Passed Presidents - # 41 – George H.W. Bush

George H.W. Bush Library and Museum, 

College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

With the nation and much of its public activities on hold during the Coronavirus pandemic, we suspend our visits to primary election state capitols and return to an old interest. My quest to photograph the grave sites of all our presidents began in 1998 and ended in 2008. The last presidential grave I posted was for # 17, Andrew Johnson, on July 31, 2014. I joked that the effort was done…until the next one kicked and it took ten years for that to happen.

George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan’s Vice President, the nation’s 41st Chief Executive and father of the 43rd, passed away in 2018. He is buried on the grounds of the museum, presidential library and government school that bear his name…all on the campus of Texas A&M University.

The President and the Bush School of Government

Texas A&M University, College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

Becky had a free companion air ticket that was about to expire so we called dear Dallas friends we hadn’t seen in years and booked a long weekend in Texas.

‘Poppy’ Bush has followed the lead of Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon and Dwight Eisenhower and his son, George W. (when his time comes) to reside on the property that includes his presidential library and museum.

George H.W. Bush Library and Museum, 

College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

The inscription on the wall of the museum says

“Let future generations understand the burden 

and the blessings of freedom. Let them say we 

stood where duty required us to stand.”

Since Mr. Bush was the son of a Connecticut Senator and educated in all the finest eastern establishment schools, one wonders how the campus of Texas A&M University became his final resting place. Of course, we remember that Bush moved his family to Texas shortly after graduating from Yale as he began his career in the oil business. He was an established Texan by the time he won election to Congress from the Houston area. Once he became president, he was approached to consider where his legacy would reside. The offer from Texas A&M had a 90-acre site with plans for the Library, Museum, the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center, the new Bush School of Government and a pleasant remote site for the family graves.

Family Photos and a Torpedo Bomber

George H.W. Bush Library and Museum, 

College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

The museum was dedicated in 1997. Its floor plan directs visitors through the president’s life and times. The early years’ pictures looked like garden parties and groups of smiling, well-dressed white people. World War II changed that. That space has a scale model of Bush’s aircraft carrier (The San Jacinto at 14,000 tons, was hardly more than a pontoon with a deck on it) underneath a real TBM Avenger like the one that got shot out from under him in the Pacific. After that, the displays were all about Texas, business, family and public service.

And an admirable record of service it was. He came from wealth and privilege BUT at the first opportunity, he went to war as one of the youngest naval aviators in the service. The string of positions he held starting with Congressman in 1967 is impressive.

· House of Representatives, Texas 7th District: 1967-1971
· U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations: 1971-1973
· Director of Central Intelligence: 1976-1977
· Vice President: 1981-1989
· President: 1989-1993

He also was one of our early ambassadors to China and chaired the Republican National Committee.

A Young Barbara Pierce

George H.W. Bush Museum, College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

The museum has many photos and mementos of the Bush family from the president’s earliest days. George met his future wife at a Christmas dance when he was seventeen years old. I do like to find images of our First Ladies from earlier times.

I’ve been to all the presidential museums and know how they can minimize or ignore the flaws and crimes of their hero. One aspect of George’s life that never needs embellishing is his love of family. There were many photos of great heaps of kids and grandkids clamoring around Camp David and Kennebunkport.

‘The Day the Wall Came Down’ (1996) by Veryl Goodnight

George H.W. Bush Library and Museum, 

College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

This statue stands on the grounds of the complex.

The five horses are arranged over 

actual remnants of the Berlin wall.

A fenced-in area at the far end of the site encloses the last resting place of the president, Mrs. Bush and their second-born child. ‘Robin’ was almost four years old when she died of leukemia in 1952. Her grave was relocated from Connecticut.

Graves of George, Barbara and Pauline Bush

George H.W. Bush Library and Museum, 

College Station, TX (21 February 2020)

George was no saint. He didn’t shy away from using Willie Horton to his full advantage…like all good Republicans have been doing since Nixon. But he seemed like a nice guy and I thoroughly enjoyed this museum and what it displayed…in terms of history, integrity and character. His legacy stands in stark contrast with our current president.

George Herbert Walker Bush

41st President; Served 1989-1993

Born: June 12, 1924, Milton, MA

Died: November 30, 2018, Houston, TX

Grave Location: George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum,

Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

Date Visited: 2/21/20