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45 Years Ago: President Names Johnson Space Center

Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson speaking to Manned Spacecraft Center employees during his last visit to the Center in March 1968
Lady Bird Johnson
Lady Bird Johnson speaking during the dedication ceremony of the Johnson Space Center in August 1973.

On February 17, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon signed a Senate resolution designating the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) as the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, in honor of the 36th President who died the previous January 22 at age 64.  In a statement accompanying the signing, Nixon said, “Few men in our time have better understood the value of space exploration than Lyndon Johnson.”  Center Director Christopher C. Kraft, Jr., said of the decision, “We are pleased and proud to have our Center bear this great American’s name.”

As a United States Senator from Texas and Senate Majority Leader, Johnson drafted, introduced and helped enact the National Aeronautics and Space Act that created NASA in 1958.  As Vice President, he chaired the National Aeronautics and Space Council during NASA’s critical early years and, working with Texas and Houston politicians and businessmen, played a key role in establishing the MSC in Texas.  As President, Johnson continued to support President John F. Kennedy’s goal of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth before the end of the decade.  As part of his long-term commitment, Johnson visited the Center on several occasions, first as Vice President in 1962 and then as President in 1965 and 1968.

Formal dedication ceremonies were held August 27, attended by Lady Bird Johnson and her family.  During the ceremony, she unveiled a bust of the late President by the sculptress Jimilu Mason.