Hello again everyone! Sorry for the late post, there was a lot to cover, and little time to do it!
I’d also like to apologize for my horrible title pun. It seemed perfect.
Today, we ventured to Abilene, Kansas to visit the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Center, and then went on to Independence, Missouri in the east.
After leaving Oklahoma City, it was a 4 hour drive to Abilene, situated in the heartlands of Kansas. Passing through Wichita, we arrived at the library by noon.
Abilene is a very pretty and small town, even by small town standards. American flags were hanged on nearly every lamppost and telephone pole. It was also a major way-stop on the Chisholm Trail during the cattle drives. Kind of gives you a picture of what kind of upbringing Eisenhower had.
After eating at a nearby Burger King, we found it!
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum
So we went into the visitor center, watched a brief informational video, got the passport stamped, and looked at what we had to do.
I’ll provide a brief description of each place for clarity.
Visitor Center: Basically the first place a visitor comes to, including the main help desk and gift shop.
Boyhood home: Though Eisenhower was born in Denison, he remembers most of his time in Abilene, where he, his five brothers, and their parents lived. Mrs. Eisenhower remained here until her death in 1946.
Museum Building: Normally, this place holds most if not all of the exhibits on the campus, but it is currently under renovation until June 2019. (Editor’s Note: Since June 2019, the Museum Building has finished it’s renovation, and is now reopened to the public.)
Statue: A nice statue of the General actually created by the same sculptor of the statue in Denison.
Pylons: These five pillars details the virtues and morals of the Eisenhower Family, and of how great leaders in society are born.
Library: The research building of the site, housing the records and archives. Currently though, it holds numerous temporary exhibits based on Eisenhower, though sadly not the full display usually shown in the Museum.
Place of Meditation: This tiny chapel serves as the final resting place of President Eisenhower, his wife Mamie, and his 3 year old son Doud, who died of Scarlet Fever.
Going on a clockwise tour around the campus, we first visited the Boyhood home, which had tours every 15 minutes.
Me and the newly stamped passport.
This small home was declared by others during Eisenhower’s childhood to be located “on the wrong side of the tracks.” Tell them that again now considering how successful each of the five surviving sons of Ida and David became.
There was no yard to keep at the time, and all eight family members lived in this very small space. One small bedroom, nicknamed the “Dorm”, housed five of the brothers!
Eventually, our guide came outside and let us (a group of six) in.
This small parlor was forbidden to be entered by the children, but often held local bible practices for surrounding residents. Ike’s parents were very religious, and thus, this is where he got his morality, despite him never actually attending these practices.
Of course, the Upstairs isn’t available for exploration, but they provided pics.
Ida Eisenhower was a decent sewer, most likely due to the need to be one on the frontier, with few professional services around. This sewing machine is the original one used by Ida for over 50 years (the one back in Denison is a replica). As his parents were “Do it Yourself” people, Ike learned a lot of these hands-on skills at an early age, with experience such as installing plumbing and electricity inside the house.
Those pillows were all knitted by Ida Eisenhower, and that piano was played on by the children.
Here is the dining room. The closed door in the back was the back door, which the children WERE allowed to use, contrary to the front door. The open right room is the Grandfather’s room turned bathroom, and the open left door was the kitchen, an addition. Beforehand, the dining room was also the kitchen. We left from the door behind us.
We stopped by the closed Museum building briefly enough to take a picture.
You know what’s interesting? He almost made it into the Naval Academy at Annapolis! He originally wanted to go there, instead of West Point, since a friend of his was going there. His test scores however, prevented him from going to Annapolis, so he went to West Point. It’s hard to imagine what a future might have been without “General” Eisenhower, or a future WITH an “Admiral” Eisenhower.
Then we went on to the statue, which was larger than the one we saw the previous day. Plus, there was a hat on this one.
This is the Library building, which had a 30 minute video about Ike’s Family, Mamie Eisenhower, and a 3D look into the new Museum Building design to be opened in 2019. The temporary museum exhibits were located on the second floor.
Eisenhower did a lot in his administration… overseeing the end of the Korean War, initiating the Interstate Highway System, enforcing Civil Rights Laws, greater economic prosperity, helping to bring about the end of McCarthyism, founding NASA… the list goes on… and all that, stemmed from the morals he was taught, here in Abilene, that “Can Do” attitude.
This tree was once located at the Augusta Golf Club in Georgia, which the general frequented. Stories tell that Eisenhower HATED this tree, because no matter how much he tried to avoid hitting it with the golf ball, it kept hitting the tree, leading to the creation a life-long adversary on each of his visits to the course, and much cursing from the ailing general. It was eventually cut down after his lifetime, so supposedly this is a “gaming trophy”, to show that he had the last laugh after all.
One of Eisenhower’s Suits, with the Five Star emblem on the shoulder (not pictured).
Mamie’s jewelry on her husband’s first Inauguration. She had very good style for the 50’s, and set the fashion standards of the era, particularly with her love of Pink, and the infamous “Pillbox Hat”.
And who should we happen across but General and Mrs. Eisenhower themselves!
Ok… maybe not the real deal, but still, a neat photo op.
Sadly, a majority of the normal exhibits and artifacts were unavailable due to the restoration of the Museum building. Maybe sometime in the future, i’ll pay it another visit! For now though…
Finally, we came to the Place of Meditation…
It was very quiet in here, and somewhat dimly lit (unlike in the pictures you see), but the stained glass windows certainly added a unique atmosphere to it.
And here it is… the final resting place of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Mamie, and infant son Doud.
General Eisenhower is on the left, Mamie is on the right, and little Doud is in the middle.
As is the case with all the presidential grave-sites we’ve ever seen, the atmosphere is quiet, and reflective… it gives off a sense of respect towards those interred in the location, and this of course was no exception.
Complete with running water, holy crosses, and three fitting quotes from Eisenhower’s Presidency, it was truly a sight to behold.
Behind the burial site was also a small alcove with church pews, intended for visitors to reflect on those ideals that Eisenhower valued, Humility, Honesty, and Diligence.
In conclusion, Eisenhower represented these ideals tremendously, and is certainly something that carried on the day in the darkest times of his service to the world and it’s people. Much was already said in the my previous post about Eisenhower’s character, but I will state it again. These humble beginnings could pertain to absolutely anyone, even to those who live on the “Wrong side of the tracks”. The adversities that Ike had to face when he was young helped to mold him into the moral man he would become. He was not perfect, and flawed, which helped make him seem more human and relatable to all of us. And with that genuine connection, Eisenhower sent vibrations throughout the world. His example still lives on for us to follow. While it can definitely be said that today we need more of what he brought to the open stage, WE are the ones who can set the example. We are the people who can make this world seem a little better off with our being in it.
Returning to the gift-shop, we got a pin for our collection, and left Abilene to head further east to Missouri.
It took only 2 hours to drive from Abilene to Kansas City in Missouri, during which we drove through Topeka and saw the Kansas Capitol Building from a distance. Just for the sake of it, here’s a picture of it that is not ours.
After crossing the Missouri River to enter Missouri (My kind of directions), and entering the eastern portion of Kansas City (Thus there being a Kansas City in both Kansas and Missouri), we only had to drive 20 minutes to Independence, where we checked into our hotel.
Planning ahead, we scouted where our destinations were, just to make things fly smoother tomorrow. Independence if you recall, is the hometown of President Harry S. Truman, and is the site of his Presidential Library and home
Across from the closed Visitors Center for the Truman National Historic Site was this Courthouse, where Truman served as Presiding Judge of Jackson County. Modeled after Independence Hall in Philadelphia, it’s a remarkable building for the town named after the Declaration of Independence.
This is the Truman Library and Museum, and we could drive to the front despite the facility being closed for the day. But for now, until tomorrow!
And here is the nearby Truman House, where the Trumans lived for a long time, before and after his presidency.
Tomorrow, we will head to the Visitor Center to get tickets to the home, and somehow get over there to get the tour. Then, after touring the Library and Museum, we will head back to Kansas City to see the World War I National Museum and Memorial, and end the day by driving to Des Moines in Iowa (or so we hope), in Preparation for West Branch and Herbert Hoover’s Library.
Thats all for today, see y’all tomorrow!
Mark's Historical Roadtrips! 