Exhibitions

The Presidency and the Cold War

July 1, 2006 – February 24, 2008

National Portrait Gallery
8th and G Streets, NW
Washington, DC

2nd Floor

See on Map Floor Plan

This gallery is devoted to exhibitions on presidential themes with the first theme focusing on The Presidency and the Cold War. This exhibition explores how U.S. presidents shaped or reacted to the events of the Cold War, beginning at Yalta when Roosevelt met with Stalin and Churchill and ending with the collapse of the Berlin Wall. The Cold War consisted of an arms race, threats, and the formation of alliances and military bases around the world that, at times, brought the two superpowers—United States and the Soviet Union—perilously close to an all-out nuclear devastations. To illuminate key events on the Cold War, a selection of videos is available in the gallery.