Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum

The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum is the presidential museum and burial place of Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States (1974–1977), and his wife Betty Ford. It is located near the Pew Campus of Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ford's presidential museum is the only such facility under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Administration to be separate from the presidential library, which is located approximately 130 miles (210 km) to the east in Ann Arbor. Despite the separation, the library and museum are a single institution with one director.

Gerald Ford

Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr.) was born on July 14, 1913. Ford served nearly 25 years as a Representative of Michigan's 5th congressional district, eight of them as the Republican Minority Leader. Serving from 1973 to 1974 as the 40th Vice President of the United States, Ford was the first person appointed to the vice-presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment. He then became President upon Richard Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974, and served until January 20, 1977 as the 38th President of the United States. Ford is the only President of the United States who was not elected by ballot for his terms as either President or Vice-President.

Funds for the construction of the museum were raised from over 14,000 individual donations through the efforts of the Gerald Ford Commemorative Committee, the University of Michigan, the State of Michigan, Kent County, and the City of Grand Rapids.

The 44,000-square-foot (4,100 m2) two-story triangular museum was designed by Marvin DeWinter Associates and built at a cost of $11 million. The museum is located in a 20-acre (8.1 ha) park complex that includes the Grand Rapids Public Museum along the west bank of the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids. The building was dedicated September 18, 1981, and was attended by President and Mrs. Reagan, President José López Portillo of Mexico, Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Japan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Sunao Sonoda, former French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Bob Hope served as master of ceremonies and part of the festivities were recorded for TV broadcast.

The east side of the structure is enclosed by a 300-foot-wide (91 m) glass wall providing a view of the river and downtown Grand Rapids beyond. The main entrance features a reflecting pool and fountain. The site is linked with downtown hotels and shops by a pedestrian bridge spanning the river.

The core exhibits were redesigned as part of a building expansion completed in 1997 allowing for a broad program of changing feature exhibits and events. Expanded funding from the Gerald R. Ford Foundation supported the expansion and additional programming.

Exhibits

The main floor contains exhibits on President Ford's life and career as President of the United States. Candid photographs of Ford interacting with his family and colleagues provides a personal glimpse of the president. This floor includes a full-scale replica of the Oval Office furnished as it was during Ford's presidency.

Special exhibits highlight the 1976 Bicentennial celebration and Mrs. Ford's role during her husband's term in office. Other exhibits, which are the core of the museum's program, enable visitors to travel by video with President Ford and Secretary Kissinger to various hot-spots around the globe; take a holographic tour of the Ford White House; and experience a day in the Oval Office through a sound and light show. A Watergate gallery includes a six-minute, multi-screen history beginning with the June 1972 break-in and a display of the actual burglary tools. An interactive Cabinet Room allows visitors to take part in presidential decision making. Visitors can see gifts presented by heads of state and other foreign dignitaries, as well as personal gifts to Ford from the American people. The award-winning film, "A Time To Heal," is shown hourly in the museum auditorium. A section of the Berlin Wall stands in the museum's lobby, which was dedicated by Ford on September 6, 1991.

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