CEAC-2021-07-July

Eleanor Roosevelt, right, wife of the late President Franklin Roosevelt, meets with President Harry S. Truman at the White House, in Washington. The
Truman Library & Museum, closed since July 2019, is poised to reopen this year, with a 3,000-square-foot addition and new ways to make the story of
Truman and his presidency relevant to what’s happening today, radio station KCUR-FM reports. (AP Photo/Byron Rollins, File)
to drop atomic bombs on Japan, and the end of the war in
the Pacific.
Gallagher described creating a sense of motion for visitors
“where, with each turn, you had a dramatic vista to either
an artifact or graphic or something that basically leads you
through.”
Artifacts include an upright piano that belonged to Harry
Truman’s aunt and uncle (Truman played throughout his life).
And a light tower with the words “Dear Bess” and reproductions
of letters in a cursive script that Truman wrote to his
wife, Bess.
“His relationship with his wife, cementing that relationship
from the beginning was very important to us,” Gallagher
says. “So the fact that he, they saved these letters and
they’re still here is a great moment in finding that personal
connection again.”
The redesigned library includes immersive theaters. One
features Truman’s service in World War I. Another focuses on
the Red Scare; it’s a red-lit space about the fear and suspicion
around spying during the Cold War.
“There is a theater to all this,” says Gallagher, “and making
each space have its own character and dimension is important.”
He reads some of the questions illuminated on the walls:
“What are you hiding? Who can you trust? You’re underpinning
that sense of paranoia and that encourages people to
sit down and really dig in on the interaction.”
Artifacts were pulled out of storage, classified documents
were de-classified, and video and audio were uncovered to
add new layers to Truman’s story.
As Gallagher puts it — Truman’s “thumbprint on history” still
resonates today, from civil rights to foreign aid to health care
and Social Security.
“So the narrative continues, and that’s part of what a good
presidential library does, is shows that the legacy is as significant
as the years they served,” he said. “And that’s what
people are going to see here.”
Volume 86 · Number 7 | 67