Oral history interviews with Robert E. Lockwood
Smoot P. Oral history interviews with Robert E. Lockwood
This is a transcript of tape-recorded interviews with Robert E. Lockwood. Two interview were held, one on June 26th and the other on November 11. Robert Lockwood was first assigned to the Truman detail of the United States Secret Service for more than a year in 1967 and 1968. Lockwood then served as the special agent in charge of the Secret Service unit assigned to protect Bess W. Truman from 1973 to her death in 1982. In the first interview, Lockwood provides a detailed description of the yard and its maintenance processes. In the second interview, Lockwood describes the relationship between the Secret Service and Mrs. Truman and the layout of the home during her last ten years. In a room-to-room survey, he describes the movement of furniture and placement of smaller artifacts as Mrs. Truman’s health deteriorated and nursing staff entered the home.