Presidential Museum Statistics: Visitor Counts Across FY2021 to FY2024

Presidential museum statistics at a glance

Presidential libraries and museums do not move in lockstep. The visitor counts in the dataset show sharp rebounds, steep drops, and clear outliers across FY2021 through FY2024, with the strongest gains concentrated in a handful of institutions (NARA FAQ).

Fast facts

• Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum posted the highest count in every year shown, rising from 65,475 in FY2021 to 275,945 in FY2023 before easing to 258,618 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum peaked at 152,765 museum visitors in FY2022 and then slipped to 99,998 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum climbed from 3,687 in FY2021 to 154,545 in FY2023, then settled at 146,924 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• Several libraries started from very low FY2021 counts and then expanded quickly, including Lyndon B. Johnson, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush (NARA FAQ).
• Two libraries show zero museum visitors in FY2021 in this dataset: Harry S. Truman and George H. W. Bush (NARA FAQ).

Table of contents

• What the dataset covers
• The big visitor patterns
• Year-by-year comparison
• Which presidential museums stand out
• What the numbers suggest

What the dataset covers

The keyword here is broad, but the supplied statistics are specific: they track museum visitor counts for presidential libraries and museums across FY2021, FY2022, FY2023, and FY2024. That makes the dataset useful for spotting relative momentum rather than pretending the numbers tell a single national total.

The row labels matter. Each figure is tied to a named presidential library and museum and cited as coming from the NARA FAQ (NARA FAQ). That means the most useful way to read the data is as a set of comparable institutional snapshots:

• one institution can have a strong rebound while another cools off;
• a low FY2021 base can make later growth look dramatic;
• the same museum can hit a peak and then normalize the following year.

Why it matters

For a keyword like presidential museum statistics, readers usually want the broad pattern first and the details second. The broad pattern here is simple: visitor volume is uneven, but the upper tier is clearly visible, and several museums posted very large gains from FY2021 to FY2024 (NARA FAQ).

The big visitor patterns

A few patterns dominate the dataset.

First, the highest-traffic museums are not merely a little ahead. They are far ahead of the lower-volume institutions in the same years. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum remains the clear leader throughout the period, and John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum becomes another major traffic destination by FY2023 and FY2024 (NARA FAQ).

Second, several museums show a sharp recovery pattern after a low or zero FY2021. That does not imply why the numbers changed, only that the change is large enough to stand out. Examples include:

• Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum: 0 in FY2021, then 48,152 in FY2022, 67,483 in FY2023, and 54,103 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum: 0 in FY2021, then 76,117 in FY2022, 88,386 in FY2023, and 92,806 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 3,373 in FY2021, then 84,354 in FY2022, 103,557 in FY2023, and 114,782 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).

Third, not every museum rises every year. Some institutions peak and then soften. That is visible in Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, William J. Clinton, and George W. Bush, each of which has at least one year of decline after a higher point in the dataset (NARA FAQ).

The dataset is less about one universal trend and more about distinct institutional trajectories.

Year-by-year comparison

A compact table makes the cross-year shape easier to see.

Presidential library and museum	FY2021	FY2022	FY2023	FY2024
Herbert Hoover	2,216	18,983	24,726	25,316
Franklin D. Roosevelt	21,284	152,765	105,426	99,998
Harry S. Truman	0	48,152	67,483	54,103
Dwight D. Eisenhower	4,894	26,342	59,418	61,093
John F. Kennedy	3,687	70,946	154,545	146,924
Lyndon B. Johnson	3,373	84,354	103,557	114,782
Richard Nixon	4,997	42,163	52,868	42,324
Gerald R. Ford	3,062	105,388	105,490	99,369
Jimmy Carter	3,525	29,928	50,557	63,094
Ronald Reagan	65,475	215,983	275,945	258,618
George H. W. Bush	0	76,117	88,386	92,806
William J. Clinton	4,019	38,841	79,254	53,599
George W. Bush	22,843	75,838	23,138	-

That table shows a few useful patterns right away.

• FY2022 is the major inflection year for many institutions, with several museums posting large jumps from FY2021 (NARA FAQ).
• FY2023 is the peak year for several libraries, especially Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy (NARA FAQ).
• FY2024 often consolidates gains rather than setting new records, though some museums continue to climb, such as Herbert Hoover, Lyndon B. Johnson, and George H. W. Bush (NARA FAQ).

A few fine points are worth calling out.

Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum climbs steadily across all four years: 2,216, 18,983, 24,726, 25,316 (NARA FAQ). That is a clean upward sequence, which is uncommon in this dataset.

Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum also moves upward each year: 4,894, 26,342, 59,418, 61,093 (NARA FAQ). The increase slows in FY2024, but the direction stays positive.

Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum shows a similar slope: 3,525, 29,928, 50,557, 63,094 (NARA FAQ). The FY2024 number is nearly twenty times the FY2021 count.

George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is the biggest exception to the idea of a smooth upward arc. It rises from 22,843 in FY2021 to 75,838 in FY2022, then drops to 23,138 in FY2023, and no FY2024 value is provided in the supplied statistics (NARA FAQ).

Which presidential museums stand out

The top-end comparisons matter because they help frame what counts as a large museum audience in this dataset.

The highest-traffic museums

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum is the standout by a wide margin. Its visitor counts are 65,475 in FY2021, 215,983 in FY2022, 275,945 in FY2023, and 258,618 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).

That sequence tells you three things:

• the museum already had a strong base in FY2021;
• FY2022 was a major leap;
• FY2023 remained the peak, with FY2024 slightly lower but still extremely high.

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is the next dramatic mover. The jump from 3,687 in FY2021 to 70,946 in FY2022 is large, and the move to 154,545 in FY2023 turns it into one of the biggest traffic draws in the dataset (NARA FAQ). FY2024 stays high at 146,924 (NARA FAQ).

Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum is also notable, but its shape differs. It goes from 21,284 in FY2021 to 152,765 in FY2022, then recedes to 105,426 in FY2023 and 99,998 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ). That is still a large audience, even after the pullback.

The middle tier

The middle tier includes museums that clear a meaningful visitor threshold but do not approach the top outliers.

• Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum: 105,388 in FY2022, 105,490 in FY2023, 99,369 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum: 84,354 in FY2022, 103,557 in FY2023, 114,782 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum: 76,117 in FY2022, 88,386 in FY2023, 92,806 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum: 38,841 in FY2022, 79,254 in FY2023, 53,599 in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).

These figures matter because they show the dataset is not only about the largest museums. Several institutions have visitor counts that move into the tens of thousands or low hundreds of thousands, which is enough to make annual changes significant.

The low-base grower group

A second interesting cluster consists of museums that start from a low baseline and then surge.

• Herbert Hoover: 2,216 to 25,316 across the dataset (NARA FAQ).
• Dwight D. Eisenhower: 4,894 to 61,093 (NARA FAQ).
• Jimmy Carter: 3,525 to 63,094 (NARA FAQ).
• Harry S. Truman: 0 to 54,103 (NARA FAQ).
• Lyndon B. Johnson: 3,373 to 114,782 (NARA FAQ).

The key reading here is not just percentage growth. It is the way these institutions move from niche audience sizes to materially larger ones in only a few years.

What the numbers suggest

The supplied statistics support a few careful, data-only observations.

1. Museum traffic is highly uneven across presidential libraries. Ronald Reagan is far above the rest in every year shown, while several institutions remain below 10,000 in FY2021 before later expanding (NARA FAQ).
2. FY2022 appears to be a broad rebound year. Many institutions jump in that year, including Herbert Hoover, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, William J. Clinton, and George W. Bush (NARA FAQ).
3. FY2023 often marks the strongest point in the series. Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, and several others reach their peak or near-peak values in that year (NARA FAQ).
4. FY2024 is more mixed than FY2023. Some museums keep rising, others ease off, and a few remain near their high water mark (NARA FAQ).
5. The biggest story is not one museum but the spread between them. The gap between a library like Herbert Hoover in FY2021 and Ronald Reagan in FY2023 is enormous, and that gap remains visible even after several institutions grow sharply (NARA FAQ).

Big numbers worth remembering

• 275,945 museum visitors for Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in FY2023 (NARA FAQ).
• 154,545 museum visitors for John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in FY2023 (NARA FAQ).
• 152,765 museum visitors for Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in FY2022 (NARA FAQ).
• 114,782 museum visitors for Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• 92,806 museum visitors for George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in FY2024 (NARA FAQ).
• 0 museum visitors for Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum in FY2021, followed by a full rebound in later years (NARA FAQ).

Reading the dataset closely

One useful way to read presidential museum statistics is to separate volume from momentum.

• Volume shows who is already drawing the most visitors.
• Momentum shows which museums are gaining the fastest from the low base years.
• Stability shows which libraries stay relatively close to their prior year.

The dataset has examples of all three. Ronald Reagan shows volume and stability at the high end. Herbert Hoover and Lyndon B. Johnson show momentum. Gerald R. Ford and George H. W. Bush show strong sustained volume after the rebound years (NARA FAQ).

A second useful lens is to compare whether a museum is still climbing, has plateaued, or has pulled back from a peak.

• Still climbing: Herbert Hoover, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Lyndon B. Johnson, George H. W. Bush, Jimmy Carter (NARA FAQ).
• Plateauing or near a plateau: Gerald R. Ford, Ronald Reagan in FY2024 versus FY2023 (NARA FAQ).
• Pulling back after a peak: Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, William J. Clinton, George W. Bush in FY2023 (NARA FAQ).

That pattern-based reading is the best way to use this kind of statistics dataset. It lets readers compare institutions without pretending the numbers mean exactly the same thing across every library.