Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
President Johnson's birthplace in Gillespie County
Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park Location in Texas Show map of Texas Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Blanco and Gillespie County, Texas, U.S.
Nearest city	Johnson City, Texas; Stonewall, Texas
Area	1,571 acres (6.36 km²)
Established	December 2, 1969
Visitors	110,791 (in 2012)
Governing body	National Park Service


Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
U.S. National Historic Landmark

Area	1,571 acres (636 ha)
Built	1914 (1914)
NRHP reference No.	69000202
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	December 2, 1969
Designated NHL	May 23, 1966

The Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park is a special place in central Texas. It's about 50 miles (80 km) west of Austin in a beautiful area called the Texas Hill Country. This park protects important places from the life of Lyndon B. Johnson, who was the 36th president of the United States.

Here, you can see where President Johnson was born, where he grew up, his family home, his ranch, and even his grave. When Johnson was president, his ranch was known as the Texas White House. This is because he spent about one-fifth of his time working from there. President Johnson wanted the ranch to stay a real working ranch, not just an old museum, so he made sure of that in his will. After he passed away, his wife, Lady Bird Johnson, lived there until her death in 2007.

Discover Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
- Exploring the Park's Two Main Areas
  - Johnson City: A Look at LBJ's Early Life
  - The LBJ Ranch: Texas White House History
- The Park's Story: How It Began
Gallery
See also

Discover Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park

The park is made up of two separate areas. These are the Johnson City District and the LBJ Ranch District. Each area shows a different part of President Johnson's life.

Exploring the Park's Two Main Areas

The Johnson City District is in Johnson City. It has the house where President Johnson lived as a boy. You can also see a log cabin settlement that belonged to his grandparents. This district is also home to the main National Park Visitor Center.

The LBJ Ranch District is about 14 miles (23 km) west of Johnson City. It's located along the Pedernales River in Gillespie County. This ranch was the Johnson family's private getaway when he was a powerful leader. It's also where the family cemetery is located. Visiting these places helps you understand President Johnson's life when he was in office.

Johnson City: A Look at LBJ's Early Life

The Johnson City area of the park is on the south side of the city. You can park at the visitor center on Lady Bird Lane or on United States Route 290. The visitor center used to be a hospital. Now, it helps you learn about President Johnson and his wife, Lady Bird, through exhibits and films.

Just a short walk north of the visitor center is the Johnson Boyhood Home. This is an 1880s Victorian house where he lived with his parents from age five. President Johnson himself helped restore this house when he was president. It was named a National Historic Landmark in 1965, meaning it's a very important historical place. West of the visitor center, you'll find the Johnson Settlement. This is a restored prairie with old farm buildings, including a special kind of house called a dogtrot house that belonged to Johnson's grandfather.

The LBJ Ranch: Texas White House History

President Johnson and his wife Lady Bird greet Republicans Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew, the 1968 presidential and vice-presidential nominees, at the LBJ Ranch in August 1968.

The ranch is located on the north side of United States Route 290. It's about fourteen miles (23 km) west of Johnson City. You can usually get to it through the Lyndon B. Johnson State Park and Historic Site. This state park is between the highway and the Pedernales River. The National Park Service lands are north of the river.

At the ranch, you can see many important sites. These include the President's first school, his rebuilt birthplace, the famous Texas White House, and the Johnson Family Cemetery. Both President and Lady Bird Johnson are buried there. Visitors can take a self-guided car tour from the State Park visitor center, but you'll need a permit.

The ranch is unique because it still has a herd of Hereford cattle. These cattle are descendants of the ones President Johnson owned. This keeps his wish for it to remain a working ranch alive. The Texas White House and Pool House were temporarily closed for a while due to some building problems.

The Park's Story: How It Began

The park was officially created on December 2, 1969. It was first called the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Site. Later, on December 28, 1980, it was renamed a National Historical Park. Today, the park covers about 1,570 acres (6.4 square kilometers). About 674 acres (2.7 square kilometers) of this land is owned by the federal government. The Johnson family has continued to donate land to the park over the years. Their most recent gift was in April 1995.

Gallery

LBJ State Park and Historic Area is separated by the Pedernales River from the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park.
LBJ State Park and Historic Area is separated by the Pedernales River from the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park.
Sign at entrance to Johnson National Historical Park
Rear view of President Johnson birthplace
Young Johnson briefly attended this former one-room school around 1914.
Outhouse at Johnson birthplace
Cattle in the park are descended from former livestock of President Johnson.
Farmhouse of Samuel Ealy Johnson, Sr., the grandfather of President Johnson; he died when Lyndon was six years old.
Even though he belonged to a different church group, President Johnson often worshipped at the Trinity Lutheran Church (shown in the background) while at his ranch.
Air Force One used to bring Lyndon Johnson to the Texas White House.
Chuckwagon at LBJ Ranch used for preparing barbecues.
Large live oak tree in front of entrance to LBJ Ranch.
The pool at the LBJ Ranch was installed in 1955 after then Senator Johnson's heart attack. He was supposed to use it for exercise, but Mrs. Johnson spent far more time in the water.
Guests at the LBJ Ranch were sometimes invited to place their names in cement so their names would be remembered. Here you can see the names of Orville Freeman, Curtis LeMay, and singer Eddy Arnold.
United States Secret Service agents guarding President Johnson lived in this small house while on duty at the LBJ Ranch.
The graves of Lady Bird and Lyndon Johnson (his with flag) at the family cemetery in the national historical park; the public is not allowed entry into the cemetery.
President Johnson and Vice-president-elect Humphrey in LBJ ranch shortly after winning the 1964 election.