The Gerald Ford Vice President's Gallery Pass - Rarer Than You Might Think!

A Gerald Ford Vice President's Gallery Pass, circa 1974. Image Credit: Collection of the Author.

 Generally, the most common, easily obtainable Vice President's Gallery passes to the U.S. Senate Chamber stem from the early-1960s to early-1980s time period. For instance, passes issued by Hubert Humphrey, Spiro Agnew, and Walter Mondale are some of the most commonly available on the collectors market. At any given time, passes from Lyndon Johnson and Nelson Rockefeller may not be available in as great a quantity as these other examples, but they are fairly common as well. However, one notable exception regarding rarity in this time frame are passes that were issued by Gerald Ford. Even though they are fairly modern (only a little over 50 years old), they are much more difficult to track down in the current collector's market.

What accounts for this rarity? There are likely a few reasons. Gerald Ford came into the vice presidency under extraordinary circumstances - the first individual to become vice president under the provisions of the 25th Amendment, which basically established a process for filling a vacancy in that office. Prior to that, if a vice president was unable to complete their term, the office would have to remain vacant until the next presidential election cycle, after which a new vice president would be inaugurated. However, with the implementation of the 25th Amendment, presidents had the ability to fill vacancies in that office. This brings us back to Gerald Ford, who assumed the role as vice president following the resignation of Spiro Agnew on 10 October 1973. Ford served as vice president in the midst of the Watergate Scandal, which consumed much of the second term of Richard Nixon's presidency. Moreover, Ford only served as vice president for about eight months (6 December 1973 to 9 August 1974). Consequently, it's likely that not many of his Vice President's Gallery passes were issued - compared to other vice presidents who were in office for several years.

Thus, Gerald Ford passes do not show up often in the modern collector's market, though they can be tracked down periodically. If you want to find one, a helpful tip is to search for Ford ephemera sets on online auctions (instead of searching specifically for Gerald Ford passes). In the instances where I have found them online, they were being sold as part of larger, Ford-related document sets, so do keep a lookout for that. Another tip - if you do see one available for purchase - go ahead and buy it when you have the chance, for they don't come around very often!