....and more saga

May 14
After leaving Warm Springs we spent the night at a nice hotel on the outskirts of Atlanta and within a few minute drive we were at Carter's Library/Museum which is the first of the National Archives supported museum we will visit. It is set in a beautifully landscaped Japanese Garden with outdoor terraces off of the cafeteria and overlooking a pretty reflecting pool. The museum is contemporary in style and the Library is functioning as a work place for the former President and his associates in all of his post-presidency activities...
The museum displays many mimentos relating to the childhood and adolescence of both he and Rosalyn and continues through all the incidents of thier education and finally thier marriage...Jimmy's report cards from elementary school (all A's) are displayed as well as items from his schooling at Annapolis, and then his time spent in Service on Submarine duty.
A very interesting (especially to me) display of large cut-out portraits of several past Presidents was wall hung with descriptive text placed adjacent to them explaining the vital part their actions did to influence the course of American history...and it's resultant effect it had on him in his decision making! The Presidents were Teddy Roosevelt, Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, FDR, Harry Truman, Eisenhower, JFK, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon...( My forthcoming book will try to explain these influences, I hope?)

The next display was really exciting. It dealt with several issues, including a very provocative one on the Nuclear Threat...It displayed the entire progression of nuclear proliferation, beginning with Truman authorizing it's use twice in Japan...and how rapidly England, Russia, France and China developed their own capabilities.

It was pointed out that Nixon and Ford negotiated the first SALT agreement in 1972 and Jimmy Carter, the 2nd in 1979!

We then had a light lunch and while Daras went back to the comfortable movie theatre, I continued to walk about and observe many more interesting exhibits. I could understand her fatigue since I too was feeling the same!

It waqs time to leave the Museum and once more we hopped? back into the van and drove a very pleasant route through extremely scenic highways on a delightful sunny day to Augusta, Georgia. Our GPS took us on a "dry run" to find the location of the Boyhood Home of Woodrow Wilson, and finding it we realized that it would be closed since it was about 5PM...I took a few pictures and we drove to locate a nice Motel...had dinner...and to bed.