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Allen Weinstein: Speaks at opening of the new Nixon Library

"This is a long-awaited milestone in Presidential library history," said Professor Weinstein. "Historians, researchers, and the general public will eventually be able to come to this library and find all of President Nixon's materials under one roof."

Weinstein said that the transfer of the facility makes possible the eventual consolidation of Richard Nixon's pre-Presidential and post-Presidential materials, which have been housed in the private facility since 1990, with the official records of his administration that are currently at a National Archives facility in College Park, Maryland.

"President Nixon's administration is the best-documented Presidency in American history," Professor Weinstein added. "It will be an important destination for anyone interested in the Cold War, in U.S. relations with China and the Soviet Union, the Vietnam War and its impact at home, dramatic changes in the nation's economy, in the history of the Watergate scandal, and in the history of the Presidency.

"The new Nixon Library will be a nonpartisan facility that will provide an interactive, 360 degree view of the life and times of Richard Nixon," Professor Weinstein said, noting that the Library and Museum will be staffed by federal employees who report to the National Archives.

In 2006, Professor Weinstein designated presidential historian Timothy Naftali as the first director of the new Federal Nixon Library. Dr. Naftali emphasized that the new Library will be a major resource for everyone interested in modern American history. "The new Library belongs to the people of the United States," Dr. Naftali said. "It will be a center of discussion, debate, and scholarly exploration. Its mission is to inspire a love of history and critical thinking."...
Read entire article at Nixon Library