Expansion doubles Nixon Library’s size, features East Room replica
YORBA LINDA, CA — The Nixon Library has opened the new 47,000 square-foot Katherine B. Loker Center, nearly doubling the size of the Nixon campus. The Loker Center also brings to Orange County the elegance of a full-size replica of the White House East Room. The expansion includes 4,100 square feet of new gallery space devoted to original presentations and important traveling exhibits from major museums and institutions, as well as conference facilities for scholars and organizations. A stately new entrance pavilion, the Annenberg Court, completes the project.
America’s Grand Ballroom Comes to Orange County
At the center of the Library’s expansion is a full-size reproduction of the magnificent White House East Room. From its crystal chandeliers, golden silk draperies, and elegant marble fireplaces, the East Room has been re-created in breathtaking detail, with assistance from White House curators and artisans. Reproductions of the familiar life-sized portraits of George and Martha Washington complete the design.
The Nixon Library’s East Room was unveiled 175 years after the original space was first transformed during the Andrew Jackson administration, from the humble but utilitarian laundry room of Abigail Adams into America’s first grand ballroom. The largest and most elegant room in the White House, the East Room has served as backdrop to countless historic events. Seven U.S. Presidents have lain in state within its majestic walls, which have also hosted celebratory events from White House weddings, to concerts, news conferences, and gala evenings for visiting heads of state.
Tricia Nixon Cox’s wedding reception was held in the East Room following her Rose Garden marriage to Edward F. Cox on June 12, 1971, and in 1957 a young Julie Nixon and David Eisenhower were introduced in the East Room following the inaugural of Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon.
Friends of the Library
Benefactor Katherine B. Loker is a longtime friend of the Nixon family and member of the museum’s board of directors. Her gift not only enabled the Library to double in size, but also makes possible an expanded schedule of public affairs programming and participation.
Katherine B. Loker and her late husband, Donald, knew the President and Mrs. Nixon for more than 40 years. The daughter of Star Kist Foods founder Martin Bogdanovich, Katherine Loker is an active participant in many philanthropic causes.
She serves as an honorary trustee of her alma mater, the University of Southern California, where she funded the Donald P. and Katherine B. Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute and the institute’s Loker Wing; a professional chair for Nobel laureate chemist George A. Olah; and the Katherine B. Loker Track and Field Stadium. She is also a significant donor to Harvard University, her late husband’s alma mater, as well as a trustee of the California Science Center of Los Angeles; a life member of the foundation board of Cal State Dominguez Hills and lead donor of the school’s Loker Student Union; a founding member of the Los Angeles Music Center; and an active supporter of the Donald P. Loker Cancer Treatment Center at the California Hospital Medical Center in Los Angeles.
“Katherine Loker has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Nixon Library since its opening, attending countless speaker and policy programs here and in Washington and offers consistent encouragement, innovative ideas, and wise counsel,” said Nixon Library Chairman Donald Bendetti.
Leonore Annenberg, benefactor for the new Annenberg Court entrance pavilion and widow of Walter H. Annenberg, President Nixon’s Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s, is a graduate of Stanford University and has devoted her life working toward the enhancement of cultural appreciation among American citizens.
She served President Reagan as Chief of Protocol for the United States, and today is deeply involved as chairman and vice president of the Annenberg Foundation with a diverse group of charitable, cultural and educational institutions, including the Annenberg Schools for Communication at the University of Southern California and the University of Pennsylvania. Mrs. Annenberg is the recipient of the Library’s 2003 Pat Nixon Ambassador of Goodwill Award.
Project Details
Landon/Wilson of Irvine, original project architects, reprised their role in the Library’s expansion, and Matt Construction of Santa Fe Springs served as general contractor.
The 52,000 square foot Library lobby, gallery and theater gained an additional 47,000 square feet with the completion of the Katherine B. Loker Center and Annenberg Court. The new East Room seats 325 with expansion capability to a total of 450 for a sit-down dinner, and 650 for theater-style seating presentations. Adjacent breakout rooms can accommodate 125 for banquet and 200 for receptions. Receptions may be held in an adjacent indoor foyer, a new patio off the East Room entrance, the Library’s beautiful Pat Nixon Amphitheater, or the First Lady’s Garden surrounding the birthplace. The center includes kitchen and refrigeration facilities suitable for catering large events. Reservations for private events are coordinated by the Library’s special event office at 714/993-5075 ext. 274.
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The Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, is open daily 10:00 am to 5:00 pm and Sundays 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. For more information about events or exhibits, please call (714) 993-5075 or visit the library online at www.nixonlibrary.org
For Coverage Opportunities: Contact Jonathan Movroydis at (714) 364-1199, or email at jonathan@nixonfoundation.org.
