Polaroid - Harry S. Truman - Independence, Missouri circa 1970
I remember very clearly when this photo was taken (if not the exact year). I was only 8 or 9 years old, and we were on a family vacation. We were driving through Independence, Missouri on our way to the Truman Presidential Library.
My father suddenly pulled the car to the side of the road - “That’s Harry Truman!”, my father exclaimed. He then asked Mr. Truman if he could take a photo. The Ex-President agreed.
Later my father had this photo enlarged and sent it to Mr. Truman - Mr. Truman signed the enlargement and sent it back to my father (my father has an autographed photo of every President that has served in my father’s lifetime).
I now have the original Polaroid, as well as several copies of the original.
I’ll see if the Truman Library has any interest in the photo. I think it was taken just a couple of years before Mr. Truman’s death. You can see a gentleman to the right of Mr. Truman - I think this was his secretary, but I am not sure. I know it wasn’t Secret Service though - Mr. Truman was walking in broad daylight without a security detail. The times have changed.
If you click the image you will get a high-resolution scan. You might notice that Harry S. Truman, the man who ended World War II by ordering the only use of a atomic weapons in combat, is sticking his tongue out!
My brothers may remember more of the details (exact year, etc). Read the comments - they may share their remembrances there.
*** Random Post ***
January 20th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
I’ll also put an extremely high resolution link to the photo online later in the week. The scan produced an image that was too large for WordPress to handle. Once I get it online I’ll put the link here in these comments.
January 28th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
[...] Polaroid - Harry S. Truman - Independence, Missouri circa 1970 [...]
February 13th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Id love to see a hi res scan of this pic. I cant see it very well on the net. Its actually very interesting. There aren’t a whole lot of pictures of President Truman in the last year or 2 of his life.
Thanks!
February 13th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
@Matt - did you click on the picture? There is a higher res version if you do.
February 14th, 2008 at 12:32 am
The first time I was on this site and clicked on the pic it wouldnt do anything. Now it does, weird. I also got your email. Thanks.
I think the other man in the photograph is Mike Westwood
who worked for the Independence Police Department and chauffered the President and acted as a body guard for him (even after the secret service came into the picture in 1964). Can you post a copy of the autographed version of the picture?
February 14th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
@Matt - I don’t have the autographed version - my father has it in Arkansas. As chance has it though, I head to Arkansas to visit him tomorrow morning. I’ll see if he will either give it to me to send to the library, or let me borrow it to do a hi-res scan.