In October 1964, a 19-car campaign train dubbed the Lady Bird Special left Washington, D.C., bound for New Orleans. At a time when political candidates’ wives were expected to be seen and not heard, Lady Bird Johnson made history as the first presidential spouse to take a leading role on the campaign trail. Her mission was to aid her husband, Lyndon B. Johnson, in territory roiling with animosity after his signing of the Civil Rights Act three months earlier. Proud of her Southern heritage and of what her husband had done for civil rights, Lady Bird undertook a whirlwind tour, making 47 stops through eight states in four days, not just to garner votes for Lyndon in the upcoming November election but to help bridge the divide.
Historian and author Shannon McKenna Schmidt follows the Lady Bird Special’s journey into the Southern politics of the day. Schmidt also highlights the first lady’s companions, who included three pioneering women: Liz Carpenter, dynamo press secretary and the first East Wing staff director; Dr. Janet Travell, the first woman to be a White House physician; and Helen Thomas, the first female member of the White House press corps.
Schmidt’s new book, You Can’t Catch Us: Lady Bird Johnson's Trailblazing 1964 Campaign Train and the Women Who Rode with Her (Sourcebooks), is available for purchase.
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