(Reproduction of the Reagan Oval Office)
The Reagan Presidential Library is situated in Southern California’s Simi Valley. Amid rolling hills — beautifully green in winter but brown in summer — horse ranches, fruit groves and ever-expanding tracts of homes is a large compound atop a mesa. This is the home of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum.
The American Presidential library system, much like its system of politics, is unique. There are multiple sites in this network ranging from one for John Quincy Adams (6th President, library in Quincy, Mass) to George W. Bush (44th President, Dallas, Texas). The Obama Presidential Library will be constructed in Chicago but is not yet completed. The library system is administered by the National Archives as each library houses all the documents of that’s president’s administration, providing an important resource for scholars wanting to study details of a presidency.
Usually, we do not discuss politics on TravelGumbo, but Presidential Libraries are much more than political. They are also museums that offer windows into what America and the World was like during a given President’s administration, making them all worth visiting. They usually feature exhibits of the President’s challenges and accomplishments, a biography of the President’s life, and much interesting memorabilia. Many feature a duplicate of the Oval Office as it was decorated during the President’s administration (see top photo). I’ve visited Presidential libraries of both Democratic and Republican leaders and enjoyed all of them (and learned a lot at each).
(Memorabilia from Reagan’s early years)
The most visited (and presumably the most popular) of these libraries is that of President Ronald Reagan, the 40th President. It’s also the library I feel most attached to as we were living just 2 miles from it for many years (our home was in Thousand Oaks, just south of the library). We watched the construction of the complex and visited it a number of times in the early years. I was always hopeful to run into President Reagan, who frequently came to his library before his Alzheimer’s disease prevented him from doing so, but that never happened.
(Memorabilia from the Reagan movie years)
We moved out of California in 2004 and it had been a number of years since we visited the Reagan Library. The building’s exhibits had been completely redone and a massive hanger had been added to the building to house Air Force One, the now-retired airplane that flew President Reagan on his official duties. So we felt was time for another visit.
(Memorabilia from when Reagan was California’s governor)
The magnificence of the setting had not changed but the library’s interior was redesigned with mostly new exhibits. As you enter the library you walk through the lobby where President Reagan’s body lay at state. Then the exhibits begin. Initially you stroll through displays of the early years of President Reagan’s life — from childhood in Dixon, Illinois, to his life as a radio announcer, to his career in Hollywood. Reagan’s film career and stint as president of the Screen Actors Guild are well but not exhaustively illustrated. And then one moves into Reagan’s political life — governor of California, failed presidential run of 1976 (Gerald Ford became the Republican nominee and lost to Jimmy Carter), to his successful 1980 Presidential campaign resulting in his election to the most powerful office in the world.
(British Prime Minister Thatcher was a close personal friend and strong ally of President Reagan)
(Statues of Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev during their negotiations)
(Portion of the Berlin Wall with reenactment of Checkpoint Charlie)
The challenges of Reagan’s Presidency were many and were for the most part successfully addressed. The economy was stagnant, and inflation and unemployment were very high in 1980 but largely resolved by the end of his second term. The nation’s optimism was renewed, at least partially because of Reagan’s positive attitude and vision for his country. Perhaps the greatest achievement of President Reagan was his role in facilitating the peaceful disbanding of the Soviet Union and end of the Cold War (along with Margaret Thatcher, Pope John Paul II and President Gorbachev).
(Ronald Reagan loved visiting his ranch in Santa Barbara)
All of these phases of the President’s career are presented and discussed in the library. And there are personal sides of President Reagan’s life, such as how the Hinkley assassination attempt affected his outlook, his deep love for his wife and his country, his fondness of his ranch in Santa Barbara county, and even his address to the nation when he first found out he had Alzheimer’s disease (after which he removed himself from the public’s eye).
(Airforce One aircraft that few President Reagan)
(Displays in Air Force One Pavilion)
A highlight of the Reagan Library is the Air Force One pavilion, with funding arranged by Reagan friend and billionaire T Boone Pickens. It houses the plane that served as Air Force One during President Reagan’s career. The hanger is modern and beautiful and provides a great overview of Simi Valley. Also housed here is Marine One (President’s helicopter) and an old Presidential limousine. Several Presidential election debates have been staged in this pavilion and it is a popular venue for lectures and book signings.
(Back terrace of the Reagan Library, including a portion of the Berlin Wall)
One exits the museum onto the back terrace of the library, again with magnificent views of Ventura County. Here you’ll find an actual portion of the Berlin Wall and, most poignant of all, President and Mrs. Reagan’s gravesite.
I’ve enjoyed my visits to the Reagan Library and think everyone can learn something here and enjoy this thoughtful museum, especially if you lived through the tumultuous 1970s and ’80s.
(Views from the back terrace of the Reagan Presidential Library)
