In The Color of the Moon interactive gallery, visitors can share their memories and thoughts of the first lunar landing that took place on July 20, 1969. Many responses have come back from people who were around during the momentous event, along with other messages that reflect upon the significance of the event and what it meant to them.
-Watching in quiet amazement and awe on a hot, humid summer night while 2 intrepid souls pushed the frontier of humanity’s progress outward by a quarter of a million miles.
-We were in England at the time, staying at a B&B. The guests were enchanted and said to us, “Aren’t you proud of your country!”. Yes, then we were proud Americans!
-I am fascinated by the fact the when the moon is full, it comes up in the east when the sun goes down in the west.
-It was awesome and we were awed.
-Got my driver’s license the day Apollo 11 landed.
-I was 7 years old. I remember my mother running from the kitchen to watch the rocket launch. She was sobbing, and I didn’t understand. It took several years later when I realized why she would be overcome with emotion. Wow.
-The Lunar landing brought a connection to all people regardless of race, gender, religion or social class. The lunar landing showed our communities that we could be inclusive and celebrate as a people of one.
-I was 50 years old, at home during summer break from college. I was an engineering major and fascinated by the technical achievement. The front page of the New York Times describing the event – still hangs on the wall in my study.
-I was in Edinburgh Scotland and didn’t know about the moon landing. But as soon as anyone heard my accent I was congratulated. It took a while before I knew the reason for the good wishes.
-I was 12 and just got back from Girl Scout camp. I was not nearly as impressed then as I am now.
-I loved the sight of the first because the flag showed America.
-We were living in a farmhouse in Holicong when Armstrong set foot on the moon.The contrast of the two places was awesome.
-I remember watching the first moonwalk on TV. The impossible coming true.
-Watched it then. Astounded still.
-I was with a group of collage friends the night of the moonwalk. We stopped what we were doing to gather around a TV. The moon walk by Neil Armstrong was something none of us will forget. We stopped all of our banter and just stared in amazement.
-It was a family event watching the landing on a small black and white TV set. I was 12 and living in a small town. I was so impressed and my admiration for USA grew even more the day.
-I want to land on the moon.
-With friends from Italy, the Netherlands and Barcelona, we all got up at 4am to watch it on TV in our dorm.
-My sister and two friends piled onto a king size bed of my friends brother and his wife. We had anticipated it for weeks and determined this was the best way for the bunch of us (7) to view it together . 50 years later and I can still recall our ooo’s and ahhh’s.
-My parents were watching our children , ages 2 and 7 months. My husband and I were at a picnic here in Bucks County. We raced back to Philly arriving in time to see the landing. A memorable night.
-I was 8 years old and watched the Lunar Landing on our family’s small black and white TV. Even then I realized something special. It created my love of science and future career.
–I am fascinated by the fact that when the moon is full, it comes up in the east and when the sun goes down it is in the west.
-My Mom always sleeps under the light of the moon. She believes it heals.
–I love seeing the moon through a foggy, misty sky.
–Sitting with my first-born baby in my lap, I turned on my small black and white TV. After several channel and antennae wire adjustments, a somewhat grainy and flickering image of the moon appeared. Minutes later, I heard the words “One small step…” and a shiver of excitement ran through me. It still does as I am writing this today!
–I wonder what the moon is like. I want to go there someday.
-I like the moon because it is pretty and gives me something to draw. It makes me feel insignificant in the greatest way possible.
-The moon is marvelous. It sparked my interest in astronomy, after the moon landing.
–I love the moonlight reflected on the water.
-I was so thrilled with this amazing feat that I recorded it with my movie camera from the TV.
–The landing on the moon was such an accomplishment for humans. Why can’t we use the same amount of thought and expertise to stop war?
–I love the sight of the first because the flags showed America.
–The landing on the moon was the result of passionate curiosity and problem solving. As we know it was a small beginning into our knowledge of the universe.
–I wrote my college entrance essay on Jim Lovell’s book “Lost Moon” and the Apollo 13 Mission!
–Space is very interesting, but especially the moon. Happy 50th anniversary of the lunar landing.
– I was asked if the landing was faked, and to be honest, I don’t care. All I know is that it brought hope and a new perspective.
-I was so thrilled with this amazing feat I recorded it with my movie camera from the TV.
-The lunar landing brought a connection to all people regardless of race, gender, religion or social class. The lunar landing showed our communities that we could be inclusive and celebrate as a people of one.
–I was in sixth grade. I was in North Wildwood at my Nana’s shore house. I remember walking down 14th street and seeing all the blue glow from the TV sets!
–My parents woke my sister and I and we sat on the bottom of their bed and watched the moon landing on a little black and white TV.
–It was the summer of 1969. I had just graduated high school. I was captivated to just wrap my head around seeing live footage from the moon.
–I was living in Harvard when the astronauts arrived in their capsule isolating them from any diseases that may have or will be exposed to until checked by doctors. The capsule had windows and I remember them waving to me and my two young sons.
–I was 12. My 8 siblings, Mom and Dad went to my Grandmas house in South St. Louis where she lived with my 3 unmarried aunts. All 15 of us sat in their small living room watching a small black and white TV. There was not a sound except-“One small step for man-one giant leap for mankind”.
–I was 20 years old, at home during summer break from collage. I was an engineering major and fascinated by the technical achievement. The front page of the New York Times-describing the event-still hangs on the wall in my study.
–With friends from Italy, The Netherlands, and Sweden studying in Barcelona, we got up at 4am to watch it on TV in our dorm.
–We had our first date the day before the moon landing. We are still together, 50 years later, We came to the Michener specially for this exhibit.
–I saw them leaving for the moon from my uncles roof top, who worked at the launch.
–We had just moved into our 1st home on July 4th. We built a Heathkit color TV and were thrilled to watch the moon landing in color.
–When I was 16 years old, my then boyfriend, got down on one knee and asked me to go steady, just as the first steps were taken on the moon. He said, “You’ll never forget when I asked you to go steady”. He was right!
–I was 6 years old and woke up to hear my parents TV on. I found them in bed drinking wine and eating snacks. I climbed in bed with them and watched the moon landing.
–We watched the moon landing in Cape Cod with multiple families. The only time we took a TV on vacation!
–We just went to DC on the Anniversary of the landing, to watch it projected in the Washington Monument. We saw the actual landing as juniors in high school on a black and white TV!
–I had my daughter the night before the moon landing. I watched the landing from my hospital bed and loved seeing it.
–Watching in quite amazement and awe on a hot, humid summer night while 2 intrepid souls pushed the frontier of humanity’s progress outward by a quarter of a million miles.
–I was the only one in my household to watch the landing (age 29). It was very exciting. To this day I have a vivid memory of the experience.
–Only months ago. walking up around midnight, as if awakened by an internal cue, I dashed from my bed and put on my parka and boots. From my steps in Perkasie. I gazed at the super-Blood moon.
–I was 6 years old and was fascinated to watch on our small black and white TV, with my family. My father made a plaque for my brother’s room of the front page of the NY Daily News, proclaiming the landing. Yet I, the only girl, was the one to fall in love with space, with Star Trek, Star Wars and Science Fiction. Fascinating!
–I was petrified and still am of the prospect of leaving this warm and beautiful earth to live in the desolate area of space. Why? Not me. It takes special people to want to do so.
–I graduated collage in June 1969. The moon landing in July was so spectacular and the culminate of so many years of effort and exploration. 1969 was the start of my adult life. The 60’s were such and inspiring time. I wish we could all (the world) capture again that spirit.
–My husband and I were preparing to move to Maxwell AFB in Montgomery AL. He was working that night and I was alone watching the landing on our very small black and white TV. I couldn’t wait until he got home to tell him all about it.
–It’s all about moon dust. It goes everywhere and all of the astronauts said it had a bad odor. Robert Timme was the NASSA scientist who was responsible for everything that came back from the moon, including the astronauts.
–I wasn’t alive during the time, but from my mom I heard the story. I think it’s cool how far we have come.
–We were in England at the time, staying in a B&B. The guest were enchanted and said to us “Aren’t you proud of your country!” Yes, then we were proud Americans.
–My wife and I were newly married, from San Antonio , TX. We were on our way to the AFIP at Walter Reed in Washington DC. We were new graduates and felt that everything was possible. Men were on the moon!
–I was a newly-wed and we watched on a small black and white TV. It was so thrilling to see, and I felt immensely proud of the USA and our accomplishments! What an event to witness. Bravo!
–I was feeding my 2 week old son, when they first landed on the moon. I thought Wow, what a wonderful thing to tell him when he got older.
–I was in summer camp on July 1969. I was 9 years old. One of the counselors had a small black and white TV in his cabin and a group of kids sat on the floor watching the landing on CBS television network. I remember that it was late at night when the Eagle landed on the moon’s surface. All of the kids had fallen asleep by then. But I stayed awake.
–I lived on Cernan Street in Moonwalk Village growing up. I turned 14 and and moved to the United States. Look it up!
–I held my 6 month old son and watched the TV. I told him one day he could do that. He chased something else to excel in.
-I was 9 at the Jersey shore watching on TV! Amazing!
-I came home from my summer job to find the family gathered around our little black and white TV. My dad was an engineer and he said if he were a young man he’d want to be an Astronaut. We were all so proud of our country. It brought the world together for a moment.
-We were in Tucson, Arizona getting ready for our wedding on July 27th. We celebrated our 50th Anniversary at the end of July.
-So wonderful to celebrate the landing of the Apollo on the same day as my Birthday.
-I was 7. We had a party at my neighbors house and we all gathered around to watch on their small black and white TV set.
-A number of fiends shared stories of where they were to see the first lunar landing and share it’s impression on them. Maybe you recall where you were September 11th, 2001. What a contrast!. The historic Apollo 11 landing evoked a feeling of promise and triumph.
-My grandparents took me camping in their trailer. We ate smores by the fire pit that lit our faces bright red, and in the dead of night they woke me up and we stared up at the sky unpolluted, and filled with stars. The moon was so bright. It was the 1st time I saw so many stars. I was 14 years old. I love moon shadows under trees!
-I was 19 years old in Ocean City, NJ and we listened on the car radio.
-I was 6 years old and mesmerized by the TV images of Armstrong and Aldrin broadcast back from the lunar surface. I wanted to be an astronaut…and still do.
-I was 8 years old and slept through the evening of 7.19.69. In September Buzz Aldrin returned to his hometown. My hometown. I saw him, and came to believe anything was possible. Anything.
-I was in Ocean City, NJ and we watched it on a little 12 inch black and white television. I was eleven. It was awesome. We beleived that anything was possible. We all need to believe again.
-I was just finishing high school. My husband worked on the Lunar Module with NASSA! So proud of him.
-As a young bride of a 1 month, I watched the landing alone as my husband was at work in the underground at SAC Headquarters in Omaha, NE So impressive!
-We had our first date the day before the moon landing. We are still together, so 50 years later we came to the Michener specially for this exhibit.
-I’m from Australia and our dish supported NASA. Watch DVD “The Dish”and see the latest documentary ”Apollo”released in July. Excellent production and lots of new film and no narration!
-As a nearly fifteen year old, I watched in fascination as history was made. I remember thinking…well, if this could happen, maybe the Mets could win the World Series! (they did!)
-I was finishing high school. We were glued to the TV. It was wonderful and exciting!
-I had my daughter the night before the moon landing. I watched the landing from my hospital bed and loved seeing it.
-I was in Edinburgh, Scotland and didn’t know about the moon landing. But as soon as anyone head my accent I was congratulated. I took a while before I knew the reason for the good wishes.
-I want to go to the moon and explore all the planets. I will also see the stars.
-We had no power when the astronauts were about to land on the moon! We quickly grabbed our sleeping toddler and drove to our friend’s house in Annapolis. Oh what a night!
-I remember writing to my pen pal in New Zealand bragging about our accomplishment about the moon landing. I was a little obnoxious, but I was a proud teenager about what an incredible feat it was.
-I was a 20 year old soldier in the Army in Vietnam when we landed on the moon. I listened to it on a transistor radio, holding it up to my left ear while I was driving a Jeep with my right hand on a courier run (it was too dangerous to pull over and stop). The Vietnamese working for us did not believe it really happened.
-My husband and I were living in a geodesic dome in the middle of a Massachusetts field. We drove to the local town bar and watched the moon landing on a small black and white TV. The whole bar exploded with cheering when the astronauts stepped out. It felt like the whole world celebrated that night.
-I was 20 years old at home during the summer break from college. I was an engineering major and fascinated by the technical achievement. The front page of the New York Times, describing the event still hangs on the wall in my study.
-Because of delays I was able to see the astronauts walk on the moon. I was driving to Philadelphia from Atlanta that day expecting to miss the event expected for the afternoon. Arrived home about 9pm. Just in time!
–I was just shy of my August 9th birthday. Mom and I were the only 2 in our family of 5 who choose to stay up and watch the landing on TV. It was doubly exciting, as it was the 1st time I was up past midnight. “A giant leap for both mankind and me’
–I was away at a summer arts camp in Western Maryland. All of us children gathered in the performing barn to watch the landing of the moon on a very small TV. There wasn’t a sound to be heard, we all held our breath.
–I was on a ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean coming back from Nam, we couldn’t watch, but we could/did cheer.
–I had a cardboard lunar lander from Esso Gas and I flew it by the blue pilot light of our stove in the dark kitchen until I watched the grainy pictures of the moon landing. Now I am a dedicated lunar observer using a 10 inch telescope. Buy a telescope and look at the moon. It is sublime and peaceful. Thanks for a great exhibit.
-I was 17 years old, hanging out at a beach party in Nice, France. My friend an I were out way past curfew. We were on an excursion with other students in France for 6 weeks. We realized how late it was. We headed back to the hotel, planning to tip-toe in and go back to our rooms. But everyone was up, it was late at night and gathered around a tiny black and white TV watching the moon landing in French! We slid into the room, no one noticed us and we watched the rest of the landing. Thanks for saving us from punishment, Apollo 1!!
–I was six and my sister was 3 1/2 My mother said we had to watch it because it was historic. I had to sit for what seemed like an eternity for the astronauts to exit the space craft and step down the ladder onto the moon. My sister just ran back and forth, but I remember it very clearly.
Thank you to everyone for your responses thus far. On your next visit, contribute your thoughts about the lunar landing. How has this event affected your life?