My plan was to go to the Nixon Library with a few of my friends as a way to spend time with them. Since graduating high school, a lot of my friends went to different schools, so trying to allocate time with all of them is a headache. Until my grandparents overheard about this project where they basically invited themselves. But it turned out to be a fun day. We went to Polly’s Pie to eat a quick breakfast and drove to the museum right after. We went from room to room together and we all learned a lot. My grandfather loves museums, so he definitely enjoyed himself. As far as for me, I didn’t know what to expect. When I go to a museum, it's usually art, like The Broad or LACMA. But after watching the 13 minute film in the beginning, I was quickly assured that I was going to enjoy it; especially getting the opportunity to spend some time with my grandparents.
The main theme that I got from the film was that President Nixon was not a quitter. So when the film was over, it was obvious that he was nowhere near a quitter through his many acts of service. Whether that was through his activism for women's equality in government jobs or his support of Native Americans. What stood out to me the most was the fact that he would go to the Lincoln room and just work. That he didn’t really use the Oval office unless it was for ceremonial purposes. To most that seems like a small detail, but for whatever reason, I respect that a lot. It gives me insight of the type of historical figure he was. That although he was the leader of the free world, he still wanted to get away from the commotion (oval office, press) and just sit in a room by himself and just work. Where he can run wild with his thoughts and his use of many, many notepads.
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The museum starts off by depicting images of what the country was going through before Nixon was elected into office. Unfortunate positions that people were put in. Situations like the Greensboro sit-ins where 4 African Americans wanted to eat lunch at a “whites only” part of a restaurant and they refused to leave. Or when the Ku Klux Klan planted a bomb at the 16th Street Baptist Church where the lives of 4 innocent African American girls were taken. I think the gallery begins with the 60s to show what Nixon was faced with when becoming president. The situations he was challenged to fix. Regardless of how violent they were, Nixon was entering an era called, “the wave of change.”
The gallery of the Vietnam War starts by displaying what Nixon faced before going into office. There were pictures and plaques discussing how previous presidents handle the war, but nothing came close to ending the war until Nixon was incharge. Nixon’s game plan was to help South Vietnam better their defense so they can take over the war, so he would be able to pull the U.S. troops out of Vietnam. Nixon signed a peace treaty and brought the troops home, but two years after the war had ended, South Vietnam had to surrender to the north, and became a communist country.
Before going to this museum, I never knew how much Nixon did to better this country. One of the most important domestic policies he started, in my opinion, was when he and Congress created OSHA. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration sought to protect the working people of this country through better working conditions. Since then, workplace injuries and illnesses have decreased by 66%. Likewise, him lowering the voting age to 18. He argued that if people can fight in wars, they should be old enough to be able to vote as well. Another successful achievement that Nixon was a part of was the clean up of the Great Lakes. The largest reservoirs in the world were being polluted for decades by sewage and industrial waste. Canada and President Nixon committed to reinforce the cleanliness of the lakes. Nixon was a part of many other domestic achievements that are still in effect today. Not only are his achievements currently helping people, they’ll be helping the generations to come.
Through Nixon’s many foreign policy achievements, he has displayed innovation. He signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in 1972 which limited the amount of anti-ballistic missile systems that the United States and the Soviet Union could have. Which the United States withdrew from in 2002. Nixon also helped saved Israel in 1973 by asking Congress for a $2 billion emergency aid. The Prime Minister later claimed that President Nixon helped save her country. Through Nixon’s diplomacy, he also dodged a second Missile Crisis that had to do with the Soviet base. Through his precise decision making, he has helped this country more than people think.
Nixon paid a visit to the communist People's Republic of China to establish a U.S. trade mission with China. He met with Zhou Enlai, Chinese Premier where they resolved their cultural contracts. A controversy was stirred because he was the first president to visit the People’s Republic of China which opened an opportunity to trade with China and enhanced the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union.
A piece of the Berlin Wall was donated to the Nixon library by Carl and Margaret Karcher, who was the Carl’s Jr franchise founder. The couple donated a piece of the wall in 1992 to remind visitors the difficult and challenging task Nixon was handed when going into office.
Nixon’s staff gifted him with an Irish setter right before he took office as a birthday present. The family had already had two other dogs with them already in which they brought over to the White House as well. It was known that Nixon would keep dog treats in his Oval Office. Besides the pets receiving a warm welcome, First Lady Pat Nixon often surprised guests during White House tours. She wanted to open the house to everyone and not just the “important” ones. Pat Nixon also held Halloween parties for the less fortunate with the help of her daughters. As well as implemented a tutoring program to help those from disadvantaged neighborhoods.
In 1972, the Watergate Hotel held the Democratic National Committee when McGovern and Nixon were opponents for the presidency. Some of Nixon’s staff broke in to the hotel and put recording chips in the phones where they stole some of the Democratic’s voting methods. He got away with the crime for some time, but eventually, the FBI got involved and the secrets came out. At first Nixon denied all the allegations, but it became clear that he was losing this battle overtime. I think what Nixon did was not okay. I think he should’ve believed in himself enough to have been able to be elected into office without cheating his way in. He has done plenty to show that he was the number one candidate. However, like Clinton said at his funeral, I don’t think his legacy should be remembered with this scandal. Although he should’ve been elected the right way without cheating, he has done plenty to be remembered for more than this crime.
One of the things that I found interesting inside his birthplace were all the instruments he knew how to play. Nixon knew how to play the violin, piano, and the clarinet. I was also fascinated to actually see the original instruments he learned on. I also learned that he went to live with his uncle for a year to learn music because his family thought he would be a concert pianist. Although the docent didn’t allow us to see Nixon’s mother’s sewing room, I found it interesting how the four brothers had to share a small room upstairs and the mom got her own sewing room. Moreover, seeing the friendship quilt that rests on the bed where he was born was also pretty fascinating. How under each design is a hand sewn signature of every friend who had the quilt sometime in their life.
My favorite part of the museum would be seeing his birthplace. I’ve always had this obsession to see original historic pieces. To just stand there and try to imagine a historic person using that exact object sometime in their life and to think that it is right there in front of me. And to also think about the thousands of people who have traveled to see it as well. In the tour, seeing the exact bed that he was born in was extremely fascinating and kinda overwhelming. Seeing the picture frames that President Nixon made with his own hands also. As well as the tiny bathtub they used to bathe and just trying to imagine how anyone could fit in it. The thought of his aunt keeping the exact furniture makes me wonder if she knew what Nixon would become and the legacy he would leave.
I would recommend this museum to other college students because you get to learn history at your own pace and at your own understanding. All too often, college students get thrown information to them left and right and expected to memorize it quickly and swiftly. But going to museums like this, you get to go at your own pace, in the sense of not going to the next gallery until you’re ready, and also asking the volunteers some questions. They are there because they want to be and encourage the visitors to ask questions. And sometimes students get insecure to ask a teacher for help because they get too much in their head and think their question isn’t valid. Going to museums allow you to be yourself and also makes a favorable memory whether you go by yourself or a loved one.
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