George Bush presidential library to open in April
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will include the 13th US presidential library, will host an official dedication ceremony on 25 April before opening to the public on 1 May.
The 226,565sq ft (21,565sq m) building, located at the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, has been under construction for two years and will include a library, museum and policy institute.
Set on 23 acres, including replanted trees from Bush’s Texan ranch, the centre is designed to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification.
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) will operate the library and museum, which will house 43,000 artefacts such as personal mementoes, gifts from foreign heads-of-state and items associated with defining moments from Bush’s presidency.
Interactive, digital and visual displays will detail principles that guided Bush through key critical situations in his presidency, and eighty terabytes of digital information will be archived at the centre, including 200m emails.
President of the George W. Bush Foundation Mark Langdale said: “It will preserve for history the important decisions made by President Bush during his presidency and will embody and carry on the values of President and Mrs Bush.”