New Exhibit Salutes 250 Years of First Ladies
The National First Ladies Library & Museum unveils The Eras Exhibit showcasing America’s first ladies and their impact since the country’s founding.
For the past few days, staff members inside the Canton, Ohio-based National First Ladies Library & Museum have been busy putting the final touches on, perhaps, one of the most comprehensive museum exhibits examining the impact of presidential first ladies.
The Eras Exhibit, which opened last week, features artifacts, multimedia experiences and compelling stories that highlight the resilience, innovation, and leadership of America’s first ladies who have shaped the past 250 years. The exhibit, which will be on display for two years, salutes the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding on July 4, 1776.
The task of planning such a comprehensive exhibit was almost daunting, says Michelle Gullion, senior director of curatorial services at the National First Ladies Library & Museum and First Ladies National Historic Site. It prompted big questions like: What are 250 years? And, how do you contemplate all of these first ladies, all this country’s been through and what women have been through?
The answer came about while another Eras tour gripped the world. Yes, that Eras Tour of Taylor Swift fame over 2023 and 2024 that became the highest-grossing tour of all time and the first to earn more than $1 and $2 billion in revenue. It was a tour that critics deemed the “Greatest Show on Earth.”
That, in a word, was inspiring to the six-person staff at the museum, which ultimately decided they could tell the stories of the female political icons during their own eras, showcasing their unseen and seen power during their time. The Eras Exhibit, says Gullion, also spotlights women’s history, what everyday women did and what first ladies did that illustrates what was happening in the country at the time.
For example, a time period featured is Reconstruction where the museum focuses on First Ladies Julia Grant (1869-1877) and Eliza Johnson (1865-1869). Other women, says Gullion, are also highlighted for their contributions and include Elizabeth Keckley, an African American dressmaker and confidante to former First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, and Clara Barton, a Civil war nurse who founded the American Red Cross.
And to help tell the story of the changes occurring during Reconstruction, the exhibit features a letter written by Grant to her former slave, Kitty. The letter reveals Grant invited Kitty to the White House for the inauguration, wants her to stay with her, and is sending a coach and escorts.
“It shows how complicated that time in history was of these newly freed slaves and, yet, we don’t know how Kitty felt about all that,” Gullion says.
And artifacts that shouldn’t be overlooked include a calling card case of former First Lady Louisa Adams (1825-1829) from the 1820s. The case is inlaid with mother of pearl and has Adams’ initials etched on it.
“It tells this powerful story of first ladies and of the importance of the calling card,” Gullion says, adding the calling card, equated to today’s business card, was a practice essential to navigating the Washington, D.C., political and social scenes.
Another artifact is a bracelet that was given by Mary Todd Lincoln to her good friend, Elizabeth Atwater. Although hard to see, etched on the inside of the bracelet is the message, To: EEA (Elizabeth Emerson Atwater) and From: ML (Mary Lincoln) and the date, 1866, the year following her husband President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
“Again, it shows the female friendship and that Mary wanted to give her a gift,” Gullion says, adding that Atwater was a botanist from Chicago and a longtime supporter of Mary Lincoln.
There also are other letter reproductions like the one written by former First Lady Lucretia Garfield to a member of Congress who was in charge of paying the physicians after the 1881 assassination of James A. Garfield, the 20th president. She wrote the letter in support of Susan Edson, the only female doctor that was on the president’s list of doctors that took care of Garfield, who the first lady writes gave the “real care.” She took issue in the letter of how the other male doctors were being paid $10,000 and Edson was paid $5,000.
“She actually uses the words, ‘this is discrimination,’” Gullion says, adding that future press accounts showed Edson ultimately received $10,000.
Given the 250-year span of the exhibit, visitors should also consider what has not changed in the last two-and-half centuries. The first lady is still an unpaid position. All of these women who have served have been volunteers and in service to their country.
“They rose to the occasion. They did what they needed to do,” Gullion says, adding that the presidential spouses can’t really be faulted for what they did during those times. “Some of them are ill. Some of them lose people or are profoundly affected by the assassination of their husband.”
What might be surprising for visitors to the exhibit is something not on display, but rather a revelation of how important women are in history.
“I’m hoping they’ll come away realizing history can be different narratives,” Gullion says. “Women’s history is such a wonderful, interesting way to really see a more intimate form of history. I hope they come away with a sense of inspiration and interest in these women and learning more about all these women who we try to shine a light on.”