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Museums in three Michigan cities will display some of the United States’ foundational documents from the late 1700s and early 1800s as the country celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding.
The documents that will be displayed in Michigan include the 1783 treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, an 1823 original engraving of the Declaration of Independence and the 1787 ordinance that laid the groundwork for Michigan to be admitted to the Union.
Other events taking place throughout the state will bring community members together for a nationwide potluck and nationally synchronized reading of the Declaration of Independence.
The nonpartisan America250MI Committee serves as a hub for events taking place throughout the state, collaborating with state and local museums, historical societies, archives, libraries and county committees.
The committee established five guiding themes to serve as the foundation of the celebration: “Unfinished Revolutions,” “Power of Place,” “American Experiment,” “We the People” and “Doing History.”
Events are still being announced as more counties throughout the state establish committees. A complete, up to date list of events taking place throughout the state can be found on America250MI’s website. These are some of the biggest announced so far.
OPENING THE VAULT: THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE
Drafted by the Confederation Congress at the same time as the Constitution, the Northwest Ordinance, passed July 13, 1787, established the foundational framework for governing the Northwest Territory and created a structured process for admitting new states to the Union on equal footing as the original 13 colonies, laying the groundwork for states like Michigan.
It also laid the groundwork for the Bill of Rights, which was introduced two years later in 1789 and ratified in 1791, including protections for religious freedom, the right to habeas corpus and trial by jury and other individual rights. The ordinance also banned slavery in the region.
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum Curator Mirelle Luecke said that while the Northwest Ordinance may not get as much recognition as the Constitution or the Bill of Rights, it is one of the most important documents in American history.
“The things that are explored within the Northwest Ordinance, laid out within the Northwest Ordinance, really helped shape those other documents,” Luecke said.
Michigan residents will have two rare opportunities to see the original document on loan from the National Archives.
It is currently on display at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor through April 30.
The Northwest Ordinance will return to Michigan over the summer, when it will be on display at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids from June 3 through Nov. 1.
No other copies of the document are currently on public display anywhere in the country.
Both exhibits are free and open to the public.
FREEDOM PLANE NATIONAL TOUR: DOCUMENTS THAT FORGED A NATION
Before the Northwest Ordinance was passed to admit Michigan and other nearby states to the Union, Great Britain surrendered the Northwest Region in the 1783 Treaty of Paris, which ended the American Revolutionary War.
That treaty, and eight other documents from the late 17th and early 18th centuries, will be on display at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn this July.
The documents are traveling to eight cities throughout the country as part of the National Archives’ “Freedom Plane National Tour.”
The tour also includes an 1823 original engraving of the Declaration of Independence, the 1774 Articles of Association, Oaths of Allegiance signed by George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr in 1778, a 1787 secret printing of the Constitution in draft form, a 1787 tally of votes approving the Constitution and a 1789 Senate markup of the Bill of Rights.
The documents are traveling together for the first time and are being carried aboard a Boeing 737 with a custom Freedom Plane livery.
Cynthia Jones, the director of museum experiences and engagement at the Henry Ford, said the opportunity to see the documents anywhere – let alone in Michigan – is incredibly rare.
“These documents don't leave Washington. They don't leave the National Archives,” Jones said. “They are truly national treasures.”
Jones said the documents are as important as they’ve ever been.
“It really means something in this time to take a deep look at the Declaration of Independence,” Jones said. “To look at George Washington and Alexander Hamilton signing an oath of allegiance card for the Continental Army. They were saying, ‘I am no longer a British subject. I am going to break the law of the British colonies, and I am signing up to be part of the Revolutionary War.’ To read the Treaty of Paris, which ended the war, that formally recognize the United States as a nation for the first time.”
She said seeing them in person is an experience that can’t be replicated looking at them on a phone screen or computer monitor.
“These are incredible, incredible documents,” Jones said. “And when you see the real thing in person, there's just something to it. You can call it magic. You can call it whatever you'd like. But I think there is something to it, to see it in person, to see that the hand lettering, to see the signatures.”
She said seeing the handwritten notes on the draft Constitution provides a glimpse into how the nation came to be.
“It reminds us all that we come from this important history, but these were everyday people making that history,” Jones said. “And each and every one of us can make history right now with the choices that we make.”
The documents will be on display in Dearborn from July 9 through July 26. The exhibit is free to visit, but Jones said the museum expects long lines. The museum recommends being in line no later than 4 p.m. on any given day, as all lighting in the gallery will be turned off promptly at 5 p.m. to protect the documents.
AMERICA AT 250: REFLECTIONS ON THE BICENTENNIAL
The Freedom Plane National Tour is a reference to the Bicentennial Freedom Train that traversed all 48 contiguous states in 1975-1976 carrying more than 500 historic artifacts, including George Washington’s copy of the Constitution, the original Louisiana Purchase, Judy Garland’s dress and ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz and a rock from the Moon.
More than 7 million people visited the Bicentennial Freedom Train, which was, itself, a reference to the even earlier 1947 Freedom Train carrying 127 documents ranging from the Bill of Rights to the 1945 German surrender, which drew more than 3.5 million visitors.
President Gerald Ford, who led the nation during its bicentennial, inaugurated the 1975 train in Virginia.
An exhibit in the lobby of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor, which is there through Dec. 3, explores how Ford joined Americans across the country in commemorating the Bicentennial. It highlights the nationwide celebrations in 1976 and public gifts given to Ford.
WALTZING WITH THE QUEEN: PRESIDENT FORD AND THE ANGLO-AMERICAN SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP
Another exhibit organized by the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum, “Waltzing with the Queen,” will look at Queen Elizabeth’s visit during the United States’ bicentennial year through the lens of Anglo-American relations from the Revolution to the present.
The exhibit will feature Head of State gifts from Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to Ford and his family, the pen used by John F. Kennedy to sign the proclamation making Winston Churchill an honorary U.S. citizen, the table gifted to Dwight Eisenhower by Queen Elizabeth featuring a detailed engraving of the D-Day invasion and the gown worn by Queen Elizabeth to the state dinner held in her honor.
Ford danced with Queen Elizabeth in the East Room at the White House in July 1976, 200 years after the countries split.
That exhibit, based on the upcoming book “The Ford Administration and Anglo-American Relations: Re-valuing an Interim Presidency,” will open May 23 at the presidential museum in Grand Rapids.
A panel with the book’s authors will be held May 20 at the presidential library in Ann Arbor. The authors will hold another panel in Grand Rapids ahead of a ribbon cutting for the exhibit May 22, which will serve as a double program with journalist Susan Page, who wrote the book “The Queen and Her Presidents: The Hidden Hand That Shaped History.”
HANDMADE: THE CRAFTING OF AMERICA
Historic documents laid the groundwork of the American experiment, but 250 years of creativity molded the country into what it is today.
That’s why the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation chose to tell the story of the Semiquincentennial through the lens of American craftmanship.
“Handmade: The Crafting of America” explores the evolution of craft, including why we make, how we innovate, and the people we create for.
Jones said the museum wanted to look at the 250th celebration “from a you and me perspective.”
Historic artifacts that were previously featured in the museum’s exhibit for the Bicentennial were later put on permanent display, including a 1776 copy of Common Sense by Thomas Paine and George Washington’s camp bed.
She said the museum wanted to identify artifacts from the museum’s expansive collection that aren’t on permanent display that they could bring forward for this year’s celebration.
“What people were not necessarily thinking we might do is think about the way that life is lived in America, and how Americans are unique in how we live,” Jones said.
More than 100 craft objects are included in the exhibit, about 90% of which are on display for the first time in decades – and some for the first time ever.
The exhibit highlights how the things we choose to put in our homes and on our bodies speaks to what we value, Jones said.
That’s embodied by a wooden quilt on display that was made from the remnants of the artist’s family home after it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
“Out of the rubble, the literal broken wood of his home, he collected it, and he took that artistic eye, and he said, I can make something out of this destruction,” Jones said. “I can make beauty. I can keep memory out of this destruction.”
Housed in the museum’s Collections Gallery, the exhibit is divided into four key areas: Folk Art and Craft, The Shakers, The Arts and Crafts Movement, and Modern Craft in the 20th and 21st centuries.
The museum included modern artifacts to fully encompass America at 250, rather than focusing only on the specific date it came into existence.
“I hope that it helps you think about America as I know America, America before I thought about America, America that comes after me,” Jones said.
Jones said she wants attendees to walk out of the exhibit thinking, “I can make something.”
“All of us make something,” Jones said. “Whether that's making dinner or whether that's making a needlepoint, or whether that's doodling, all of us can make something.”
“Handmade: The Crafting of America” is on display through Jan. 18. Admission is included with museum tickets or membership.
FABRIC OF AMERICA: OUR FASHIONS, TEXTILES AND TECHNOLOGIES
A larger collection of more than 500 textile artifacts will be on display at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation starting in June.
“Fabric of America: Our Fashions, Textiles and Technologies” explores how fabric shapes who we are as a nation, conveying identity, ambition and possibility across American history.
The exhibit is meant to be in conversation with “Handmade,” but could only be displayed for a short amount of time due to the conditions needed to preserve fabrics.
“Fabric degrades when you put a lot of light on it,” Jones said. “So if we wanted to bring out clothing from the 1700s, it’s very fragile, and you can only have it on display for a couple months at a time.”
The exhibit will include historic artifacts that the museum believes have never been on public display, including a flag and a top hat used by Abraham Lincoln when he was running for president.
It is divided into five themes: Liberty, practicality, inventiveness, abundance and individualism.
Some of the themes – like individualism and abundance – overlap in ways that invite attendees to reflect on their own choices.
An infinity mirror in the abundance section, paired with donated clothing, will show visitors a reflection of themselves surrounded by the amount of clothing the average American purchases in a year.
“I personally hope that that makes us a little bit more thoughtful,” Jones said. “What is it that I'm choosing? Because everything that we make, everything that we wear, everything that we build, involves choices.”
“Fabric of America: Our Fashions, Textiles and Technologies” will be open June 7 through Sept. 13. Admission is included with museum tickets or membership.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN’S KALAMAZOO SPEECH READ FOR ANNIVERSARY
If seeing Lincoln’s hat and flag aren’t enough, you can commemorate the former president’s only public appearance in Michigan.
The Kalamazoo Abraham Lincoln Institute will celebrate the 170th anniversary of the 16th U.S. president’s speech in support of presidential nominee John C. Fremont at Bronson Park in 1856, four years before Lincoln himself was elected. It was his only public appearance in Michigan.
The speech drew more than 10,000 attendees, estimated to possibly be the largest crowd to gather in Michigan at that time.
On Aug. 27, Lincoln’s speech will be read again, about a quarter of a mile away from where it was originally delivered. The event will also include discussions about the impact of the speech on the community and beyond.
Organizers say RSVPs will be required for the event at The Desenberg, with more information to be announced.
WREATH LAYING AT GEORGE WASHINGTON STATUE TO COMMEMORATE INAUGURATION OF FIRST PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
The Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution will lead a wreath-laying ceremony at a statue of George Wahington near the Michigan Capitol on April 30.
Washington was sworn in as the first president of the United States on April 30, 1789.
The wreath-laying ceremony at the Elliot-Larsen Building in downtown Lansing will include the Posting and Retiring of the Colors, music, brief remarks by state and federal dignitaries and a 21-gun salute.
Business casual attire is encouraged but not required. Organizers also say people should dress for the weather, since the wreath-laying ceremony will take place outdoors.
The wreath-laying ceremony starts at 1:30 p.m. April 30 and is expected to last about 90 minutes. Tours of the state Capitol and a reception in Heritage Hall will follow, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
SHARING THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA: COMMEMORATING THE FIRST READING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
People throughout the United States will come together for a nationally synchronized reading of the Declaration of Independence on July 8 at 6 p.m. EDT, the 250-year anniversary of the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence by Colonel John Nixon.
America250MI Project Director Robert Doran-Brockway said our understanding of the document has evolved over time.
“When they said, ‘All men are created equal,’ they certainly weren't talking about enslaved people, right? They certainly weren't talking about anyone else who wasn't a white, rich, land-owning, wig wearing man,” Doran-Brockway said.
But he said the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding provides an important opportunity to reflect on the document as a “broadside against tyranny.”
“It's a permission slip to overthrow a tyrannical government,” Doran-Brockway said. “When they're talking about the right of the people to alter or abolish it, they're telling the people that if there is a government, a tyrannical government, that's not serving the people, they have the right to overthrow it.”
Doran-Brockway said it serves as a reminder “that it’s up to every single person to carry democracy forward.”
“The survival of the Declaration’s spirit lies in the fact that people have never stopped reaching toward it,” Doran-Brockway said. “They've never stopped believing in it. Even when the nation itself fell short, people still carried forward.”
Unlike New Year’s, when you see celebrations take place throughout the world at different times depending on time zone differences, the entire country is meant to read the document at the same time.
Readings can take place anywhere – courthouses, libraries, parks, museums, houses of worship or your own front porch are all examples given by America250MI. You can find a reading near you on America250MI’s interactive map.
If you’re interested in hosting your own reading, you can fill out America250MI’s application to be added to the map for others to join.
AMERICA’S POTLUCK AND RECIPE EXCHANGE
In the spirit of coming together as a community, Jones said some states are encouraging residents to participate in “America’s Potluck” on July 5.
She said having that sense of community is important in a tensely divided political climate.
“It's as simple as saying, ‘Here's my favorite dish. Do you want to come over and try it?’” Jones said.
The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation plans to share some of the historic recipes in its collection and will encourage others to consider sharing recipes of their own.
“And consider sitting down together, consider sharing a meal, consider sharing a cookie, and just be with each other,” Jones said. “Because I think in a moment of division, community matters.”
WISH WALL
Visitors at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation will be invited to share their wish for the nation as it turns 250 as part of a movement that museums across the country are participating in.
“We can see what other people are wishing for as well,” Jones said. “Maybe we share some wishes together.”
FIREWORK DISPLAYS LIGHT UP NIGHT SKIES
For many people, the Fourth of July means heading out to a beach, firing up a grill and watching fireworks light up the night sky.
The Bay City Fireworks Festival puts on some of the state’s biggest shows each year, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors to Veterans Memorial Park and Wenonah Park along the Saginaw River for three nights of dazzling firework displays, live music and carnival rides.
In 2012, for the festival’s 50th anniversary, more than 50,000 fireworks were set off in a 50 minute show, making it the largest display in mid-Michigan at the time.
Although there’s not an exact count of how many fireworks will be sent into the sky this year, organizers say they plan to break their own record.
Last year’s Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks in New York boasted a total of 80,000 shells of fireworks.
The festival’s board of directors is seeking to raise an additional $20,000 for this year’s festivities. But some residents are urging sponsors to boycott the event after the country band Confederate Railroad was booked to play Thursday night’s show, MLive reported.
MUSICALS PORTRAY SEMINAL AMERICAN MOVEMENTS
If you’re looking for something more upbeat than a traditional reenactment, the ATG Broadway in Detroit series has two shows focusing on America’s founding and fights for fundamental freedoms this spring.
“Suffs,” which is playing the Fisher Theatre through April 26, chronicles the American women’s suffrage movement leading up to the 1920 adoption of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote. It includes historic figures like National Women’s Party co-founder Alice Paul and NAACP co-founder Ida B. Wells.
The musical’s creator, Shaina Taub, is the first woman to ever independently win Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score in the same season.
Student rush tickets are available for $30 at the box office the day of each performance.
Three days later, one of the most successful modern musicals will take over the Fisher Theatre’s stage, as Hamilton returns to Detroit. The hip-hop musical chronicles the life of the “ten-dollar Founding Father without a father” on his rise from being an orphaned immigrant to a key figure in the American Revolution and the first Treasury Secretary, and his fall in a fatal duel with Aaron Burr.
The show, created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, won a Pulitzer Prize, 11 Tony Awards (the second-most ever given to a single production) and a Grammy, among other awards.
A limited number of $10 tickets will be available for each performance of the show, which plays April 29 through May 17, through the Ham4Ham Lottery.
To quote the musical, although a legacy may be “planting seeds in a garden you never get to see” because “you have no control who lives, who dies, who tells your story” there’s no shortage of ways for people throughout Michigan to celebrate the path the U.S. Founding Fathers set us on 250 years ago.
