Johnson, Lyndon B. (Lyndon Baines), 1908-1973
Dates
- Existence: 1908-1973
- Existence: 1908-08-27 - 1973-01-22
Biography
Lyndon Johnson attended Southwest Texas State Teachers College from 1927-1930. He took a year off (1928-1929) to teach at Welhausen School in Cotulla, Texas in order to earn money to continue his education. He graduated with a degree in history and a permanent teaching certificate in 1930. After teaching for a short time, he went to work as a secretary for Congressman Kleburg, beginning his political career. He was later appointed to Texas Director of the National Youth Administration by President Roosevelt. Johnson ran successfully for Congress in 1937 and the Senate in 1948. Following an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1960, he was asked to serve as Vice President by John F. Kennedy. Johnson became president after Kennedy’s assassination, serving the rest of JFK’s term and one of his own.
Throughout his political career, Johnson maintained a close relationship with the college in San Marcos, in all its incarnations. He visited the campus frequently, often several times per year, until his death in 1973. Johnson often credited his experiences at college with shaping his policies on education. In 1965, Johnson chose Southwest Texas State College as the location to sign the Higher Education Act into law.
Johnson, regularly referred to as LBJ, continues to have a presence on the Texas State University campus. The student center was named for LBJ, as was an ongoing lecture series. A statue of LBJ as a student was installed on the quad in September 2006. And in celebration of his 100th birthday in 2008, the university published “Connections: Lyndon B. Johnson in San Marcos.”
Found in 12 Collections and/or Records:
Alfred H. Nolle papers
Civic Responsibility and the Legacy of LBJ, 2008-2009
Collection consists of background materials, such as descriptions of the event and proposals for themes. Also includes materials used and saved from each theme, such as newspaper clippings and press releases, posters, calendars of events, etc. Each year's theme also featured a book, and these are kept with the series. Each series various in documentation; after 2017, the documentation is limited.
Daniel Garcia collection of LBJ images
Digital images of photographs picturing Dan Garcia and Lyndon B. Johnson. Garcia was a student of Lyndon Johnson's during the time that he taught school in Cotulla, Texas. Images consists of Dan meeting with Johnson as well as images of Johnson's visit to Cotulla in 1966. Also includes a group portrait from 1928 of LBJ with some of the students he taught.
Helen Hornsby collection
Helen Hornsby was one of the first 17 faculty at Southwest Texas State Normal School, teaching from 1903 to 1919. Collection includes materials owned and collected by Helen Hornsby Crawford and her family. Includes topics related to the university, such as Lyndon Johnson, the inauguration of Robert Hardesty, homecoming, and the 50th reunion of the SWT class of 1949.
James Persyn LBJ memorabilia
Collection of memorabilia related to President Lyndon B. Johnson.
LBJ 100 Celebration Records
Collection consists of planning materials for the events and the oral history project commemorating Lyndon Baines Johnson's 100th birthday (often referred to as LBJ 100). Most of the materials were created by members of the LBJ Centennial Celebration Steering Committee and overlapped with the Common Experience at Texas State University.
Lyndon Baines Johnson collection
LBJ-MLK crossroads project collection
Just south of Texas State University sits the only known intersection named after both Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) and Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK). The LBJ-MLK Crossroads Project culminated in a physical memorial installed in San Marcos, Texas in January 2014. This collection contains records regarding the creation and completion of the memorial.
Lyndon Baines Johnson distinguished lecture series collection
The Lyndon Baines Johnson Distinguished Lecture Series honors the Texas State University's most distinguished alumnus by fulfilling his promise to bring important leaders to the university to share their philosophies and experiences. Records of individual lectures may include transcripts, videorecordings, press releases, invitations, programs, and photographs.
Bill Minutaglio Accessions
The Bill Minutaglio Accessions include research materials relating to the books City on Fire: The Explosion That Devastated A Texas Town and Ignited A Historic Legal Battle, 2003, The President's Counselor: The Rise To Power of Alberto Gonzales, 2006 (published in a Spanish-language edition as El Asesor del Presidente.), Molly Ivins: A Rebel Life and Dallas 1963 (2013) coauthored with Steve Davis.
Patricia Louise Parker Thompson manuscript
Collection consists of one working manuscript version of a 1997 dissertation written by Patricia Louise Parker Thompson in pursuit of a doctoral degree at the University of Texas at Austin. That dissertation topic involves the speech writers that served Lyndon Johnson during his presidency in the United States, including Southwest Texas State University president Robert L. Hardesty.
William Pool Papers
Room 580, Alkek Library
601 University Drive
San Marcos Texas 78666 USA
UnivArchives@txstate.edu
7th Floor, Alkek Library
601 University Drive
San Marcos Texas 78666 USA
Wittliff_Ref@txstate.edu