INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — The Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum is all set to reopen gates for visitors, from Friday (July 2), after nearly two years of renovations. Initially, the hours and visitor numbers restricted because of pandemic regulations.
Visitors will experience completely reimagined during its most extensive renovation since it opened in 1957 in Truman’s hometown of Independence, Missouri, an eastern suburb of Kansas City. The nearly $30 million project includes a sparkling new entrance; many more artifacts, photographs, videos, and films; and exhibits that encourage visitors to touch and interact with displays.
One solemn gallery showcases Truman’s first four months in office, some of the most consequential months in U.S. history. Germany surrendered, the U.S. dropped nuclear bombs on Japan to end World War II, and world leaders at the Potsdam conference determined the makeup of the postwar world.
Museum Director Kurt Graham said the museum, which closed in July 2019 for the renovations, was demolished “down to the bare studs.” People who remember the old building will recognize little except a Thomas Hart Benton mural, some artifacts, and a recreation of Truman’s Oval Office, he said.
After starting in the new 3,000-square-foot Grandview Hall entrance, visitors first see Truman giving a speech in 1945 when he was running as Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s vice president. FDR died only 82 days into that term, leaving the world wondering, “who is this farmer from Missouri who is taking over the free world?” Graham said.
The centerpiece of the gallery about Truman’s first months in office shows a safety plug from the bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki. Nearby is a display of the more than 1,000 origami cranes symbolizing peace that was created by Sadako Sasaki, a Japanese girl who died at age 12 from radiation poisoning. Her brother donated to the museum what is believed to be one of the last cranes she folded.
The galleries highlight challenges such as the Red Scare, over the perceived Communist threat in the U.S. during the Cold War; Truman’s firing of Gen. Douglas MacArthur after disagreements about the Korean War; desegregating the military, and promoting civil rights, and recognizing the state of Israel.
Other displays include a beam from the White House before it was extensively updated during Truman’s tenure, some humorous gifts he received, and the famous “The Buck Stops Here” sign he kept on his desk in the Oval Office.
As visitors head to the exit, they can stop in a courtyard where Truman, his wife Bess, their daughter, and son-in-law are buried.
