LBJ Museum unveils love letters between Lady Bird, LBJ
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Just in time for Valentine’s Day, newly-released love letters give Texans a closer look into the courtship between President Lyndon B. Johnson and Lady Bird.
In letters that date all the way back to 1934—a time when stamps were only six cents—an often persistent 26-year-old Lyndon B. Johnson wrote of love, marriage and a longing for more letters during the ten-week courtship with his soon-to-be wife.
On the other end of the paper trail, a more hesitant 21-year-old Lady Bird guarded her heart.
"She begins the relationship saying, ‘Well, I'm not going to write every day,’" archivist Claudia Anderson said.
But she eventually warms up.
"There's one letter that says, ‘It's only been 12 hours since I wrote you,’” Anderson said. “And here she's writing again."
About 90 letters in total were exchanged between the two during the time they lived apart before getting married.
"She talks about places she wants to take him, going walking in the woods with him, again, this early emphasis on nature," Andersons said.
Their letters are a heartwarming example of a quickly-fading method of communicating.
“I'm not sure there will be these types of letters in the libraries of future presidents because people do exchange more over the telephone and e-mail which may or may not last the test of time,” Anderson said.
The collection of letters will be on display at the LBJ Museum and can be viewed by clicking here.