NEWS

Volunteers to clean up Hayes grounds as reopening nears

Craig Shoup
Reporter

FREMONT - As renovations ushering in a newly revamped Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Museums continue, community members are encouraged to take part in a spruce-up event in preparation for the centennial celebration over Memorial Day weekend.

The public is invited to join volunteers from Fremont Speedway and the City of Fremont in cleaning the grounds at Spiegel Grove from 5 to 7 p.m. May 5 as part of a beautification project at the museum.

That same night, Fremont city council will hold its regular council meeting at 7 p.m. on the front porch of the Hayes Presidential House.

Scott's Lawn Care and the city will provide equipment for the cleanup.

"We really appreciate and want to thank these members of the community for helping to beautify our grounds, especially as we approach our centennial celebration. Many people walk or jog our 25-acre grounds each day and enjoy the beauty of Spiegel Grove," said Hayes museum marketing and communication manager Kristina Smith.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the cleanup can call Mike Dukeshire at 419-680-0193.

"Hayes has done so much for us in Fremont. We just want to give back to them," Dukeshire said.

During the cleanup, volunteers will pick up loose sticks, pull weeds and make sure the center is ready for the centennial celebration.

"We have 60 volunteers so far. I want the Hayes family to know we are taking care of their memory," Dukeshire said.

As the community comes together to clean up the grounds, $1.5 million in renovations continue at the center's museum, the first major update since the exhibit opened in 1968.

"This gallery will be all about U.S. presidents," Smith said. "The gallery will honor presidents with documents and their inaugural medals."

One of the biggest new additions to the museum is a replica of the Resolute Desk — a gift England's Queen Victoria gave to Hayes. The original is still used to this day in the Oval Office.

The replica will be displayed in the presidential gallery, just off the rotunda at the museum, and features a door on the front that was added by Franklin Delano Roosevelt to conceal his leg braces while he served as president from 1933 through April 1945.

Education was a priority for Rutherford and his wife, Lucy Webb Hayes, Smith said, and it especially shined in their presidential china, which will be on display at the museum. While continuing along the tour of the revamped museum, guests will notice many bold paintings, new artifacts and a redesigned layout providing educational information and a comprehensive story of the life of the Hayeses.

"The china display really stands out," Smith said. "Lucy loved animals and there are animals painted on the plates. She took a lot of criticism about it, but they wanted dignitaries and guests to learn about the United States when they visited."

The museums' renovations are still on schedule, including a new front entrance accessible for people with disabilities.

The centennial celebration at the museum begins at 9 a.m. May 28 with a ribbon-cutting and grand reopening celebration.

Events run through May 30, with guided tours, games for kids, a beard contest and former ABC News and NPR analyst Cokie Roberts speaking from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on the Hayes Home veranda on May 29.

cshoup@gannett.com

419-334-1035

Twitter: CraigShoupNH

Kristina Smith, marketing and communications manager for Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museums, sits at the replica Resolute Desk in the presidential gallery.
Mary Lou Rendon, collections manager for the Hayes Library and Museums, prepares a proclamation made in honor of Rutherford B. Hayes. .
Picture of Rutherford B. Hayes and wife Lucy Webb Hayes, a new attraction at the museum that chronicles their lives in the White House when Hayes was elected 19th president.