Probably because I started to become “world aware” in the mid to late 60s I had always associated Texas with Lyndon Johnson and The Alamo. I remember hearing references to the “Texas White House” on the news and it conjured up images of a place far away and quite foreign from western Pennsylvania.
We didn’t get to The Alamo this trip, but we did visit the LBJ Ranch, which is a National Historical Park, operated by the National Park Service. None of the buildings were open, and we got there pretty late in the day, but we did have a chance to drive the loop road, stop at the house and view some of the exhibits, including a former aircraft nicknamed “Air Force One Half” because of its small size. It was used to shuttle Johnson and company between the LBJ Ranch airport and Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio.
Visiting the ranch gave us a little taste of US history, and made real something I had only heard about and had seen only on television.
Years ago I visited the Reagan Library and they had an Air Force One on exhibit that we could poke our heads into. It’s the only presidential library (or presidential anything) I’ve been to and enjoyed it more than I expected.
We considered stopping at the Clinton Library in Little Rock but decided against an additional stop on the way home. In fall 2019 we stopped at the Lincoln Boyhood Home and Museum in Lincoln City, IN. It was interesting and a good look at that part of history.