Lady Bird Johnson - Honors

Honors

Lady Bird Johnson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Gerald Ford on January 10, 1977. The citation for her medal read:

"One of America's great First Ladies, she claimed her own place in the hearts and history of the American people. In councils of power or in homes of the poor, she made government human with her unique compassion and her grace, warmth and wisdom. Her leadership transformed the American landscape and preserved its natural beauty as a national treasure."

Johnson then received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1988, becoming the first wife of a President to receive the honor. In a 1982 poll taken of historians ranking the most influential and important First Ladies, Johnson placed third behind Abigail Adams and Eleanor Roosevelt for her work as a conservation activist.

In addition to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, she was honored by the naming of the Lady Bird Johnson Park on Columbia Island in Washington, D.C., which was founded as a result of her efforts as First Lady to beautify the capital. She declined many overtures to name Austin's Town Lake in her honor after she had led a campaign to clean up the lake and add trails to its shoreline; following her death, Austin Mayor Will Wynn's office said it was a "foregone conclusion that Town Lake is going to be renamed" in honor of Johnson. The lake was renamed Lady Bird Lake on July 26, 2007.

(In 1963, during the Pageant Of Peace Christmas tree lighting ceremony, the President and First Lady were to be introduced by a Girl Scout. President Kennedy had recently been assassinated and the girl introduced President and Mrs. Johnson as President and Mrs. Kennedy. She gasped in horror as soon as she did it and began crying. Mrs. Johnson leaped to her feet and put her arm around the girl's shoulder and comforted her, assuring her that it was all right and to please start over with the introduction. She did it right the second time and Mrs. Johnson sat down and the lighting ceremony continued. It was a revealing moment into the First Lady's character that endeared her to all who witnessed it.)

A majestic grove of coastal redwoods, named in her honor by President Nixon in 1969, is located just north of Orick, California. "Lady Bird Johnson Grove" is part of Redwood National Park. In April 2008, the "Lady Bird Johnson Memorial Cherry Blossom Grove" was dedicated in Marshfield, Missouri. The dedication took place during the city's annual cherry blossom festival. Johnson had been supportive of the rural community and their initiative to plant blossoming cherry trees.

In 1995, she received an Honor Award from the National Building Museum for her lifetime leadership in beautification and conservation campaigns.

Johnson was also named the honorary chairwoman of the Head Start program.

She held honorary degrees from many universities: Boston University, the University of Alabama; George Washington University; Johns Hopkins University; State University of New York; Southern Methodist University; Texas Woman's University; Middlebury College; Williams College, Southwestern University; Texas State University–San Marcos; Washington College; and St. Edward's University.