The in-laws were recently in town and we adventured to the Lady Bird Wildflower Center. Enjoyed the beauty of native Texas flora, got some fresh air, took some cool pictures, and learned that Lady Bird Johnson was a pretty amazing woman:
Born Claudia Alta Taylor in 1912, Lady Bird Johnson earned her namesake during infancy when a nursemaid commented that she was "purrty as a ladybird", a brightly colored beetle also known as the ladybug. After her mother's death at an early age, Lady Bird spent much of her childhood and adolescence playing outside, fishing, swimming, and watching wildflowers bloom each spring in East Texas - shaping her lifelong love of the environment.Lady Bird attended The University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a Bachelors of Arts as well as a Bachelors of Journalism (with her family inheritance and background in journalism, Lady Bird amassed a multi-million dollar media conglomerate, which still today includes several tv and radio stations in Austin). Legend has it that she decided to attend UT after chartering a plane to fly into Austin and being awed by the sight of a field covered with bluebonnets.
After their first date over breakfast at the Driskill Hotel, young and upcoming politician Lyndon Baines Johnson proposed to Lady Bird. She eventually accepted his proposal after 10 weeks of dating.
As First Lady and in later years, Lady Bird spearheaded several important projects and initiatives for the beautification of our country. She worked to limit the number of billboard signs along highways and created roadside areas. She was also an early advocate for Head Start.
The Wildflower Center, located in Austin, Texas, was created in 1982 and is devoted to the preservation of Texas native plants.Lady Bird passed away at age 94 in July 2007. She was laid to rest in the Johnson Family cemetery in Stonewall, Texas next to her husband who died 34 years earlier.
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