2005-1-9
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VOICE ONE:
Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Faith
Lapidus.
VOICE TWO:
And I'm Bob Doughty. Today we visit the National Archives for
some presidential history.
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VOICE ONE:
President George W. Bush will begin his second term on
Inauguration Day, January twentieth. But Inauguration Day has not
always taken place on this date in wintertime.
George Washington gave the nation's first presidential
swearing-in speech in the spring. He spoke on April thirtieth,
seventeen eighty-nine, in New York City.
Part of Washington's handwritten speech will be shown at the
National Archives, in the city named in his honor, this week through
January twenty-fifth. Visitors can see the first and last pages of
the speech. They can also see the Bible on which he placed his hand
during the swearing-in ceremony.
VOICE TWO:
George Washington had led the American colonies to freedom from
England in the Revolutionary War. Now he spoke of what he called the
"difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my country called
me." He also pointed out that as the first president of the United
States, he had no example to follow. Years later, America's
thirty-third president, Harry Truman, recognized an example of what
the job was like. Being president, Truman said, was like riding a
tiger.
Now he and others who rode that
tiger are the subjects of a collection of presidential photographs
at the National Archives. Some pictures in the exhibit show the
pressures of America's highest office. Others show the pleasures of
political life. Still others record family times or lighthearted
moments, like Ronald Reagan enjoying a laugh on the presidential
plane, Air Force One.
VOICE ONE:
The exhibit is called "The American Presidency: Photographic
Treasures of the National Archives." It is presented by U.S. News
& World Report magazine. It is the first exhibit in the Lawrence
F. O'Brien Gallery. The newly named space opened in December.
Lawrence O'Brien was an adviser to presidents Kennedy and Johnson.
The photographs demonstrate the development of camera art over the
last one hundred fifty years. Most of the forty pictures are in
black-and-white.
VOICE TWO:
A photo from eighteen fifty-seven shows James Buchanan during his
first year as president. The photographer was Mathew Brady, one of
the nation's first great photographers of historical subjects.
Buchanan sits in a chair next to a table covered by a cloth and
topped by books. A feather pen sits in ink. The chair is turned
half-sideways from the camera. Buchanan has one leg crossed over the
other. The nation he led was divided over slavery and the rights of
states. Four years later, America was at war with itself. The
slave-holding South rebelled against the Union.
VOICE ONE:
Abraham Lincoln guided the nation through the Civil war. Another
photo by Mathew Brady shows President Lincoln at a military camp in
Antietam, Maryland, in eighteen sixty-two. Lincoln stands between
two other officials. But their presence does not seem nearly as
important compared to the very tall president with the very tall
hat.
Both sides in the war suffered terrible losses at Antietam.
Southern troops led by Confederate General Robert E. Lee withdrew.
This gave the Union a chance to declare a victory. It also gave
Lincoln a chance he had been waiting for. He announced that slaves
in the South would be free as of the coming January of eighteen
sixty-three. The Civil War lasted from eighteen sixty-one until
eighteen sixty-five.
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VOICE TWO:
William McKinley was president from eighteen ninety-seven until
his death in nineteen-oh-one, when an anarchist shot him.
The National Archives exhibit shows McKinley during a visit to
his hometown in Ohio. He reaches out to greet children. He looks
happy and at ease. The image we see is really two pictures. These
were made to be looked at side-by-side in a device called a
stereoptican. This way pictures appeared to have depth.
Theodore Roosevelt followed McKinley in office. One photograph
shows Teddy Roosevelt in front of a huge tree. He loved the open air
and he loved to hunt. But he also recognized the need to protect
wildlife and nature. During his eight years in office, he created
many national forests and other protected areas.
VOICE ONE:
A picture of Herbert Hoover shows him fishing in California.
Another shows him speaking at a political meeting. Hoover was
president from nineteen twenty-nine to nineteen thirty-three. During
this time the stock market crashed. This led to a worldwide economic
depression.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt followed Hoover in office. This
Roosevelt was known as F.D.R. He was distantly related to Theodore.
He helped raise the spirits of Americans during the worst of the
Great Depression. In fact, he was elected four times. After that the
Constitution was amended to set a limit of two terms.
VOICE TWO:
The great camera artist Edward Steichen captured Roosevelt's face
from the side. The picture is an image of strength. Yet most
Americans did not know that Roosevelt needed help to walk. He was
disabled by a polio infection. Pictures of him in his wheelchair or
wearing leg braces were rare.
Franklin Roosevelt died unexpectedly in April of nineteen
forty-five. Vice President Harry Truman became president. He led the
United States through the final months of World War Two. President
Truman often spoke from the back of a train as he campaigned for
election in nineteen forty-eight. In one picture, he talks to a
crowd at a train station in a small Southern town. Young people sit
on the station roof as they listen.
VOICE ONE:
Dwight Eisenhower was commanding general of the Allied forces in
Europe during World War Two. He was a military hero. In nineteen
fifty-two, he was elected president. A photograph in the exhibit
shows President Eisenhower and his wife Mamie at a celebration of
their thirty-ninth wedding anniversary. He has his arm around her
shoulder. She has a bright smile on her face.
Photographer Paul Begley captured this image in the summer of
nineteen fifty-five at the family's home in Gettysburg,
Pennsylvania. In September of that year, President Eisenhower
suffered a heart attack. But he recovered and was re-elected in
nineteen fifty-six.
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VOICE TWO:
In nineteen sixty Americans elected John Fitzgerald Kennedy. In
one of the pictures at the Archives, J.F.K. watches his young
daughter playing in his White House office. Caroline and her younger
brother, John Junior, often provided light moments for
photographers.
Another photo shows L.B.J., Lyndon
Baines Johnson. Johnson took office after the murder of President
Kennedy in nineteen sixty-three. In the photo President Johnson
holds his dog Yuki. Both have their faces turned upward. They look
like they are singing together. Johnson's little grandson looks on
in surprise.
VOICE ONE:
Richard Nixon is one of the few presidents pictured in color in
the exhibit. He was elected in nineteen sixty-eight.
A picture shows President Nixon with Chinese Premier Chou En-lai.
The premier is showing the president how to eat with chopsticks. The
photo was taken during the historic Nixon trip to China in nineteen
seventy-two. That trip helped open relations between the two
countries.
On August eighth, nineteen seventy-four, Richard Nixon became the
only American president ever to resign. In doing so, he avoided the
possibility of removal from office over charges in Congress of
political crimes.
VOICE TWO:
The pictures in the collection show presidents at work, at rest
and at play. In three photos side-by-side, Jimmy Carter and his
young daughter Amy run toward a helicopter at the White House.
Another picture shows President George H.W. Bush walking on the
White House grounds. The Washington Monument stands tall in the
background. This photo is from January of nineteen ninety-one, five
months after Iraq invaded and occupied Kuwait. Mister Bush appears
deep in thought. He had just approved a decision to go to war.
"The American Presidency: Photographic Treasures of the National
Archives" continues through February twenty-first, in Washington,
D.C. Internet users can find out more at the Web site of the
National Archives and Records Administration: nara.gov.
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VOICE ONE:
Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty
Weaver. I'm Faith Lapidus.
VOICE TWO:
And I'm Bob Doughty. Please join us again next week for THIS IS
AMERICA in VOA Special English.