On Tuesday morning, February 13, 2007, I spent the morning tinkering around Bob’s place. He had to work a half-day, so I got up, leisurely got ready for the day, ate some bags of chips off his couch, and browsed his autograph collection. He had a box of stuff he wanted me to look through to see if I wanted any of it. Around 11:00 or so, Bob came home and we headed to Yorba Linda, CA to see the Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace. This was my second visit to his library, the first being when I visited California in 1995.
Before we go any further, I must state that my ultimate goal is to see every Presidential Library, as well as the grave and birthsite of every United States President. The coolest thing about Nixon’s Library is that you can do all three in one neatly packaged visit. Amazingly, Nixon’s birthplace and boyhood home was purchased by a local school shortly after the Nixon family moved out, and it functioned as a caretaker’s house for many years – so the home was, in essence, preserved with a lot of its original furniture (although minor restorations have taken place). Then the nearby school and land was purchased with the intent of putting the Nixon Library there. Then a small plot of land was annexed by a church so the President and First Lady could be legally buried there.
Photo showing both the birthplace and grave of President Nixon
Me and the Nixon graves
Plaque commemorating the house
The lower monument in front of the house was placed when Nixon became Vice-President, while the standing monument was added upon his Presidency.
The museum itself has a wide array of exhibits pertaining to Nixon’s Presidency: letters, political memorabilia, formal clothing, videos, and lifesize bronze figures of world leaders who had association with Nixon. There is also a replica of the East Room of the White House (which is actually slightly bigger than the real one). Currently on display outside the museum is the original Presidential helicopter “The Sea King.” This helicopter served Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford from 1961 – 1976. Nixon himself was actually on board 181 times, including the famous departure from the White House on August 9, 1974.
Shaking hands, so to speak, with the bronze Nixon
In the replica of the East Room
Me and the Sea King
Jimmy met up with Bob and me at the museum in time to walk through the house and helicopter. After we had finished up there, the three of us quickly grabbed some McDonalds and then Bob headed home. I would meet up with him again on Friday. Jimmy and I headed toward Orange County to meet up with our friend Randy Skretvedt, our next stop.
See the actual Nixon posting here…
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