“As the newest LBJ-related entity in the State of Texas with our own special niche, we will have an active role in this celebration. We are well represented on Texas State University-San Marcos’ large LBJ Centennial Birthday Committee,” says Nora Linares-Moeller, president of the Board of Directors that provides guidance to the LBJ Museum of San Marcos.

The local museum focuses on the young Lyndon Johnson as a student at what was then Southwest Texas State Teachers College, his teaching experiences in South Texas and the impact these experiences had on his leadership in the development of legislation, especially in the areas of education and civil rights. It opened its doors to the public on December 8, 2006.

According to Linares-Moeller, one of the museum’s projects during the centennial year – which begins with the former President’s 100th birthday on August 27, 2008 – will be an oral history project relating to his time in Cotulla, Texas. The museum is seeking to establish contact with President Johnson’s former Cotulla students and their living relatives. Johnson taught in Cotulla during the 1928-29 school year before receiving his bachelor’s degree and teaching certificate here in 1930.

Historians credit Johnson’s college experiences in San Marcos and his year teaching in Cotulla with helping him hone his political skills and develop a strong commitment to education, anti-poverty and civil rights. The museum’s current exhibit features a grouping of photographs of Johnson with his students in Cotulla.

Linares-Moeller says of the San Marcos museum’s search for Cotulla contacts, "We are very interested in talking with any former students of President Johnson and/or any direct descendents who could relate historical information regarding his time in Cotulla. The oral history project that our museum plans to conduct will, upon its completion, be highlighted during the centennial birthday celebration.”

The LBJ Museum of San Marcos is located across from the Hays County Courthouse in downtown San Marcos. The museum is open to the public Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. There is no charge for admission, but contributions are welcomed. The museum, a 501 c (3) non-profit that is governed by a 13-member Board of Directors, will be launching its 2008 membership campaign this month.

For more information, contact Museum Director Scott Jordan at 512-353-3300 or by email at director@lbjmuseum.com.