RICHARD NIXON BORN IN YORBA LINDA
Yorba Linda, California (JFK+50) On January 9, 1913, the 37th President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon, was born here in Yorba Linda, a very small town of 31 residents. According to Robert Lyons, docent at the Nixon Library, the future POTUS's early days were "in every way...a typical farm life."
The house in which RMN was born was built by his father, Frank Nixon, in 1912. He put the 900 square foot home together from a kit. In 1922, after the failure of their citrus ranch, the Nixons moved to Whittier, California where Frank ran a grocery store and gas station.
Richard Nixon attended Whittier College where he became a champion debater and then went on to Duke Law School in North Carolina where he graduated third in his class in 1937.
Nixon married Pat Ryan in 1940 and the couple had two daughters, Tricia and Julie. Mr. Nixon served in the US Navy in WWII and after the war was elected to the United States Congress.
On January 3, 1947, Mr. Nixon, along with John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts, was sworn in as a member of the 80th Congress of the United States. Nixon was almost 34 years old, while JFK was 29.
Congressman Nixon was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1950. JFK was elected to the Senate in 1952, the same year Senator Nixon ran for Vice-President. After 8 years as VP under President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Mr. Nixon was narrowly defeated by Senator John F. Kennedy for the presidency, but in 1968 defeated Hubert H. Humphrey to become the 37th POTUS.
SOURCE
"Nixon birthplace hits 100 years," by Michael Mello, June 12, 2012, The Orange County Register, www.ocregister.com/
Birthplace of Richard M. Nixon
Yorba Linda, California
National Park Service Photo
