In honor of Women’s History Month (and because I love presidential history) we’re kicking off a First Ladies theme week!
Today we’re starting with Claudia Alta “Lady Bird” Johnson, who was our First Lady from 1963 to 1969 as the wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson. She was also the second lady from 1961 to 1963 when LBJ was vice president for John F. Kennedy.
She got her nickname from her nursemaid, who said she was “pretty as a ladybird” as an infant. Lady Bird pretty much replaced her first name for the rest of her life. Her family called her Lady and her husband called her Bird – and that’s the name she used on her marriage license.
Lady Bird was well-educated for a woman of her time, earning degrees in history and journalism from the University of Texas at Austin. She was introduced to Lyndon Baines Johnson by a friend. At the time, he was a 26-year-old Congressional aide with political aspirations. Lyndon proposed on their first date, but not wanting to rush into things, Lady Bird didn’t accept his proposal until 10 weeks later. They had 2 daughters, Lynda Bird and Luci Baines – all 4 shared the initals LBJ.
When Lyndon decided to run for Congress, Lady Bird used $10,000 of her inheritance to launch his campaign and start his political career. Lyndon was elected to Congress and they settled in Washington, D.C. When he enlisted in the Navy at the start of World War II, Lady Bird ran his congressional office.
In 1943, Lady Bird spent $17,500 of her inheritance to buy an Austin radio station, KTBC. She later expanded by buying a television station in 1952. Lady Bird was the first president’s wife to have become a millionaire in her own right before her husband was elected to office.
When Lady Bird became First Lady, she created the modern structure of the First Lady’s office. She was the first to have her own press secretary and chief of staff, and an outside liaison with Congress. She also helped establish the public environmental movement in the 1960s, becoming a huge advocate of beautifying the country’s cities and highways. The Highway Beautification Act was informally known as “Lady Bird’s Bill”. Her capital beautification project planted millions of flowers on National Park Service land along roadways all over Washington D.C.
In 1977, Lady Bird received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and she was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1984. She died at her home in July 2007 from natural causes at the age of 94. Historians have consistently ranked Lady Bird as one of the most highly regarded First Ladies. Learn more here.