924. Go to a presidential library

When we were looking for things to do in Kansas City this morning, I said I’d like to go to the Truman Library figuring I would get laughed at like I did when I suggested going to the McKinley library a few years ago. However, the hubby surprised me and agreed to go to the Truman Library. Since we couldn’t figure out to get to the ticket office for Truman’s house, we headed to the library hoping they could give us directions.

The Truman Presidential Library and Museum is in Independence about a mile or two from Truman’s house. Not knowing exactly what to expect, both the hubby and I were quite impressed by what all is in the library. I was thinking a library as in books and papers. There is that, mostly in the archives, but also artifacts from his presidency. I had to check with Stacy to make sure just checking out the museum part counted as visiting a presidential library. She said it did.

We started our visit with a movie about Truman’s life prior to becoming president. It was very interesting and I learned more about Truman in those 15 minutes than I did in school. It talked about him growing up and how he became involved in politics. Let’s just say he was in the right place at the right time, knew the right people, and wanted to make life better for everyone.

After the movie, we made our way through the museum. The museum was laid out by historical period and contained many artifacts and papers from his time in office. Being able to read some of the correspondence that President Truman received and wrote was an educational experience in itself as you got to see things you would never see in a history textbook.

In the basement of the museum was more hands on displays geared towards children with fun activity sheets to do in each area. Being the big kid and former educator that I am, I grabbed all the activity sheets hoping to get them done one day. I also liked the Blatz beer from his WWI days on display.

The hubby and I walked over to his grave in the mist. It was very somber. You also walk to his office that he worked in after his days in the White House but do the mist we chose not to.

Before we left we checked out the replica oval office which was pretty dang cool.

Overall we probably spent about 1-2 hours at the museum. You could spend a lot more time there. The hubby now wants to check out other Presidential Museums and Libraries. If you are in the Kansas City area and like history, I would recommend checking it out. Families would enjoy it too especially on a rainy day. It’s always good to learn about the history of the country and the people who helped shape it.