How I got interested in Presidential history

How I got interested in Presidential history

A little background on these articles on Presidents and technology. My interest in the Presidents began when I was less than 10 years old. My mom gave me a little book that was simply titled Presidents of the United States. (The images of the Presidents, from Washington to Eisenhower, in this series are from that book.) I think the book came from an insurance company, but I can’t find a publisher listed in its pages. I was talking to my mom recently about the book, and even had a picture taken of us looking at it (see photo).

My mom, who today is 97, remembers fanning my interest in the Presidents because I showed an interest, but she doesn't remember the book the way I do. (I still have it, and for several years added information about Presidents beyond Eisenhower. I added Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Nixon; then I got married and put the book aside.) When my mom went to school, the subject that became “social studies” when I was in school was divided into “history” and “geography.” My mom liked geography, but found history boring. “But I saw you were interested in the Presidents, so I encouraged you,” she says today.

Everything I know about U.S. history I tie to Presidential administrations, so I thought it would be interesting to describe the development of electronic products in the same way. I find the study fascinating, and I hope you do, too.