The highlight of the Jones years was four visits to the property by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. An important supporter of the Republican Party, Jones had met and become friendly with the president in the early 1950s, and he even purportedly purchased property in Texas adjacent to a farm owned by Eisenhower and secretly paid for upkeep on the president's farm. The two men often went on hunting and fishing excursions to Jones' properties and elsewhere.

               On September 13 and 19, 1958, and again on July 9 and 16, 1960, the president visited Jones at Hianloland Farm, where they fished on the lakes, went duck hunting, shot skeet and toured the game farm. After one particularly good day of fishing, Eisenhower even cooked the fish for dinner.

               "It was a hectic time," said George Wheatley. "We didn't know he was coming, and one day I was near the cow farm and these two guys get out [of their car]...They told me they were Secret Service, just checking the place out because Eisenhower might want to visit. Then Jones called me and told me that they were coming out for the weekend and expecting guests. He didn't tell me who or anything else. They flew in by helicopter."

               In preparation for the president's visits, Wheatley and his staff pulled weeds from the lake - now called Eisenhower Lake -- to improve the fishing and stocked it with bass, rainbow trout and brown trout. Wheatley even operated the small boat from which the men fished, and he noted that the president was a good shot when it came to duck hunting. "When I was around, they just talked about what they were doing: fishing, hunting. They didn't talk any business. I imagine they probably did at some time, but not when I was around."

  Each month during our 50th Anniversary we will be featuring portions of the soon to be published book about the history of the W. Alton Jones Campus by Todd McLeish