in Denison, Texas. Today is the 120th anniversary of his
birth. Ike's family was from Kansas and his father had a
grocery store that went bankrupt. The father went to
work for the railroad and that led him to Denison. The
railroad was just making his way into Texas and Denison
became the main hub of all rail traffic into the Lone Star
State. Although born in Denison, Ike did not know the
exact spot of his birth until he was a young man. An early
passport shows Eisenhower's place of birth as Tyler, Texas.
The Eisenhower family was only in Texas for less than two
years before returning to their beloved Kansas. It would be
here that Ike spent his youth. He would go on to school at
West Point, serve on the staff of General Douglas McArthur,
lead the American forces in North Africa, and then be named
Supreme Allied Commander of All Forces in the D-Day landing
at Normandy, France. Movies, books, and news accounts have
made the invasion look almost inevitable, but Ike carried a
hand-written note in his pocket for years. If the D-Day invasion
had gone sour he was ready to proclaim the failure on himself
alone. Eisenhower became the most popular man in the
world with the successful ending of World War II and Ike ran
for President in 1952. The black & white photo shows him
campaigning that year in Denison. When asked about his
main accomplishments as President, Eisenhower would later
proudly proclaim 'the Civil Rights Movement and the Interstate
Highway System' both getting their start during his administration.
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