An
offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are
like the barred gates of a citadel. ~ Proverbs
18:19
Finally! A day to
do some serious hiking!
Not!
It was a day we’d been looking forward to. An entire day spent hiking in Pedernales State
Park. We drove the half hour to get
there, only to see a sign at the intersection that said it was closed Monday
thru Thursday! Blaine pulled over so I
could call and check (who knows? Maybe they
forgot to take down the sign? After all,
who closes an entire State Park?) Well,
it turned out it truly was closed. The
message said, “due to wildlife management”.
We discovered later that meant they were deer hunting.
So now what?
Close by was the Lyndon B. Johnson State and National
Parks, so we did the “tourist visit” thing . . . . in our shorts and hiking
boots. 😊
Lyndon Baines Johnson 36th President
It’s a bit of an odd arrangement they have here. Because Johnson City (named for one of his cousins) is the home of the Johnson family, there’s a State Park in conjunction with some elements that are a National Park. But the ranch where he did all his political stuff, is 13 miles up the road is also a National Park. They work together to provide us citizens with a very unique experience.
T0 this day, the ranch actually remains, a working cattle ranch where they raise Herefords. There’re signs up along the road to warn you to watch out for them wandering, and we actually had to stop once to let them cross in front of us. 😊 The land was donated by the Johnsons in 1969, at which time it was designated as a historic site. In 1980, it was redesignated as a National Historic Park.
In addition, as I already mentioned, there’s that second National Park which just made things really confusing for me as I wrote this. At the second National Park (which is land shared in part by the State Park), there’s a few Longhorns that they also warn you about. Seems they sometimes rub their horns along the fence rail, and can gore you if you’re not careful. Our experience with that, while a bit unnerving, wasn’t a problem. The cow we got close to, actually coveted our attention, walking up to me as I walked away and putting her head in a position to be petted. 😊
Anyway, we began in the shared State/National Park area because it was closest to where we currently were.
There are numerous things available to do between the three Parks.We do’t know where the cabins were. We didn’t see them.Me and LB, haning out in the State (or was it National?) VCCute picture! : )The Johnson’s did an extraordinary amount of work expanding our National Park System. More on that later.
Our timing was perfect, as a tour of Johnson’s childhood home (the National Park) just as it was ready to start. Theresa (volunteer) led an interesting and informative tour, and if I was any good, I’d repeat all the tales she shared, but I’m not that good. Suffice it to say, the Johnson family, and LBJ in particular were exceptional people. And as the day wore on, and carried over into another short trip to the National Park later this week, we learned there was much more to the man than just what he’s usually remembered for – taking over for JFK and starting the Viet Nam war. Which we discovered later was really started by Viet Nam.
LBJ lived in this house for about ten years.Giving an acceptance speech on the porch.Does this look like a future president to you? He certainly looks determined enough. : )The fourth man from the right is LBJ’s father.The family worked with the State and National Parks restoring all the properties, even telling them where to place the furniture that was in the various homes.Christmas paper? We thought this was an odd choice. : )
As we continued touring his boyhood home, we were ushered into the living room, where I noticed a highly unusual framed piece above the mantle. I remarked to Blaine that that picture hung at the top of our stairs when I was growing up (along with another one). Theresa overheard me, and asked me to share with the class. So I did. See what you think of it. : )
“All Is Vanity”
Charles Allan Gilbert 1892 Can you see it now? : )
We also had this one at the top of the stairs. It’s called “Gossip” by G. Witherspoon. I couldn’t find a date.
The tour continued.LBJs room as a child.That’s TheresaA battery-powered radio.LBJ (the tallest) and his four siblings.This is called a sleeping porch. The kids sometimes slept out here when there were guests.
That big wooden box? That’s an ice chest.The back yardIt doesn’t show, but these were all really pretty, shining ruby red in the limited sunlight.
At any rate, because much of what you’ll see today is
pictures we took of the various information boards, there may be some duplicate
information, but look at it as a way to reinforce what you learn about our 36th
President, Lyndon Baines (his mother’s maiden name) Johnson. 😊
And I’m done trying to difrerentiate between State and National Parks. We did/walked/learned/saw an awful lot today! Read as much as you’d like. 😊
Enjoy the tour!
Lyndon’s grandparents, Sam and Eliza
Time for lunch before we continue!The Presidential Seal was at the entrance to the National Park Visitor Center.This is a collection of buildings.Ooops! Guess we shouldn’t have been poking around in these the other day! Yikes!One of the buildings we came to before the actual settlement (homestead) had some history from the years of LBJs grandparents, continuing thru the years.LBJ following his retirement from politics.Most likely an item that’s more interesting to former electricians. : )These cows must have a lot of freedom because we saw these signs in several places on our fairly long walk to the settlement area.Short people? Or just short doors?Those holes in the walls were for shooting invading Indians.Working up the nerve as I sweetly talk to the beast. : )A tentative touch.This big guy was very much anti-social.When I began walking away, she followed me and put her face to the fence again.
That’s all the encouragement I needed. : )Doesn’t this remind you of an old-time prairie ranch? Love this picture!There were a bunch of saddles and yokes in this area. Not sure why.This was the only “interpretive” person we saw working today.They have hogs . . . Turkeys . . . Chickens . . .
See the egg?More chickens . . . Sheep . . . Who, like the chickens, wander around freely. However, they weren’t interested in attention from us.And cows.This was really interesting!
There’s no date, but we’re assuming is was from the period they’re representing – 1915-18.Sooooo incredible!
Sears sold house kits!
Believe it or not, this is what my mom is currently living in – albeit renovated. A house from Sears!The homeownersThese hair art pieces always fascinate me. I can’t even get my hair to look decent, let along mold it into nice smooth shapes like that!I’ve never seen a hatpin holder before.
Now that we’ve seen one, I’m surprised by that.I can’t say whether this hat is original from the period. It seems in too good a shape for that, so maybe it’s just here as an example.I felt this board interesting enough that I also added them individually.Isn’t this absolutely awful?!?!?Bison within the Park protection.Trinity Luthern Church 1928We don’t know if this is a parsonage, or just some random person’s home, but we liked the stonework. : )The story is that LBJ began attending this school when he was just 4 years old. His mother got permission from the teacher because he kept running away from home to attend. : )
Mom had already taught him to read and write some, so the teacher allowed it.A view of the Pedernales River that runs through the Johnson Parks (and more of course).We couldn’t see a lot in this home, but the furnishings we did see were very similar to the boyhood home we toured.This seemed to be really good, but they had it in a place where you couldn’t really read it.
Good luck. : )This was a great discovery! Wonder how many Presidents considered Billy Graham their friend?You’ll see there are other markers here besides the Johnson family. That’s because this was originally a church burial ground.It was surprising to us that so much of his heritage home has been preserved or reconstructed.Driving within the Ranch – – the “Second National Park”.These were along the road we were traveling through the National Park Ranch area.
We couldn’t decide if the horses are really thin, or if their hair is cut like this. . . .
There were a couple of donkeys there too. : )Love the sunbeams!Here we go!
Free-range hereford cattle. : )This isn’t zoomed in, except as needed to eliminate the Jeep. First one . . . .. . . .then another, with a third on its way.Wild deer! There were a bunch of them, too!LBJ called this jet Air Force 1/2. A smaller version of air force one, that could be flown right to the ranch.I had to press my phone up against the plexiglass partiition to see this. Blaine discovered these two signs in his bathroom at the Visitor Center.An aerial viewFunny! This is the same car. : )A gift for the man who has everything? : )According to staff, LBJ loved to play practical jokes on people by acting like he lost control of the car and driving them into the water. hahaha!Ladybird (her real name’s Claudia Alta Tayler) was all about beautifying America. She encouraged planting all over the US.The final tour of the “Texas Whitehouse”. We weren’t allowed inside because of “structural issues” they’re working on.Look at the heads of state meeting in lawnchairs!
Do you suppose they’d do that today? Maybe they’d all get along better if they assembled in lawnchairs at a good BBQ . . . . This is the tree they were sitting under.The Texas Whitehouse So named because he did a lot of work from here while he was President. There were quite a few additions added on over the years since he and Ladybird purchased the original home.The section on the far left was originally built in the mid-1800s and was passed down to his Aunt (I think). This is who he bought the place from. It was supposedly in a terrible state of neglect, but they fixed it up and moved in. This was before he became president.All these “lawnchair” meetings were a nightmare for the Secret Service – especially since the meetings began right after Kennedy’s assassination. They were all out in the open, with a short yard, a shallow narrow river, and then the main road. That’s the main road in the background.This Live Oak is over 300 years old!The swimming pool was added to provide LBJ with a form of exercise some years following his first heart attack. All he ever did was float in it. : )Because the President was on the phone constantly – day and night – Ladybird had this wing added for her to escape to when she felt the need.
By the way, this property went from no phone lines in the 1800s to 105 while he was President!
Can you imagine?!?He loved having his distinguished guests make their mark. : ) That’s Johnson observing.
The stones we saw were all reproductions. The originals are either inside the museum, or safely in storage. These are astronautsPresident John F. KennedyBilly Graham and Future President Gerald FordA cow by the parking lot. : )He was always giving gifts to people.
Oftentimes, it was toothbrushes! Why? Because he said he wanted people to think of him first thing in the morning and last thing at night. : )Wow! What a legacy!
But we’ll discover in a couple of days that there was soooo much more!The runway for Air Force 1/2
President Johnson was extremely active in politics all his life and is one of only four people who’ve served in all four elected federal positions – Representative, Senate, Vice-President and President. The others were John Tyler (our 10th President from 1841-45), Andrew Johnson (our 17th President from 1865-69 following the assignation of Lincoln), and Richard Nixon (our 37th President from 1969-74).
Lyndon Baines Johnson declined running for office again in 1969, although many (both politicians and citizens, despite Viet Nam) and retired from politics. He died on January 22, 1973 from a heart attack (his second) at the young age of 64. His wife lived until July 11, 2007. She was 94.
I would’ve loved to do a “Special Edition” piece on these remarkable people, but I simply don’t have the time, and don’t expect to have any in the future. Hopefully you’ve learned a ton from the pictures and short comments. Plus, there’ll be more to come in the future as we return to do the rest of the “inside” stuff – two movies and a “Timeline” room.
