Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum

Infobox presidential library
name =Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum


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location = Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
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dedication_date =September 1981
named_for =Gerald R. Ford
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manager =The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which Gerald R. Ford represented in the House of Representatives from 1949 to 1973. It is located downtown at the intersection of Pearl and Scribner Streets at 303 Pearl Street NW, near the Grand Valley State University Pew Grand Rapids Campus, on the banks of the Grand River.

The museum opened in September 1981. Unlike most other presidential libraries and museums, Ford's are two geographically separate buildings. The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library is located about 130 miles away in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on the campus of Ford's alma mater, the University of Michigan.

Following Ford's death on December 26, 2006, thousands of people paid tribute to the President on the grounds of the museum. A spontaneous memorial with candles, flags, flowers, and handwritten notes was set up at the Pearl Street entrance to the museum. During the night of January 2, 2007, through the morning of January 3, around 60,000 people viewed the casket as Ford lay in repose in the museum lobby. He was buried on the grounds of the museum later that day.

Permanent exhibits

* "Gerald Ford's America": Pop culture of the 1970s.
* Young Jerry Ford: His formative years to inauguration as vice president.
* "Constitution in Crisis": The Watergate years.
* "At Work in the Oval Office": A recreation of the Oval Office during Ford's years as President of the United States.
* "Leadership in Diplomacy": Ford's foreign trips with Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
* "Ford Cabinet Room": A recreation of the Cabinet Room of the Ford Presidency. Videos highlight the pardon of Richard Nixon, the seizure of the SS Mayagüez, and the New York City financial crisis.

External links

* [http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/ Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum and Library website]