The proclaimed cross-roads of
the Texas Hill Country, Johnson City is, and has always
been, rural living. The town itself is small, yet
it boasts some of the biggest
history in all of Texas. As it was these few city blocks
that raised up a man who would
become the leader of the free
world - Lyndon Baines Johnson. Born in 1908, LBJ became the
36th President of the United
States. From Civil Rights to Education;
poverty and even Public
Broadcasting, President Johnson marched our
country towards what he called
the Great Society. With his final and most
controversial challenge being
the Vietnam War. Using his impending 6-4 stature
and trademark Johnson Treatment, the President was able to
accomplish his agenda in
Washington and all across the
world. He was a great President in a
challenging time and today Johnson City remains the best
place to get an in-depth and
personal look at LBJ. We're starting at Johnson's
Boyhood Home, and a chat with National Historic Park Ranger,
David Graveline. Alright, Welcome to LBJ's
Boyhood Home. Thank you very much. Lyndon Johnson lived here for
about 20 years of his life. The family moved here, into
town around 1912. It has been restored to the
1920's by the National Park
Service. Right here on the front porch
is where he announced his
candidacy for the U.S. House of
Representatives. Wow. So this is sort of sacred
LBJ ground right here. It is, yeah. Well this in the
foyer of the house, but it also doubled as Lyndon
Johnson's father's office. He was quite the business man.
He had a lot of different
careers. He was a self taught lawyer,
real estate agent. Sam Johnson's real claim to
fame was being in the Texas
House of Representatives. But he was a real populist
Democrat. He was really responsible for
teaching Lyndon Johnson his
core Democratic beliefs that really followed him
throughout his career and
really shaped him. Johnson's mother Rebekah was
also a great influence teaching classes here in the
parlor and instilling in her
children a deep appreciation
for education. When the President's father
came back from Austin; when the Legislature was out,
he would have the kids listen
to the radio after dinner. Sam would pick two of them and
have them either debate what was discussed in the news
programs or something else like
what's a better sweetener, sorghum or sugar, that sort of
thing. So LBJ cut his public speaking
chops, I guess, right here in front of
the fireplace? Yeah, out here on the fireplace
and even out on the front porch there when his mother was
teaching lessons out there. From a young age, LBJ showed
great interest in politics. Often going on the campaign
trail with his dad, and even sneaking under the
floorboards of the house to
eavesdrop on his father's
political discussions. But aside from his early
political interests, Johnson was still just a normal
kid. He'd go fishing with friends,
have picnics by the river,
swimming. Was thought to be the local
Marble Champion. He played baseball for Johnson
City High School where he was
known as "First-Base Johnson" Oh Wow! So he was just a normal kid. Yeah, yeah, yeah - became
something much - much greater He did. But started just like everyone
else. The stories and aura of
President Johnson hang on the
walls of this old house, and it was from these humble
roots, that young Lyndon went
on to become President Johnson. But even after he rose to
power, he never forgot where he
came from. And even chose to create his
own Presidential Headquarters
of sorts just down the road in
Stonewall, Texas. Where I was lucky enough to get
a tour with Park Superintendent
Russ Whitlock. Oh, Russ, what do we have here? Chet, I told you we was going
to treat you in style, man. No kidding! Anybody coming to the LBJ
Ranch, one of the first things
President Johnson would have
done, would have said, "Come on, we
gotta go see the Ranch", and of course he'd have done it
in a Convertible Lincoln
Continental. So what better way to show the
the Ranch? I love it. I love it. Alight,
let's go! While vintage Lincolns aren't
exactly part in the normal tour, visitors can take the driving
tour in their own car to
explore the land The Johnson's
called home. Now we're crossing the
Pedernales. The Pedernales River, yes. Now remember when LBJ is on the
Ranch and in this area, he's
doing the driving. The Secret Service is following
in a chase car. Their main job, other than to
protect the President, is to keep the drinks filled
and open and close the gates on
the Ranch. As soon as anyone stepped on
the Ranch the Texas showmanship and
hospitality began in full force. But is wasn't just a vacation
spot as this Ranch was and
still is a working cattle
ranch. Now this show barn was built in
1965. Oh wow. Of course you see the way it's
designed, because while we're giving you
a tour and I'm showing you my
prize-winning Herefords, we don't want to have to get
out of the car. It's designed to the that the
Lincoln will go right down the
middle. The land, the cows, the rugged
cowboy spirit of Texas all help
Johnson shape his political
image as a strong, independent,
ranch-owning, business man. Far removed from the high
society of that dominated
politics. It was important for him, for
people to be able to see where
he came from. When you ride around and you
see it through the windshield
of a car like this you understand why they took so
much pride in it. They just absolutely loved this
place. This was always the place they
wanted to come home to. And if the President wasn't in
a Lincoln, well, he had a much
faster means of transportation. What he called Air Force 1/2. And President Johnson fell in
love with this plane because it
could out run Air Force One, it was more fuel efficient, and
he could get in and out of a
whole lot of airports that that big 707 couldn't do. And that included his own
private airstrip. Even Johnson's Amphicar is here
on display. But the main base of operations
here was the Texas White House, where the family lived and only
open for public tours since
2007. Welcome to the Texas White
House. Oh wow. This is where it all happened. Wow. This is where the world came to
meet with the President. And although it's a nice size
house, when you've got your
entire Cabinet, or your Joint Chiefs of Staff,
why not come out and sit under
the big, what we call the
Cabinet Oaks? These great, big, lofty Live
Oak trees out in the front yard. And this is where the business
of the Nation happened. Wow. I could do some business
under these trees, for sure. Billy Graham said one time,
"You don't know LBJ until
you've stood on this soil and
stood under these lofty oaks,". Very different from the Oval
Office. And that was exactly the point. A place where Johnson could
relax, with you on his turf. Chet, come on in and let me
show you probably one of the
most important rooms in the
Texas White House. This is where Senate Majority
Leader Johnson, where Vice-President Johnson,
and then of course President
Johnson -- ran the Nation. And the beauty of this room is
that you see it as any visitor
to the President would have
seen it in the 1960's. And the room is filled with
incredible places. The desk here, was a gift of
the Senate to the
Vice-President Johnson; Him and Her, the famous beagles
that they had in the White
House. Well this really feels like
you're stepping back into a
historic photo, you know? You can see him sitting at
that desk, Shouting out orders. exactly. and the photo of him
on the wall, taller than
everyone, it's like I'm getting the
Johnson Treatment just
standing, you know, beneath
that photo. Naugahyde chairs, his famous
Johnson pillow, and a telephone - a tool found
in every room of this house. But imagine being a world
leader from a palace of Europe,
you know used to having your office and
your meetings all there, and
you walk in here. But it was comfortable and they
instantly were at ease, because there was nothing showy
about it. But I think that's so
representative of those people. I love the fact that you look
at these photos, I mean, these people are sitting right
here on these cushions in these
chairs and these are not just anyone,
these are significant people,
world leaders. But even world leaders get
hungry, so the dining room and
kitchen were ready to feed as
many as were invited and as we cross through the
den, we enter into the private
side of the Texas White House. The President and Mrs. Johnson
added master bedrooom suites on
the end. Of course, he brought with him
the three televisions. So he was maintaining, in
Washington and here, 16 hour
days usually without any problem at
all. So that massage table was
really important for a man
who's under that kind of stress and that kind of daily schedule. And true to form, throughout
the house. even from the side of the bed,
is a telephone. And all he had to do is pick it
up and someone said, "Yes, Mr.
President?" That's right. Even from his toilet. And just across the hall is the
private suite of someone who was just as important to
the LBJ Presidency as LBJ
himself; Lady Bird Johnson. And she was surrounded by
things of her life. But then again, a place to run
her agenda, too. Beautification, urban renewal,
outdoor education; her own
legacy is very important. It was here at the Ranch where
LBJ died just for years after
the end of his Presidency, and where Lady Bird lived from
time to time until her passing
in 2007. It's a wonderful lasting
tribute to the Johnson Legacy. A place from which the Johnsons
brought Texas to the world, all
while letting the world visit
Texas. Howdy y'all! Thanks for
sticking around and trippin Texas with us. Have you ever been to this spot? Leave us a comment down below and let us know or leave us a comment about a place that we've missed. And if you liked this video, chances are you're going to love another video that's somewhere right about here, or you can visit thedaytripper.com where we have all kinds of travel guides, T shirts, and all kinds of Texas goods that we've found during our travels all across the great state of Texas. But above all, what I want you to do most. Remember the Alamo. I'll see y'all out on the road. Vaya con Dios amigos!
