University of Texas at Austin in Travis County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
The LBJ Plaza
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, August 8, 2010
1. The LBJ Plaza Marker
The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum was designed by Gordon Bunshaft of Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) and opened in the spring of 1971. The design featured the monumental library building clad in Roman travertine and an expansive plaza paved in travertine and terrazzo. On the plaza are three square fountains.
In 2009, due to significant deterioration caused by water infiltration, the plaza was rebuilt as seen today. Working closely with the Texas Historical Commission, The University of Texas and the National Archives and Records Administration replaced the existing paving materials with granite and reinterpreted the fountains as planting areas. In collaboration with the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, native plants were selected to make the plaza more hospitable and environmentally responsible.
The plaza is now an important feature of the Lady Bird Johnson Center, a tribute to the First Lady. Mrs. Johnson is remembered as an advocate of education, the mother of the environmental movement, and a person of tremendous charm and grace. The Lady Bird Johnson Center with its redesigned plaza supports the mission of the Library as a place of education and learning, reflecting the warmth and hospitality of Mrs. Johnson and her love of our beautiful Texas landscape.
The photograph above
this page online
Erected 2009 by Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Education • Environment. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #36 Lyndon B. Johnson series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1971.
Location. 30° 17.127′ N, 97° 43.729′ W. Marker is in Austin, Texas, in Travis County. It is in University of Texas at Austin. Marker can be reached from Red River Street, 0.1 miles north of Clyde Littlefield Drive. The marker is west of the LBJ Library parking area - in the breezeway of Sid Richardson Hall on the University of Texas, Austin Campus. The library is one block west of I-35/US Highway 290, accessible north of the exit for E. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2313 Red River Street, Austin TX 78705, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Replica of San Lorenzo Monument 1 (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Site of Texas Wesleyan College (approx. ¼ mile away); University Interscholastic League (approx. 0.3 miles away); J. Frank Dobie House (approx. 0.3 miles away);
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, August 8, 2010
2. The LBJ Plaza Marker in the shade of the breezeway at right
Note the Texas Memorial Stadium in the background at left and the landmark "Texas Tower", center-right, all on the campus of the University of Texas, Austin.
Also see . . .
1. The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum. Museum website homepage (Submitted on September 17, 2010, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)
2. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Website homepage:
"The mission of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is to increase the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants and landscapes." (Submitted on September 17, 2010, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)
Photographed By Richard E. Miller, August 8, 2010
3. The monumental Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library at left
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, August 9, 2015
4. Lyndon B. Johnson
This 1967 portrait of Lyndon B. Johnson by Peter Hurd hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.
“No political figure harnessed the forces of American politics better than Lyndon Johnson as majority leader of the Senate. His decision to serve as John Kennedy's vice president seemed like a demotion, but when Johnson became president upon Kennedy's assassination, his mastery of the legislative process and legendary persuasiveness produced a string of landmark legislation and actions: farreaching civil rights acts, "war on poverty" initiatives, Medicare, Medicaid, major federal funding for education, and the appointment of the first African American —Thurgood Marshall— to the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, Johnson's escalation of the Vietnam War transformed his presidency from one of the most popular to one of the most maligned.
This portrait by Peter Hurd was meant to be Johnson's official White House likeness. But that plan was quickly scrapped after Johnson declared it ‘the ugliest thing I ever saw.’ Soon the pun was making the rounds in Washington that ‘artists should be seen around the White House-but not Hurd.’ ” — National Portrait Gallery
“No political figure harnessed the forces of American politics better than Lyndon Johnson as majority leader of the Senate. His decision to serve as John Kennedy's vice president seemed like a demotion, but when Johnson became president upon Kennedy's assassination, his mastery of the legislative process and legendary persuasiveness produced a string of landmark legislation and actions: farreaching civil rights acts, "war on poverty" initiatives, Medicare, Medicaid, major federal funding for education, and the appointment of the first African American —Thurgood Marshall— to the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, Johnson's escalation of the Vietnam War transformed his presidency from one of the most popular to one of the most maligned.
This portrait by Peter Hurd was meant to be Johnson's official White House likeness. But that plan was quickly scrapped after Johnson declared it ‘the ugliest thing I ever saw.’ Soon the pun was making the rounds in Washington that ‘artists should be seen around the White House-but not Hurd.’ ” — National Portrait Gallery
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on September 17, 2010, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. This page has been viewed 775 times since then and 39 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 17, 2010, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 4. submitted on November 1, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
