This book explores the visual and material cultures of presidential commemoration--memorials and monuments, libraries and archives--and the problematic ways in which presidents themselves have largely taken over their own commemoration. The author sees these various commemorative sites as playing a key role in the construction of our collective political and cultural self-images and as another sign of our preoccupation with celebrity culture. Ultimately, he contends, these presidential temples reflect not only our civil religion but also the extraordinary expansion of executive authority--and presidential self-commemoration--since FDR.
Thirty fact- and fun-filled pages explore the official libraries of 13 past U.S. presidents. Ready-to-color architectural drawings and presidential portraits are accompanied by interesting details of each unique building.
Presidential libraries and museums are national monuments dedicated to the memories of men who served as America’s commander-in-chief. There are twenty-five (soon to be twenty-six) presidential libraries and museums. Following an introductory overview of presidential libraries and museums and their history, comprehensive entries of each site are arranged from George Washington to George W. Bush, with information included about the current plans for Barack Obama’s library. Each entry contains information on: Location and history Endowments Opening hours, number of visitors, and other facts Collections and permanent exhibits This first reference guide to all twenty-five libraries and museums is a ready reference providing readers with quick and reliable information.
All the presidents of the United States have had at least one home outside of the White House, and many have had libraries and museums built to commemorate their careers. This volume offers a comprehensive, illustrated guide to the almost one hundred homes, libraries, and museums that honor the American presidents - from George Washington to George W. Bush.
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.
Analyzes presidential libraries as performances that encourage visitors to think in particular ways about executive leadership and about their own roles in public life. Kanter demonstrates how the presidential libraries generate normative narratives about individual presidents, historical events, and what it means to be an American. --From publisher description.
Veit, a veteran university librarian and authority in information science, presents a brief descriptive account of the historical development and current state of presidential libraries and collections in the US. Not intended as a piece of original research, the work relies heavily on information distilled from government publications and questionnaires sent by the author to the nine presidential libraries and to repositories, such as the Library of Congress, that possess presidential archives. The largest section of the publication describes the scope, policies, programs, and services provided by the individual libraries. A brief bibliography is current as is a discussion of the legal and financial implications of the 1986 Presidential Records Acts. . . . Veit's monograph will serve as a useful reference tool of undergraduate college students. ChoiceR In recent decades, the value of presidential papers for an understanding of the nation's history and the operation of our government has come to be more fully appreciated. While efforts have been made to preserve these materials, little has been done to describe their availability. This authoritative new volume is designed to provide the researcher or librarian with complete data regarding the contents, organization, and facilities of each library and collection, as well as an informed perspective on how these institutions have been created and maintained.
The complete text of one of the most important speeches in American history, delivered by President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln arrived at the battlefield near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to remember not only the grim bloodshed that had just occurred there, but also to remember the American ideals that were being put to the ultimate test by the Civil War. A rousing appeal to the nation’s better angels, The Gettysburg Address remains an inspiring vision of the United States as a country “conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
