Busy Day at LBJ-January 19, 2013

I have already stated how we felt about LBJ, but we did want to see where he lived before and after his presidency. It is known as the Texas White House and it's actually in Stonewall, Texas. It is massive and it is beautiful. We drove through the entire ranch and it took a long time.

The front of the Johnson home.

 

 

 

The rear of the Johnson home.

 

  

This is what LBJ called Air Force One-Half. He flew the 707 Air Force One to Austin, then

took this Lockheed jet to his home. The runway allowed for the plane to deliver him right up

to the back of the house. He spent 25% of his time while he was in office at this ranch. Very nice.

 

 

Standing in front of the house overlooking the Pedernales River.

In person this is an incredible view. We both completely understand why he loved

coming home to this ranch. It is extraordinary.

 

The amount of memorabilia this man left behind is astronomical and extremely interesting. One thing he did was to have visitors to the ranch write their name in 12 inch blocks of concrete. He called them friendship stones. It was so much fun to see all the famous people who had visited this ranch. Several astronauts, country singers, foreign leaders, etc had signed those stones. What a clever idea. He also loved giving gifts so there was a room full of the gifts left over after he died. Just fascinating. This was such a fun and different place to visit. We are so glad we took the time to tour this ranch.