A Brief History

The Presidential Library system formally began in 1939, when President Franklin Roosevelt donated his personal and Presidential papers to the Federal Government. At the same time, Roosevelt pledged part of his estate at Hyde Park to the United States, and friends of the President formed a non-profit corporation to raise funds for the construction of the library and museum building. Roosevelt's decision stemmed from a firm belief that Presidential papers are an important part of the national heritage and should be accessible to the public. He asked the National Archives to take custody of his papers and other historical materials and to administer his library.

Completed in 1946, the Roosevelt Library proved so successful that in 1955 Congress passed the Presidential Libraries Act. This act enabled other Presidents to donate their historical materials to the government and ensured that Presidential papers would be preserved and made available to the American people. Under the act, eight subsequent libraries have been established. In each case funds from private and non-Federal public sources were acquired to build the library, which was then turned over to the National Archives for operation and maintenance.

The Presidential Libraries have been built upon the traditional concept that a President's papers are his personal property. The Presidential Records Act of 1978 replaced this concept with the principle that the Presidential records which document the constitutional, statutory, and ceremonial duties of the President are property of the United States Government. The act allowed Presidents to continue to established Presidential libraries in locations of their choice. The Presidential Libraries Act of 1986 also made significant alterations, limiting facility size and requiring private endowments. Following the Watergate controversy, Nixon Presidential materials were ordered by Congress to be maintained in the Washington, DC, area. The National Archives is required to preserve and process the Nixon Presidential materials.

The Nixon Presidential Materials Staff, open to the public for research at the National Archives facility in College Park, MD, is one of two Presidential projects administered by the National Archives. The other is the Bush Presidential Materials Project, which is not yet open for research. Once a permanent facility in College Station, TX, is completed for the Bush materials, the Bush Project will become the Bush Library.

Holdings of the Presidential Libraries

The most important textual materials in each library are those created by the President and his staff in the course of performing the official duties. All issues of public policy are covered in these documents.

Other significant holdings include the personal papers and historical materials donated by individuals associated with the President. These may include cabinet officials, envoys to foreign governments, political party associates, and the President's family and personal friends. Several libraries have undertaken oral history programs which have produced invaluable tape-recorded memoirs.

A third body of materials is comprised of the papers accumulated by the President prior to, and following, his Presidency. Such collections include documents realting to Roosevelt's tenure as Governor of New York and Dwight Eisenhower's long military career.

Audiovisual holdings supplement the paper materials in the libraries. Photographs and films provide a record of major events of the administrations and candid views of the Presidents and their families. Museum objects include family heirlooms, items collected by the President or his family, campaign memo- rabilia, awards, and the many gifts given to the President by American citizens and foreign dignitaries. These gifts range in type from homemade items to valuable works of art.

Programs for the General Public

Libraries work with educators to foster the use of primary source materials by students, and serve to educate the general public by sponsoring lecture and film series on topics of historical or current interest.

Conferences are another way in which the libraries serve the public, examining a variety of topics, ranging from public affairs and domestic policy to foreign affairs and world wars. To receive the latest information on library events, or further information on the holdings of each library, please contact the libraries directly.

*Hours of operation vary at each site. Visitors are encouraged to contact the libraries directly for more information.

ADDRESSES
Office of Presidential Libraries National Archives and Records Administration Washington, DC 20408 PHONE: (202) 501-5700 FAX: (202) 501-5709		Herbert Hoover Library 211 Parkside Dr. P.O. Box 488 West Branch, IA 52358-0488 PHONE: (319) 643-5301 FAX: (319) 643-5825 EMAIL: library@hoover.nara.gov
Franklin D. Roosevelt Library 511 Albany Post Rd. Hyde Park, NY 12538-1999 PHONE: (914) 229-8114 FAX: (914) 229-0872 EMAIL: library@roosevelt.nara.gov		Harry S. Truman Library 500 West U.S. Highway 24 Independence, MO 64050-1798 PHONE: (816) 833-1400 FAX: (816) 833-4368 EMAIL: library@truman.nara.gov
Dwight D. Eisenhower Library 200 SE 4th St. Abilene, KS 67410-2900 PHONE: (913) 263-4751 FAX: (913) 263-4218 EMAIL: library@eisenhower.nara.gov		John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library Columbia Point Boston, MA 02125-3398 PHONE: (617) 929-4545 FAX: (617) 929-4538 EMAIL: library@kennedy.nara.gov
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library 2313 Red River St. Austin, TX 78705-5702 PHONE: (512) 482-5137 FAX: (512) 478-9104 EMAIL: library@johnson.nara.gov		Nixon Presidential Materials Staff National Archives at College Park 8601 Adelphi Rd. College Park, MD 20740-6001 PHONE: (301) 713-6950 FAX: (301) 713-6916 EMAIL: nixon@arch2.nara.gov
Gerald R. Ford Library 1000 Beal Ave. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2114 PHONE: (313) 741-2218 FAX: (313) 741-2341 EMAIL: library@ford.nara.gov Gerald R. Ford Museum 303 Pearl St., NW Grand Rapids, MI 49504-5353 PHONE: (616) 451-9263 FAX: (616) 451-9570		Jimmy Carter Library 1 Copenhill Ave., NE Atlanta, GA 30307-1406 PHONE: (404) 331-3942 FAX: (404) 730-2215 EMAIL: library@carter.nara.gov
Ronald Reagan Library 40 Presidential Dr. Simi Valley, CA 93065-0666 PHONE: (805) 522-8444 FAX: (805) 522-9621 EMAIL: library@reagan.nara.gov		George Bush Presidential Materials Project 701 University Dr., East, Suite 300 College Station, TX 77840-9554 PHONE: (409) 260-9554 FAX: (409) 260-9557 EMAIL: library@bush.nara.gov

Ford Museum
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Dedication Date: September 1981
Museum Admission: $2

Carter Library
Atlanta, Georgia
Presidency: 1977-81
Dedication Date: October 1986
Museum Admission: $4