Truman, Ike
Presidential libraries and museums dedicated to Dwight Eisenhower and Harry Truman are within easy driving distance of Marion, yet it's amazing the number of people who haven't been to either.
In some ways, it isn't amazing. Many people recall museums as dusty, boring places with dusty, boring tour guides.
Times have changed.
Eisenhower's museum in Abilene includes the home in which he grew up. The museum itself has many amazing artifacts from World War II, Ike's military medals, and vehicles. But there's a great deal more: childhood artifacts, displays on the space race, and a special gallery with ever-changing exhibits. The presidential gallery is closed until Oct. 12 for renovation, but the rest of the museum is open.
The most touching display is the chapel where the Eisenhowers are buried. Most folks don't realize they lost a toddler to disease. When Ike ordered troops into battle, it was with the personal knowledge of the agony untimely death has on families.
The Truman Museum in Independence, Mo., has many interactive features. Instead of a lecture on the political impacts of the Korean War, you lift an earphone, push a button, and hear news reports from the front lines, or a vet's recollection of combat.
Another part of the museum features a replica of the Oval Office. Truman recorded the narration himself.
He and Bess are buried in the spacious courtyard. Nearby, you can peek into the office in which Truman worked. He was my kind of president. He had so many books that they were shoved all the way to the back of the shelves, so he could stack other books on their sides in front of them.
Independence is full of Truman history, including the house in which he and Bess lived for much of their adult lives. It was given to the nation unchanged. Even the garage still holds a 1970s-era car, the last one owned by the Trumans.
Like many Victorian homes, the front rooms are quite formal. It's the plain kitchen where you see the real Trumans. They ate simple meals at the small kitchen table, stacking dishes in the sink, where the former President of the United States did the washing up.
We've only had 43 presidents. The vast majority came from Virginia and Ohio. We in Kansas are lucky to have two sites this close. But it isn't an obligation to visit either museum. It is an enjoyable day that you won't regret.
— MATT NEWHOUSE
