Happy Birthday to Harry Truman, born on May 8 in 1884!
This post-Presidential photograph shows Truman holding a copy of the famous Chicago Daily Tribune declaring “Dewey Defeats Truman.” The newspaper had relied on early Gallup polls to predict the winner, but the polls were wrong. Truman was reelected.
The 33rd President grew up in Independence, Missouri, (now the site of Harry S. Truman Library & Museum) and after serving in World War I, he returned home and he married Bess Wallace, his childhood sweetheart. In 1934, he was elected to the Senate. He had only been Vice President for a few weeks when FDR died, and Truman was sworn in as 33 President of the United States.
For more Presidential photos and history, visit the new Our Presidents boards over on Pinterest!
http://pinterest.com/ourpresidents/
from the U.S. National Archives
Happy Birthday Willie Nelson!
“When I was in trouble in the White House or when I wanted to have some deep thoughts, I had a very high quality hi-fi player, and the number one thing I played was Willie Nelson songs. All the good things I did as a president, all the mistakes I made — you can blame half of that on Willie.”
-Jimmy Carter in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine
Photos: Jimmy Carter with Willie Nelson and his guests outside of the Old Executive Building. 4/25/78; President Carter on stage at a performance by country western singer, Willie Nelson at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. 9/13/80.
The two remain friends today.
-from the Carter Library
Source: research.archives.gov
Happy Birthday Chelsea Clinton!
Photo: Governor Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton with Chelsea Victoria Clinton in the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion on the day they brought their daughter home from the hospital. 3/4/80.
-from the Clinton Library
By George, It’s Washington’s Birthday!
Over two centuries ago, on April 30, 1789, George Washington delivered his first Inaugural Address knowing that he had little to guide him in the job that lay ahead but the principles stated in the Constitution.
During Washington’s first year in office, Congress ordered 600 copies of the Acts of Congress to be printed and distributed to Federal and state government officials. The book compiled the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other legislation passed by the first session of Congress.
George Washington’s personal copy of the Acts of Congress contains his own handwritten notes in the margins.
Washington rarely wrote on the pages of his books, and the presence of his distinct handwriting makes the historic volume even more remarkable. Customarily, Washington preferred to take notes on a separate sheet of paper, which he would insert into a book. But in his copy of the Acts of Congress, he not only wrote directly in the margins but also drew brackets next to the passages of particular interest to him.
Last year, the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association secured the book at an auction, bringing it back to George Washington’s home. At $9,826,500, it broke world auction records for an American historic document.
Beginning next week, Washington’s Acts of Congress will travel the country and visit the 13 Presidential Libraries of the National Archives through a partnership with Mount Vernon. Learn more at http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/02/18/archives-george-washington-writes-margins .
Happy birthday George Washington!
February 22, 1732 - December 14, 1799
Photo: George Washington’s copy of the Acts of Congress. His signature appears inside. Printed in 1789. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
President Gerald R. Ford Walking away from the Lincoln Sculpture after Laying a Wreath at the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Wreath Laying Ceremony, 02/12/1975
The cornerstone of the Lincoln Memorial was laid on February 12, 1914, Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday. A little more than eight years later it was completed and dedicated on May 30, 1922 with Lincoln’s son, Robert Todd Lincoln attending the ceremony.
FDR’s Birthday Celebrations and the Fight Against Polio
Today is the anniversary of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s birthday. During FDR’s Presidency, his birthday became synonymous with celebrations to raise money to fight polio.
“The National Committee for Birthday Balls” sponsored a dance in every town across the nation, both to celebrate FDR’s birthday but also to raise money for the Georgia Warm Springs Foundation, later re-named the March of Dimes. Read More
Franklin D. Roosevelt
January 30, 1882 - April 12, 1945
Chef assistants decorate President Nixon’s 1971 birthday cake at the Western White House Kitchen. La Casa Pacifica in San Clemente, California. January 9, 1971.
-from the Nixon Library, Photo ID WHPO 5442-02
Source: archives.gov
That’s How He Rolled
Richard Nixon would have been 100 years old on Wednesday, and we’re celebrating his Centennial year throughout 2013.
Remember this photo of President Nixon bowling at the White House Bowling Alley? 3/10/70.
Learn more about the life of the 37th U.S. President - The Centennial of Richard Nixon
Source: archives.gov
It’s Nixon’s 100th birthday. Here we go.
A Year-Long Celebration of 2013 Presidential Centennials
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the births of two Presidents of the United States: Richard Nixon (January 9, 1913–April 22, 1994) and Gerald Ford (July 14, 1913–December 26, 2006).
Throughout the year, the National Archives will feature programming in celebration of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald R. Ford. Learn more about the 2013 Presidential Centennials here.
Source: archives.gov
