Press Releases | Feb, 19 2026
The First Major Update in More than a Decade is Timed to Open in Advance of New Temporary Exhibits Celebrating America’s Multi-Faceted 250-Year History
AUSTIN, TX – February 18, 2026 – After a months-long renovation, the LBJ Presidential Library is debuting its new multi-million dollar exhibit space on Saturday, March 7. The renovation updates the 4,500 square-foot permanent exhibit on the fourth floor, which features immersive, hands-on interactives and dynamic films that link President Lyndon B. Johnson’s extensive legacy to present-day America.
The renovation also puts LBJ’s vast artifacts—including 45 million pages of documents, 650,000 photos, and 5,000 hours of recordings from President Johnson’s political career—front and center in a modern, engaging way. Visitors can connect with the challenges and choices LBJ faced and how they parallel the issues our nation faces today.
“We’re inviting audiences to better understand and engage with LBJ’s legacy using artifacts to link past political and policy debates to present-day questions about belonging, civic participation, and responsibility,” said Mark Updegrove, President and CEO of the LBJ Foundation. “While his presidency took place 60 years ago, those questions have never been more relevant.”
The enhanced exhibit highlights the role of civic movements and bipartisan cooperation, illustrates how the legislative process works, and examines the lasting impact of Great Society legislation and shift in political dynamics since the 1960s. Ultimately, it tells the story of how individuals can shape the future of our nation through democratic participation.
“At the Library’s dedication in 1971, LBJ said its purpose was to tell ‘the story of our time,’ and that remains true today,” said Lara Hall, Museum Curator at the LBJ Presidential Library. “This is a living history, and in many ways the story of our time, that forces us to ask ourselves, ‘What kind of nation do we want to be?’”
EXAMINING OUR COLLECTIVE STORIES
In addition to the permanent exhibition, the LBJ Library is also unveiling two new temporary exhibits that invite visitors to examine the stories we share with one another and the ones we see unfold before us.
The first is a photo exhibition, Austin, Past & Present: Through the Lens of Jay Godwin, highlighting the city’s evolving landmarks and scenic views from the 1800s through the late 1980s. Curated by Godwin, the LBJ Library’s staff photographer since 2015 and previously the Austin American-Statesman’s photo editor, the exhibition opens on March 7 alongside the renovated exhibit.
The second exhibition opens April 11 and highlights different eras and cultures throughout American history—from early settlers and enslaved peoples to refugees, guest workers, and those navigating today’s complex legal systems. With stories and artifacts anchored around kitchen tables, What We Bring to the Table: Tales of History and Home explores the lives and legacies that have shaped who we are and who we strive to be, alongside the legislation that has both opened and closed doors to America.
“What We Bring to the Table is an immersive exhibit that traces the history of America’s people through the spaces where families gather and pass down memories,” said Hall. “It is a celebration of resilience and a reflection on the many ways Americans’ family stories intersect with the nation’s history and how those stories continue to evolve today.”
REFLECTING ON 250 YEARS OF “THE AMERICAN EXPERIMENT”
Beginning in June, the LBJ Presidential Library is providing visitors a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to examine rare documents both indicative of America's past and imperative to the country's progress over the last 250 years. The LBJ Library will be the center of several rotating exhibits and programs through the end of the year, coinciding with America’s semiquincentennial, called The American Experiment: Pursuing Our Promise.
From June until August, the LBJ Library is hosting a two-part traveling exhibition of archival documents spanning America’s history, curated by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The LBJ Library is the only presidential library in Texas to host both sets of documents from NARA’s touring exhibit.
Beginning early June through mid-July, the LBJ Library will display the first archival documents in the series, including original versions of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Louisiana Purchase. The second set of historical documents will be on view from July through early August, including the Statue of Liberty Deed of Gift, the Wright Brothers’ Flying Machine Patent, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
Following the NARA exhibition, the LBJ Library will partner with the Briscoe Center for American History to host additional exhibitions on American and Texas history, curated from the Briscoe Center’s rich collections, through January 2027.
"As one of the nation's leading history research centers, the Briscoe Center is excited to share some of our most treasured and significant documents related to Texas and US history in these special exhibitions," said Dr. Don Carleton, executive director of the Briscoe Center. "We are pleased to continue our longstanding partnership with the LBJ Library in celebration of our country's 250th anniversary."
The LBJ Library is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. seven days a week. Admission to the LBJ Library is free for children under 12, $6 for children ages 13-18, and $16 for adults, with discounts available for seniors, retired and active military, teachers, college students, and individuals named Claudia or Lyndon. Visitors can learn more about the exciting updates to the LBJ Library and plan their visit at www.lbjlibrary.org/visit.
About the LBJ Presidential Library
Established by President and Mrs. Johnson in 1969, the LBJ Foundation is a non-profit organization composed of a board of trustees and administrative staff that support the LBJ Presidential Library and the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin. The LBJ Foundation preserves President Johnson’s legacy as a call to action to bring us together in making a better nation. It does this by providing funds for educational outreach and museum exhibits, administering grants for researchers and scholars, operating the museum store and admissions desk, and directing public programming at the LBJ Library, and by providing financial support for the outstanding education the LBJ School offers its students in public policy and government affairs, community outreach, and global initiatives, lbjlibrary.org/foundation.
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