HAIL! TO THE CHIEF
Presidential Visits to the University of Michigan
The Presidents
Whether it was John F. Kennedy announcing in 1960 his idea for the Peace Corps, or Lyndon B. Johnson four years later unveiling his vision of a “Great Society,” presidents and those on their way to the White House have used the national prominence of the University of Michigan to launch major initiatives.
Popular speaking venues have included the 3,000-seat auditorium in University Hall, now the site of Angell Hall; Hill Auditorium; and Michigan Stadium.
If one word characterizes the presidential visits to the University, it is “bipartisan.” The Republican and Democratic parties equally have been represented by their standard bearers.
The most frequent visitor was President Ford, a 1935 alumnus who said returning to Ann Arbor was “like coming back home.”