Marriage and Early Politics

After a short duration of courtship, Lady Bird Johnson married Lyndon Baines Johnson in 1934, who was then a 26-year-old Congressional aide who had political aspirations. With Lady Bird Johnson as a supporter, mediator, and advisor, Lyndon Baines Johnson gained popularity rapidly, which stabilised his career as a politician. The couple had two daughters together, Lynda Bird and Luci Baines, after several miscarriages. In the later years when she passed on, apart from her daughters, she also had the company of seven grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren.

Business ventures

Lady Bird Johnson was also a businesswoman with foresight. Despite persuasion from her husband against her decision, Lady Bird Johnson acquired a failing Austin radio station using her inheritance and brought the business alive by her dedicated effort in all areas, ranging from management to cleaning duties. Her business grew to include two radio station and a television station, which were collectively known as KTBC, contributing to her million-dollar worth of status, which was the first for a First Lady. She continued to remain active in her business till her eighties.

First Lady

Prior to the assassination of President Kennedy, Lady Bird Johnson had been actively involved in the political scene as a substitute for Mrs. Kennedy at official events, who was then heavily pregnant during the administration of President Kennedy. But with the assassination of Present Kennedy,  Lyndon Baines Johnson, who was then the vice-president, had to step up to fill in the vacancy of president’s seat, which led to Lady Bird Johnson becoming the First Lady of the United States. With her position, she had effectively push for change in areas related to the improvement of conservation efforts and the reduction in inequality.

In terms of conservation efforts, Lady Bird Johnson was best known for the formation of a committee for a More Beautiful Capital and her highway beautification act during her husband’s administration in the White House, as well as the National Wildflower Research Centre that she founded during her retirement. These will be further discussed in the section of Conservation Efforts.

Meanwhile, her attempt to improve inequality can be observed from her active involvement in projects such as the Head Start Program and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. For the Head Start Program, which supports the development of children from lower income families, Lady Bird Johnson had assumed the role of a strong public voice, which had successfully recruited many volunteers for the cause. For the Civil Rights Act which attempted to outlaws discrimination based on race, colour, religion, or national origin, Lady Bird Johnson assumed the role of an active promoter, by having a first solo tour by a First Lady through eight Southern states in order to gain support of the people.

Furthermore, she also broke the barriers of what was expected of the First Lady, such as having her own team to work on her projects, which was the first in the history of United States. Her efforts and contribution to the States during her husband’s administration made her one of the most efficient First Lady ever since Eleanor Roosevelt.

However, due to the poor health of President Johnson, he eventually ended his first presidency term and retired, which marked the end of the Johnsons’ administration in the white house. In 1970, Lady Bird Johnson published A White House Diary, which detailed and summarised her experiences as the second lady and then the first lady, as well as the hardships resulted from the problems within the society, such as poverty and civil rights.