Two million of the 38 million pages of White House documents in the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum opened to the public January 19. Now available are four major sets of records from the Bush presidency: White House files covering domestic topics, press office files, the daily presidential diaries, and speech-writer files.
However, eagerly anticipated records on international topics such as the Persians Gulf War await further processing and/or classification and could be up to 10 years away from release, said Library Director David Alsobrook.
Located on the southwestern edge of Texas A&M University, the library was dedicated November 6 (see American Libraries, Dec. 1997, p. 13) and is expected to become the major research center for Bush's four-year presidency as well as his eight years as vice-president, and much of his life in government, politics, and the petroleum industry before that. The $83-million neoclassical marble and limestone library building was constructed without federal funds," reported the January 19 Houston Chronicle, but has been operated since its opening by the National Archives and Records Administration.
Posted January 26, 1998.