Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac is located on Columbia Island (renamed Lady Bird Johnson Park in 1968), in Washington, D.C. The presidential memorial honors the 36th President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson. The grove consists of two parts. The first area, commemorative in nature, is a Texas granite monolith surrounded by a serpentine pattern of walks and trails. The second area is a grass meadow and provides a tranquil refuge for reflection and rejuvenation of the spirit. The trails are shaded by a grove of hundreds of  white pine and dogwood trees, and framed by azaleas and rhododendron. The memorial overlooks the Potomac River with a vista of the city of Washington. Visitors may listen to a recording made by Lady Bird Johnson at the entrance to the park facing The Pentagon. In the recording, the former First Lady talks about the creation of the park, the trees, and the views of major Washington D.C. landmarks. History. Former President Lyndon B. Johnson died on January 22, 1973. Soon after, Johnson's admirers proposed constructing a statue in Washington, D.C., in his memory, but concern that it would  be defaced led to rejection of that idea. Brooke Astor and Laurence Vanderbilt suggested a grove of trees instead, and planning for the $2 million grove began in Spring 1973. Lady Bird Johnson Park was chosen as the site of the grove due to Johnson's love of the park and its panoramic views of Washington, D.C. and its monuments on the National Mall and elsewhere while he was president. The national memorial was authorized by Congress on December 28, 1973, and administratively listed on the National Register of Historic Places the same day. By February 1975, $1.3  million for the memorial grove had been raised. A $15 silver medal and a $350 gold medal were designed in early 1975 and sold to help raise another $150,000. Plans for the grove were largely complete by May 1975. Landscape architect Meade Palmer designed the grove, which included a contemplative meadow and a small granite plaza among some trees. The grove covered , and would be planted with white pine, dogwood trees, and flowering shrubs and bushes. A granite plaza was intended for the center of the grove, on which a , high pink granite orthostat (or "standing stone