President Truman Library
Bella visited me in Kansas City during Memorial Day Weekend so we decided to check out the President Harry S. Truman Library. We’ve been to both the President George Herbert Walker Bush Library in College Station Texas and the President George W. Bush Library in University Park, Texas.
The President Truman Library is in Liberty Missouri, less than an hour from Kansas City.
Presidential libraries don’t just contain a bunch of books the president accumulated throughout his life. They’re a repository for all kinds of mementoes from the lives of the First Family. For instance, when President Truman visited Europe in 1956 and 1958 he carried a passport that is on display.
I am amazed at what well rounded people get elected to the office of President of the United States. Harry Truman had served as an artillery officer in World War 1. That’s immediately endearing to a couple of Army vets.
Back then the artillery used horses so he had to be an accomplished rider. It’s amazing to see how far we’ve progressed in 100 years.
Truman returned home, took over the farm, and became an influential member of local politics. He eventually became Franklin Roosevelt’s Vice President during World War 2, and was sworn in as President in 1945. That put him in position to make some very monumental decisions that altered the course of the war.
Truman was responsible for making the difficult decision to use nuclear arms on Japan. Not once, but twice. The safety plug from the second bomb resides in the library. It’s a pretty sobering piece of green metal. I can’t imagine how haunting it would be to live with that decision.
Truman had his differences with the press, much like today. He wasn’t much of a fan but when the press corps presented him with a camera he turned it on them.
When his short first term ended in 1948 he faced a stiff challenge in a guy named Dewey. He campaigned throughout the country by holding rallies at train stations, called “whistle-stop”.
Despite being the incumbent he was the under dog and he vowed to “give ’em hell” which eventually became his motto. His unconventional campaign had him speaking a tiny towns normally overlooked by presidential campaigns. It seems to have worked because he was all but counted out on election night resulting in one of the first “fake news” photos in politics.
Truman wasn’t loved by everybody, though. In 1950 two Puerto Rican Nationalists tried to assassinate him. The guns they used to kill one of the White House policemen are on display.
As is the snub-nosed .38 used to foil the attack.
As always the presidential limos are on display. I love this old Lincoln.
Following World War 2 the Soviet Union tried to capture Berlin in Germany. Truman had quite a backbone because, rather than cave in and let the Soviets win the skirmish and keep the capital of Germany, he ordered an airlift of x flights of cargo planes to supply the city, forcing the Soviet Union to relent and reestablish normal ground shipments.
For 323 days British, Canadian, Australian, and American transports flew all supplies, including coal, along air corridors and kept the city functioning. Each plane had one chance to land and if they missed it they returned to their base of origin and got back in line. It was an incredible undertaking and not without accident. They delivered over 2 million tons of supplies, two-thirds of which was coal, and the total number of flights was around 280,000, and at the height of the airlift one plane reached West Berlin every thirty seconds. The organization required to keep that up is staggering.
President Truman also desired to recognize the State of Israel in May of 1948 over the objections of his Secretary of State. The Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion visited the Oval Office and eventually presented him with this Torah and the enclosure.
In 1950 Truman presided over the start of the Korean War. That was yet another controversial decision and another one that weighed heavily. This Purple Heart was sent to President Truman by the father of a fallen soldier to remind him of the awful consequences soldiers pay for the decisions by their leaders. Truman kept it in his desk for the rest of his life.
One of the hallmarks of all the presidential libraries is the replica of the Oval Office. All are decorated in the style chosen by the family who occupies the office. President Truman’s was green.
One of Truman’s favorite sayings was “The Buck Stops Here”, meaning he would never shirk the responsibly of leadership and wouldn’t “pass the buck” along to someone else.
The Trumans are buried on the grounds.
After leaving office, the Trumans returned to Liberty and Harry spent 5 to 6 days a week at his office in the library. Upon his death the desk was put on display, exactly as he left it.
The Truman home is part of the National Parks Service and is open for tour. Tickets must be obtained at the Visitor’s Center in downtown Liberty.
I love presidential libraries. I’ve learned about all the major events during the 20th century but seeing how many of them fell on the desk of one guy is sobering. Truman was the right guy at the time and his decisions, though controversial, shaped the world.
~ Freddy
