatrical costume design. She continued her studies after immigrating to the United States in 1947. Most of her career was spent with the theater. She became well known for creating ventriloquist figures and is listed in the Ventriloquist Hall of Fame as the first female to be honored as a figure builder.

Photos of the exteriors of the presidential libraries are courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration except Nixon’s which is by the author.

All other photos are by the author and his wife.

WestBow Press

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-1121-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-1122-6 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-1120-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015914365

WestBow Press rev. date: 09/01/2015

CONTENTS

Preface

Acknowledgments

Brief History Of The Presidential Library System

Abraham Lincoln

Herbert Clark Hoover

Harry S Truman

Dwight David Eisenhower

William Jefferson Clinton

James Earl Carter Jr.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Ronald Wilson Reagan

Richard Milhous Nixon

Lyndon Baines Johnson

George Herbert Walker Bush

Gerald R. Ford

George W. Bush

Other Presidential Libraries

Postvisit Thoughts

Appendix: Library Locations

About The Author

Other Publications By The Author

PREFACE

While making plans in 2006 to visit family in Iowa, my wife, Beverly, and I recalled that the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library had opened in Springfield, Illinois, the previous year. We decided it would be interesting to pay it a visit. Since the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library in West Branch, Iowa would be on our way, we decided to visit that as well. Thus began our journey through history, exploring the libraries of the US presidents.

We would like to take you along on this journey, sharing with you our visits in the order in which we made them, giving you our impressions, and underscoring some of the historic events these visits called to remembrance. We would also like to take you with us on a few side trips. I have recorded my impressions of these men who were presidents of the United States, and I have mentioned what visiting their libraries caused me to remember about the respective periods in history. Other people will undoubtedly remember and emphasize different aspects of those historical events.

My comments offer a glimpse into the history of these men whose decisions and actions have made our nation what it is today. I found it to be impossible to provide a comprehensive description of each library within these pages. In some cases, I have primarily emphasized the displays found in a particular library’s corresponding museum. In other cases, I have discussed the historical events that a particular display made me recall. On occasion I have elaborated, providing commentary beyond my immediate recollections. My intent is to whet your appetite in the hope you will also visit these educational and informative libraries.

Beverly and I discovered that the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library is not officially a part of the Presidential Library Service under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Administration of the federal government. Instead, it belongs to the state of Illinois. The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library, on the other hand, is part of the Presidential Library Service. Still, our visits to these two libraries were enough to get us hooked on the idea of seeing all the official presidential libraries, which now number thirteen, as well as a few other sites, to which I refer in a later chapter.

What a fascinating and revealing journey this has been. To visit one or all of the presidential libraries is an extraordinary experience. Visiting all of them has heightened Beverly’s and my understanding not only of the presidents but also of American history. All of these particular libraries, except that of Lincoln, represent the presidents who held office during my lifetime. (Herbert Hoover was inaugurated as president less than a year after I was born.) These are the men who made history during my lifetime; therefore, in visiting these libraries, I was able to relive the history I had previously experienced.

Pursuing this project did something else too. It gave my wife and me a destination, making it possible for us to visit some very interesting places across the country. Both of us are now retired after having spent fifty-plus years in our chosen professions. Now we have the time to travel as well as the ability to continue our lifelong pursuit of learning.

Shortly after we began our visits, we broadened our goal to visit at least one or more historic sites associated with each of the former US presidents. Frequently, one of those other sites would be a particular president’s birthplace or the site of some major event associated with his life. Eight years after we began, Beverly and I have now achieved our goal: we have visited all thirteen libraries and one or more sites related to each of our forty-three former presidents.

We hope you enjoy this journey, either in person or through reading this book, as much as we did.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I am deeply indebted to my daughter, Cindy Kalkwarf, who served as my editor for this book and for my previous book, Dear Craig. She guided me in the writing of this book, made numerous suggestions that improved my writing, and raised questions about some of my comments, which forced me to spell out and clarify those points. Her assistance has greatly improved the readability and contents of this book.

Marion Guinn, management and program analyst of the presidential libraries of the National Archives and Records Administration, was most helpful in making information available to me. She also provided me with public domain photos of the presidential libraries.

A special thanks to the National Archives and Records Administration staff in College Park, Maryland, who graciously gave my wife and me a tour of their facilities and then met with us to discuss the presidential libraries.

Fran Duvall, who for many years was the office manager for a congressman on Capitol Hill, and whom I met shortly after moving to our retirement community, not only encouraged me to write this book but also, when she learned of my interest in presidential history, suggested that I produce a TV program about the US presidents. Since then, she has served as the host of my quarterly programs.

David Toms, who went over my presidential library photos, helped me choose the ones that would enhance this book. He also prepared those photos for publication.

Verna Finly, whose artworks grace the theater halls of Greenspring Players and depict many of that troupe’s past performances, is internationally known for her puppets and is considered by many to be the grande dame of soft puppets. She graciously offered to do the cover design for this book.

Louis O. Springsteen, my seminary roommate and classmate of long ago, whose continued friendship over the past six decades I cherish, was a history major at Dartmouth who read most of the manuscript and checked it for historical accuracy.

Harold Bergman, a former regional manager for the Iowa Farm Bureau, obtained for me information about corn prices during the days of the Great Depression.

Bill Schenck, a former librarian at the Library of Congress, the chairperson of our retirement community’s History Forum, and a man who is always eager to have me speak about one of the former presidents of the United States, provided me with a valuable resource for the writing of this book.

Last, but certainly not least, I acknowledge my wife of sixty-one years, Beverly, who traveled with me to all the presidential libraries and to other presidential sites. She often found interesting side trips for us to take. Her willingness to share in the experience of visiting every presidential library in the United States made it a pleasant and enjoyable venture.

While all of these individuals have been extremely generous in the giving of their time, suggestions, and contributions, in the final analysis I realize that I alone am responsible for any errors