Lyndon Baines “LBJ” Johnson was born August 27, 1908, in central Texas. He graduated from Southwest Texas State Teachers College (now Texas State University-San Marcos).
Johnson successfully campaigned for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1937 where he served six terms before moving on to serve 12 years in the U.S. Senate.
Johnson became the nation’s 37th vice president in 1961. He had held that office for less than three years, when John F. Kennedy’s assassination thrust him into the presidency. During a joint session of Congress to present his plans for leading the nation after Kennedy’s death, he said, “All that I have I would have given gladly not to be standing here today.”
During his administration, President Johnson promoted his vision of “The Great Society” and tackled issues such as poverty, inequality in education, voting rights and conservation. However, it was the conflict between North and South Vietnam that took center stage both at home and abroad.
Additional highlights of Johnson’s presidency include:
- Passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Open Housing Act of 1968
- Passage of legislation creating the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities
- Passage of the Highway Safety Act
- Passage of the Public Broadcasting Act
- Passage of Social Security Act 1965, which created the Medicare and Medicaid programs
- Apollo 8, the first manned spacecraft to orbit the moon
