Eisenhower Presidential Library
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The Eisenhower Library
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| Location | 38°54′44″N 97°12′39″W / 38.91222°N 97.21083°WCoordinates: 38°54′44″N 97°12′39″W / 38.91222°N 97.21083°WAbilene, Kansas, USA |
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| Named for | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| Management | NARA |
| Website | Eisenhower Library, Museum and Boyhood Home |
The Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home is the presidential library and museum of Dwight David Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States (1953–1961), located in his hometown of Abilene, Kansas. The museum also includes his boyhood home, where he lived from 1898 until being appointed to West Point in 1911, and his final resting place. It is one of the fourteen presidential libraries under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
Admission to the Visitor Center, Place of Meditation (gravesite), and the archives is free. Admission to the museum is $12 for adults and includes a tour of the Boyhood Home. The complex is open every day except New Year's Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The Eisenhower Presidential complex is only one of two whose creation preceded the close of a presidency, and while this is obviously the case with his boyhood home, construction of the library itself began in 1958, and the museum portion before he even took office, coinciding with the then-General's announcement of his presidential candidacy in June 1952.
As World War II came to an end, local admirers of the Supreme Commander of Allied forces in Europe decided to honor him with a museum. In 1945, a non-profit foundation in his name was created to purchase his boyhood home and build the museum on the same property. It was to house artifacts from veterans, and the honors of Eisenhower in particular. At the time, the General's mother Ida was still alive and refused to sell the property. When she died in 1946, another purchase attempt was made. However, the fund-raising tactics of the foundation offended Eisenhower, and this almost scuttled the project. New fundraising rules were established for the Foundation after its discussion with Ike's youngest brother Milton, and agreement by all the Eisenhower brothers. They ultimately donated the house to the Foundation, and the entire site, in south Abilene, later became the Eisenhower Presidential Center.
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