On Feb. 17, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon signed Senate Joint Resolution 37, sponsored by Texas Senator Lloyd M. Bentsen, designating the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) in Houston as NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC), in honor of the 36th President who died the previous Jan. 22 at age 64. I
On Feb. 17, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon signed Senate Joint Resolution 37, sponsored by Texas Senator Lloyd M. Bentsen, designating the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC) in Houston as NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC), in honor of the 36th President who died the previous Jan. 22 at age 64. In a statement accompanying the signing, President 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.” The President’s widow Lady Bird Johnson attended the formal dedication ceremony at JSC in August 1973.
The text of Senate Joint Resolution 37, changing the name of the Manned Spacecraft Center to NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.
Left: The sign at the main entrance to the Manned Spacecraft Center in 1967. Right: The current sign at the main entrance to NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston.
As a United States Senator from Texas and Senate Majority Leader in the 1950s, Johnson played an influential role in the establishment of NASA. Following the Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik in October 1957, he chaired Congressional hearings to determine a proper American response. Johnson asked Legislative Reference Service national defense analyst Eilene Galloway to summarize the Congressional testimony in a report titled “The Problems of Congress in Formulating Outer Space Legislation,” that proposed the creation of a new civilian agency to lead America’s space efforts. On July 29, 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 that established NASA.
Left: Portrait of Texas Senator Lyndon B. Johnson. Middle left: Portrait of Legislative Reference Service national defense analyst Eilene Galloway. Middle right: President Dwight D. Eisenhower signing the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958. Right: The first page of the 1958 Space Act.
As President John F. Kennedy’s Vice President, Johnson 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. After becoming President, Johnson continued to support President 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 three occasions, first as Vice President in 1962 and then as President in 1965 and 1968.
Left: Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, center, listens as President John F. Kennedy addresses NASA employees at the Rich Building, a temporary facility of the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC), now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, during their September 1962 visit. Middle: President Johnson, second from right, with Gemini IV astronauts James A. McDivitt, to Johnson’s right holding picture, and Edward H. White, right, during his June 1965 visit to MSC. Right: President Johnson, at podium, addressing a crowd at MSC during his March 1968 visit to the center.
On Aug. 27, 1973, former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson and her daughters Lynda and Luci and their families attended the formal dedication ceremonies held in JSC’s main auditorium. During the ceremony, Mrs. Johnson unveiled a bust of the late President by Virginia sculptress Jimilu Mason. A desk that President Johnson used to sign bills, documents, artifacts, and other memorabilia as well as a miniature replica of the bust are on display in the LBJ Room outside the Teague Auditorium in JSC’s Building 2.
Left: Former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson stands to the right of the bust of her late husband, President Lyndon B. Johnson, as her family and former NASA Administrator James E. Webb look on, during the August 1973 dedication ceremony at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston. Middle: A miniature replica of the bust of President Johnson on display in the LBJ Room in JSC’s Building 2. Right: The desk President Johnson used to sign bills and other items on display in JSC’s Building 2.
John Uri
NASA Johnson Space Center
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