connecting the Grove to the Pentagon grounds 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") quarried in
Texas was to be placed. Stone carver Harold Vogel worked the exterior of the stone to give it a dynamic, rough-hewn look reminiscent of Johnson's personality. The Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Texas estimated the rock's age at a billion years. A flagstone walkway winding through the grove was included in the design. Four quotes from Johnson's public speeches, selected by Lady Bird Johnson, were carved into flagstones placed around the orthostat. But $600,000 was still needed in May 1975 to complete the memorial. In December 1975, Congress authorized $1 million to complete the memorial grove and establish a maintenance fund. The memorial was dedicated on April 6, 1976. It is administered by the
National Park Service, as part of the
George Washington Memorial Parkway. A $500,000 footbridge between the memorial and a 30-car parking lot along Boundary Channel was constructed to make it easier to visit the Grove. The bridge was designed by landscape architect Meade Palmer and dedicated by Lady Bird Johnson on October 12, 1977. ==See also==