Lady Bird Johnson and Hostesses Aboard the Lady Bird Special
10/6/1964
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This photograph was taken during Lady Bird Johnson's 1964 Whistle Stop Tour, part of Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 presidential campaign.
Three months after the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, President and Lady Bird Johnson turned their attention to the upcoming election. While LBJ was key to helping the Democratic ticket carry the South in 1960, many Southerners were angry about the civil rights legislation. Lady Bird boarded a train named the "Lady Bird Special" to campaign for her husband’s presidential bid in states from Virginia to Louisiana.
The Whistle Stop campaign tour journey began in Washington, DC, on October 6. It continued for four days through eight states, totaling 1,682 miles. It stopped in 28 cities, ending in New Orleans on October 9, 1964. Lady Bird, her daughters Lynda and Luci, 100 or so members of the press, and more than a dozen white-gloved "hostesses" rode aboard the un-air-conditioned Lady Bird Special.
Hospitality committees along the route gave out pennants, buttons, and other small campaign material for visitors aboard the Lady Bird Special and the crowds gathered to see Lady Bird. In the dining car, in another nod to Southern hospitality, guests were treated to specialty dishes from each state along the route: Virginia ham, North Carolina BBQ, Georgia pecan pie, and Louisiana shrimp creole were among the choices.
This primary source comes from the Collection LBJ-WHPO: White House Photo Office Collection.
Full Citation: Photograph 33317; Lady Bird Johnson and Hostesses Aboard the Lady Bird Special; 10/6/1964; Photographs of Lady Bird Johnson's Whistlestop Campaign Tour, ca. 10/6/64 - ca.10/27/1964; Collection LBJ-WHPO: White House Photo Office Collection; Lyndon Baines Johnson Library, Austin, TX. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/lady-bird-special, April 19, 2024]