April 23, 2024

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar Visits George W. Bush Library for Good for Texas Tour: Presidential Libraries Edition

(DALLAS) — On his Good for Texas Tour: Presidential Libraries Edition, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today visited the George W. Bush Presidential Library (GWB Library), which is dedicated to the legacy of the 43rd president and sits on the campus of Southern Methodist University.

“The GWB Library chronicles President Bush’s presidency through a collection of more than 70 million pages of text, 30,000 recordings of audio visual materials and 80 terabytes of electronic records containing more than 200 million emails,” Hegar said. “The library also offers exhibits showcasing key moments in his two terms, including the 9/11 attacks and the Iraq War. These exhibits are particularly poignant for folks around my age. They are fresh in our nation's history, but there are already generations growing up with no firsthand knowledge of these events. That is one reason these libraries are so critical. They remind us of our own history.”

During this tour, Hegar is spotlighting information his office has gathered on the presidential libraries. Texas is home to more presidential libraries than any other state.

The GWB Library is part of  23-acre George W. Bush Center, which also encompasses a presidential museum, institute and the offices of the George W. Bush Foundation. Through December 2024, the library will feature an exhibit titled “Freedom Matters” that explores the pursuit of liberty and the importance of freedom. The library also holds teacher workshops, creates classroom materials and employs the “Presidential Hats Program,” which aims to give students in grades 3-5 the opportunity to examine the powers of the president through role-playing exercises. The public can also participate in the “Civics for All of US” program at the library to increase civic literacy through the exploration of U.S. Government records. 

In 2023, the GWB Library is estimated to have contributed $134 million to the Texas economy, with total employment — direct and indirect — of nearly 1,300. 

For more information on the tour, including in-depth data on all of Texas’ presidential libraries, visit the Comptroller’s website.