Why do we need a national
nonprofit membership society for American history?
“Save America’s Treasures” has been totally eliminated—the largest Federal program supporting preservation of such treasures as the original Star Spangled Banner and George Washington’s tent.
65% of Americans don’t know what happened at the Constitutional Convention, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
The “Teaching American History” grants—the largest Federal program supporting history education—have been completely eliminated.
Visits to the Top 20 Civil War battlefields have dropped in half from 1970 to 2009 according to official National Park Service statistics.
40% of Americans can’t identify whom we fought in World War II, according to a recent survey by Newsweek.
A quarter of Americans believe Congress shares power over U.S. foreign policy with the United Nations, according to a recent Annenberg survey.
“There is little that is more important for an American citizen to know than the history and traditions of his country,” John F. Kennedy wrote in American Heritage.
The “We the People Program,” which touched some 30 million students and 90,000 teachers over 25 years, has been completely eliminated.
Two-thirds of Americans could not correctly name Yorktown as the last major military action of the American Revolution, according to a recent national Gallup survey.
The National Heritage Areas and Scenic Byways program, the only major Federal program encouraging visits to historic places, has been completely eliminated in Congressional committee.
Runabout with “IKE” and “MAMIE” stenciled on front quarter panels. Mr. Marvin Leonard of Fort Worth, Texas, in June 1955 gave this vehicle to George Allen to present to President and Mrs. Eisenhower. The four-wheel drive Crosley Runabout was used by the Eisenhowers to drive around the farm. Visiting world leaders such as Churchill and De Gaulle toured the farm with the President while in the Crosley. The Crosley was the nation’s first compact car, manufactured in Cincinnati and Marion, Indiana between 1939 and 1952.
Press tag for the Pennsylvania Republican Rally at President Dwight David Eisenhower’s farm, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 23rd, 1954 at 12:45 pm, handwritten for "Paul Roy / Gettysburg Times."
Bekon Standard Parts & Equip Corp, Fort Worth, Texas
These lights were used to outline the President’s Gettysburg farm helicopter landing pad, a mowed circle in the grass adjacent to the cropland in front of the Eisenhower home. When the Secret Service agents received word that the President was arriving at night in his helicopter, they placed these portable lights around the pad. Eisenhower was the first president to use a helicopter and relied on it quite extensively during his second term for trips back and forth from the White House to the farm as well as to Camp David. Many world leaders were transported by helicopter to the farm including Winston Churchill and Nikita Khrushchev.
Description (physical):
Cloth, metal, rock, plastic, glass. H 27.8, L 30.0, W 36.0 cm
This desk was a reproduction of a desk used by President George Washington. It was made from pine boards salvaged from The White House during the 1948-1952 renovations. The White House Ushers presented this desk to President Dwight D. Eisenhower as a Christmas gift in 1954. In the top drawer at the left, Eisenhower kept a card catalog of his personal library.
This map shows the path of the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line, which began flying across Tampa Bay on January 1, 1914. The flight covered 29 kilometers (18 miles) and took 23 minutes-11 hours less than traveling between St. Petersburg and Tampa by rail. Nevertheless, it lasted only three months.
Location:
Independence Ave at 6th Street, SW Washington,District of Columbia
20560
This Pacific Southwest Airlines postcard portrays the Lockheed Electra II lounge, located in the rear of the cabin. Airlines began to improve their airplane amenities as commercial air travel expanded.
Location:
Independence Ave at 6th Street, SW Washington,District of Columbia
20560
This is a 1970 model of the Rolls-Royce Dart turboprop. First introduced in 1948, the turboprop combined the power of jet propulsion with the efficiency of propellers. It was widely used in the first generation of turboprop-powered aircraft, including the British Vickers Viscount and the Dutch Fokker F-27. The Dart enabled these and other new airliners to lower airline operating costs and bring greater speed and comfort to passengers traveling on short-to-medium length routes.
Description (physical):
Wt: 1250lbs., Power: 1,815ehp at 15,000rpm
Location:
Independence Ave at 6th Street, SW Washington,District of Columbia
20560
A supercritical wing delays the formation and reduces the size of shock waves over the wing at transonic speeds (just below and above the speed of sound), the speeds at which most jetliners fly. All new large jetliners now feature this highly efficient, drag-reducing wing design.
Location:
Independence Ave at 6th Street, SW Washington,District of Columbia
20560
This is an image of Winglets-small vertical fins on wingtips-reduce the strength of wingtip vortices (air swirling off the ends of the wings). Most airliners feature some type of winglet to help decrease drag.
Location:
Independence Ave at 6th Street, SW Washington,District of Columbia
20560