An Afternoon with the Presidents: Eisenhower & Truman

Ten years ago I discovered the Passport to Presidential Libraries . . . a program administered by the National Archives and Records Administration, "an independent Federal agency that preserves and shares with the public records that trace the story of our nation, government, and the American people."  My first two visits (and stamps) were from the Nixon & Reagan libraries/museums.

The Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum in Independence, Missouri and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum & Boyhood Home in Abilene, Kansas are only two and a half hours apart along I70 and have long been on my road trip wish list.  It was an easy choice to come home from Yellowstone along a new route that would make this possible.

Coming east out of Colorado, I overnighted in Abilene so as to make it possible to maximize my time available with an early morning start.  As I previously wrote, I found there to be so many interesting places to see, that I really did have to cut short my time here.  Additionally, because I was on a tight timeline, I wasn't able to schedule a tour for the boyhood home, which is also located on the grounds with the library and museum. 

At 10:00am, the first available tour would have been late afternoon, which would have eliminated the possibility to get to the Truman location before closing for the day.

I enjoyed learning more about Eisenhower the Army General, as well as about his personal life and time as our 34th US President (1953-1961).  The museum is well done with interactive exhibits and archived video and photographs to help tell his story.   Here are a few more photos I took while doing the self tour.

As I feared, with the impromptu stop at the Wizard of Oz Museum in Wamego, I barely had enough time to tour the Truman Museum! Arriving at 4:15pm, I had just 45 minutes before closing time, but I made the most of it.  These historical museums really do help to educate folks on a time in American history and culture that was quite different that the 21st century.  Truman was the accidental president, having never really even wanted to be the vice president to FDR.  But that is what happened when Roosevelt unexpectedly died just 82 days after beginning his final elected term.

Truman fulfilled that unexpired term and ran for reelection in 1948.  He did not seek another elected term however, and in 1952 Eisenhower was elected by the American public.  Truman's was not a popular, hence his choice to not run.  Summarized by the History Channel "Truman made the decision to use the atomic bomb against Japan, helped rebuild postwar Europe, worked to contain communism and led the United States into the Korean War (1950-1953)." all of which culminated in a less than popular presidency during a time of transition in American history.

I wish I had more time to explore and learn about Truman, and will probably return at some point in the future.  For now, here are a couple of the photos I took at his Presidential Library & Museum.

Because I still had some time to spend in Independence, I drove around a little to see what else was in town.  Truman's boyhood home is now part of the US Park Service and is open for tours.  Unfortunately, it was already closed by the time I wrapped up at the Truman museum.  The Harry S. Truman National Historic Site has a visitor center in the downtown area.  The boyhood home is located a couple of miles away and accessible for exterior photos 24/7. So for now, this is what I have to share here.