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In 2026, the United States is celebrating its 250th birthday. Across the country and across Ohio, celebrations and special events are taking place. The Hayes Presidential Library & Museums — the estate, home, library, museum and burial site of the 19th U.S. president and first lady — is the perfect place to celebrate America's rich history.

 

Here are the offerings Hayes Presidential has planned for America 250. This list will be updated as more events are added. 

 

 

Special exhibit: “Welcome to the World’s Fair: Philadelphia 1876”

Friday, March 27, 2026 - Wednesday, June 30, 2027

 

A century after a handful of colonists declared their independence from Great Britain, the growing United States celebrated its success at the democratic experiment in grand fashion.

The Philadelphia Centennial Exposition was a world’s fair that demonstrated the young American republic’s innovations in science, agriculture, industry and the arts. The 6-month long event attracted prominent speakers from across the country, including the Republican candidate for president, Rutherford B. Hayes. 

With the United States celebrating 250 years of the American experiment, the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums remembers the 150th anniversary of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition with the special exhibit “Welcome to the World’s Fair: Philadelphia 1876.”

The exhibit shares the history of the exposition, discuss its impact on American culture and society and display artifacts from the exposition. Accompanying the Centennial exhibit, the museum will also feature a gallery of artifacts from its collection from the American Revolution in homage to 250 years of American independence.

“As we celebrate America 250, this exhibit is interesting because it gives us a look into how people have celebrated U.S. independence in the past, and it gives us a glimpse into a grand spectacle that we don’t really see much anymore,” said Kevin Moore, Hayes Presidential curator of artifacts.

Read more here: https://www.rbhayes.org/news/2026/03/26/general/special-exhibit-welcome-to-the-world-s-fair-philadelphia-1876-open-through-june-30-2027/

This exhibit is sponsored by the Randolph J. & Estelle M. Dorn Foundation.

 

 

 

Tree Tours

Monthly: May - August, also October

See the many trees of Spiegel Grove and learn about their types and history during a variety of tree tours offered throughout the spring and summer.

This year, tree tour guide John Havens, Hayes Presidential Library & Museums building and grounds superintendent, will dress in colonial garb and add some early American tree history to the tours in honor of America’s semiquincentennial, or 250th birthday this year.

Tours last about an hour and cover different trees and topics ranging from giant trees to trees that President Rutherford B. Hayes and his descendants named in honor of people they admired. These tours enhance the experience of walking at Spiegel Grove, an official arboretum and estate of the president and his wife, First Lady Lucy Hayes.

Schedule and tickets here: https://www.rbhayes.org/news/2026/04/02/general/tour-spiegel-grove-arboretum-learn-about-tree-history-with-colonial-facts-sprinkled-in-for-america-250-with-tree-tours/. 

Tree Tours are sponsored by Dr. Mary and Charles Wonderly. Tree tours are part of Hayes Presidential’s year-long America 250 celebration. Partial funding for America 250 events is provided by Albrechta & Liebold, Ltd., Attorneys at Law. 

 

 

 

History Roundtable with Mike Gilbert

Sept. 5, 12, 19 and 26; Oct. 10, 17

 

 

From the signers of the Declaration of Independence to under-told stories of men and women behind the American Revolution to the downfall of Alexander Hamilton, History Roundtable will have a colonial American focus this fall.

The popular series, led by retired educator Mike Gilbert, returns for its 13th season and will focus on topics highlighting early American History in celebration of the United States’ semiquincentennial celebration this year. Gilbert researches each topic and presents fascinating stories of the past.

History Roundtable will take place in person. Pre-recorded virtual sessions also will be offered for those who cannot attend in person.

Six sessions are offered on Saturdays in September and October. Sessions are from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Admission – whether in person or virtually through the recordings – is $5 per session or $25 for all six. Pre-registration and pre-payment for both in-person and virtual sessions are required.

Cash, checks and credit cards are accepted. To register and pay, contact Julie Mayle, curator of manuscripts, at [email protected]. There are no refunds.

The schedule of sessions is:

  • Saturday, Sept. 5 – Prelude to the American Revolution: The collapse of the British East India Company and unrest at home pushed Britain into taxing tea and hiring Hessian soldiers, exposing an overstretched empire straining to hold its power as the Revolution unfolded.

 

  • Saturday, Sept. 12 – We The People: The Signers: The Declaration of Independence is remembered for its 56 signers, but its creation and preservation relied on many others. Learn how unrecognized individuals played a part in this historic document.

 

  • Saturday, Sept. 19 – Hidden History: Women Behind the American Revolution: This topic will shine a light on the women of the American Revolution. From indigenous diplomats to the enslaved, from privateers and spies to front-line patriots, their stories reveal a far more complex and powerful transformation.

 

  • Saturday, Sept. 26 – Hidden History: Men Behind the American Revolution: The American Revolution promised liberty, yet minorities and the poorer classes faced harsher realities. These stories reflect the obscure tales of men lost to history and their contribution to a Revolution that changed the world.

 

  • Saturday, Oct. 10 – The American Revolution and its Effects on the British Empire Britain’s “black holes” overlooked imperial episodes including the displacement of Loyalists, the legal limbo of privateers and the plight of prisoners. Administrative indifference, maritime law ambiguity and wartime movement erased their lives from official histories.

 

  • Saturday, Oct. 17 – Alexander Hamilton: The Downfall of a Founding Father: Interested in true crime? In 1799, the murder of “Elma” Sands and the sensational 1800 trial, defended by Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr, helped grow public interest for lurid courtroom drama and served as a forerunner to the true crime genre so popular today.

History Roundtable is sponsored by ProMedica Memorial Hospital. 

History Roundtable is part of Hayes Presidential’s year-long America 250 celebration. Partial funding for America 250 events is by Albrechta & Liebold, Ltd., Attorneys at Law.

Hayes Presidential is America’s first presidential library and the forerunner of the federal presidential library system. It is partially funded by the state of Ohio and affiliated with the Ohio History Connection. Hayes Presidential is located at Spiegel Grove on Buckland Avenue.

For information, call 419-332-2081, or visit rbhayes.org. Like Hayes Presidential on Facebook and follow on Instagram at rbhayespres and on Bluesky at rbhayespres.bsky.social.

 

 

 

 

Special exhibit: 'Warrior Dogs & Faithful Companions'

Oct. 1 - 31, 2026

 

This exhibit showcases Ohio artist James Mellick’s signature wood forms Armed Forces canines. Each dog represents a different military campaign, as well as the injuries that their human counterparts endure. Mellick created the installation to raise awareness of the sacrifices made by veterans and their needs now. The nine canine sculptures are both humbling and healing, representing a special bond between the soldiers and canines. To this end, the display of these sculptures is for the purpose of:

  • Opening dialogue and encouraging psychological healing for veterans and families
  • Calling attention to the ongoing needs of physically and psychologically wounded veterans through our bond and connection with our faithful canine companions
  • Bringing attention to the service and heroism of the military working dog

The beauty and craftsmanship of the exhibition is not intended to ignore the intensity or suffering of war. Mellick’s intent is to emphasize the nobility of those who sacrificed life, limb and spirit in service to their country.

James Mellick’s career as an artist has been divided between the art market and the university. In 1973, he earned his master of fine arts degree from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville with a major in painting, a minor in sculpture and extensive work in printmaking.

Access to this exhibit is included with regular admission. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums members are admitted for free. For hours and admission, visit rbhayes.org. This exhibit is sponsored by the Art & Kate Doust Charitable Fund.

 

 

Special exhibit: 'Eyes of Freedom'

Saturday, Oct. 3 - Monday, Oct. 5, 2026

 

Special outdoor exhibit, 'Eyes of Freedom,' a traveling memorial dedicated to honoring the service and sacrifice of all who answer our nation’s call will be on display at Spiegel Grove, the grounds of the Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. The exhibit is comprised of nine panels and the Silent Battle bronze sculpture. There is no charge to view this exhibit.

During spring 2005, “L”-Co. or Lima Company was deployed to Iraq. Twenty-two Marines and one Navy Corpsman were killed in action between May and August of that year. The news of their losses prompted spontaneous expressions of compassion for the families of the fallen and the surviving Marines.

Anita Miller, a Columbus artist who had no prior connection to the Marines describes her experience…“I awoke in the middle of the night with a start and hovering in front of me I saw life-sized paintings, displayed in a circle. People were milling around them leaving messages of love in the boots at the base of the portraits. Suddenly, the people disappeared, and a small crew of workers came in and dismantled the paintings as if they were moving it to a new location. I knew it was a traveling tribute to the fallen of Lima Company and I felt somehow, I was being asked to create it.”

Two and a half years later, after meeting and working with the families of the fallen, The Lima Company Memorial was unveiled in the Ohio Statehouse and was displayed before it began touring the country. To date, this exhibition has been displayed in 34 states and more than 360 events.

 

Watch - State of Eight: Presidential Leadership Forged in Ohio

Virtual program recorded from presentations made in March 2026

 

Ohio is the “State of Eight” presidents — seven who were native Ohioans and one who has deep connections to Ohio.

The Hayes Presidential Library & Museum partnered with America250-Ohio and presidential sites from across Ohio and Indiana to tell the stories of each of these leaders through a free, virtual program taking place on Wednesdays throughout March.

Watch each program of State of Eight: Presidential Leadership Forged in Ohio below:

Each presenter discussed how the presidents shaped and were shaped by events of their eras, which impacted their presidential terms and American history. Participants heard the personal stories of these leaders and their families in and out of the White House, how they thought about the founding of the nation and influences from their youth that set them on their legendary path. 

Partial funding for America 250 events is provided by Albrechta & Liebold, Ltd., Attorneys at Law.