Rutherford B. Hayes' bicentennial birthday celebrated with full slate of events

FREMONT — In his diary and in personal letters, Rutherford B. Hayes wrote about some of his birthdays.

Some of Hayes' diary entries and letters were short and to the point, like his 16th birthday, when the former president described spending the morning on Lake Erie aboard the steamboat Columbus before traveling to Sandusky.

Others were longer, as when Hayes wrote about his 70th and last birthday in 1892 about man's ability to improve through self-culture.

The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums has continued to celebrate the former president's Oct. 4 birthday over the years and wanted to do something special for its namesake's 200th birthday, which will take place Tuesday.

So a committee began planning in January and put together a full of year of events, beginning this weekend, to celebrate Hayes' bicentennial birthday.

Kristina Smith, Hayes' marketing and communications manager, said every year the presidential center has had wreath-laying ceremonies on the Sunday closest to Oct. 4 to commemorate Hayes' birthday.

With it being the former president's 200th birthday, Hayes Presidential wanted to have more events in honor of Hayes."We wanted to do the full weekend this year," Smith said Friday.

According to the presidential center, this weekend's events kicked off Friday with a Birthday Escape Room, where guests have 30 minutes to find a birthday gift Hayes' wife, Lucy, has hidden.

The birthday-themed escape room also will be open Saturday.

On Saturday and Sunday, visitors can enjoy free admission to the Hayes museum and a reduced-price on tours of the Hayes Home.

Tours on those days will be of the first floor of the home and last about a half hour.

Hayes also was concerned about fitness, and he put the beloved verandah to good use. He determined that 33 laps on the large porch equaled a mile, and he often got in his regular walks there, according to a news release.

In honor of his 200th birthday, which is Tuesday, the center has invited the public to walk a mile in Hayes’ shoes.

Throughout the birthday celebration kickoff, which is Friday through Tuesday, people who walk 33 laps on the verandah can come to the museum front desk and receive a sticker noting they walked in Hayes’ footsteps.

Participation is free.

There will be a special sunrise grounds tour on Tuesday.

The tour begins at 7:30 a.m. and will meet on the Hayes Home Verandah. Guides will point out places and trees of interest on the property that relate to the president.

Afterward, a light breakfast will be served. The menu includes bagels, mimosas, orange juice, shrimp cocktail and a sweet treat for Hayes’ birthday.

The mimosas and shrimp cocktail were chosen as a nod to President Hayes enjoying oysters and champagne before leaving Spiegel Grove for Columbus to take office as Ohio governor.

Tickets are required. They are $12 for non-members and $8 for Hayes Presidential members

Events associated with the Hayes birthday kickoff are:

Saturday events

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Take your picture in the birthday photo booth with President Rutherford and First Lady Lucy Hayes. Free.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Free museum admission and discounted tours of the first floor of the Hayes Home. Tours are offered every 15 minutes starting at 9:30 a.m. The last tour leaves at 4:30 p.m. Museum admission is free. Hayes Home tickets are $10 for adults ages 19 and older, $8 for teens 13-18, $5 for kids ages 6-12 and free for kids 5 and younger. Members are admitted for free. Tickets and member reservations can be made online at www.rbhayes.org/visit-us/visitor-information or at the museum front desk the days of the tours, pending availability.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Scavenger hunt for kids on the grounds of Spiegel Grove. Kids can pick up the scavenger hunt at the museum front desk. Free.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Hands-on activities for kids in the education lab in the lower level of the museum. Included with regular admission; members admitted for free.

• 10 a.m. – Tree tour of Spiegel Grove, the Rutherfords' 25-acre estate and an official arboretum. Tickets for non-members are $10 for adults, $7 for kids 6-18 and free for kids 5 and younger. Tickets for members are free, but members must make a reservation. Tickets and reservations are available online at www.rbhayes.org/events/2022/10/01/events/tree-tour-of-spiegel-grove or at the museum front desk the day of the event, pending availability.

• 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. - Birthday Escape Room - Tickets are available at www.rbhayes.org/events/2022/09/30/events/birthday-escape-room

Sunday events

• Noon to 5 p.m. – Take your picture in the birthday photo booth with President Rutherford and First Lady Lucy Hayes. Free.

• Noon to 5 p.m. – Free museum admission and discounted tours of the first floor of the Hayes Home continue.

• 12:45 p.m. – Ice cream will be available on the grounds. Live music begins. Donations can be made for ice cream but are not required.

• 1 p.m. – Birthday ceremony featuring live music and talks by dignitaries on the Verandah of the Hayes Home, followed by the wreath-laying ceremony at President Hayes’ tomb. Free.

• 2 p.m. – Wreath-laying ceremony at President Hayes’ tomb. Military representatives sent by President Joe Biden will speak and lay a wreath at the presidents’ tomb for his birthday. Hayes Presidential Executive Director Christie Weininger also will speak. A military bugler will play “Taps,” and veterans will give a gun salute. Free.

• 2:30 p.m. (or directly following the wreath-laying) – Birthday reception behind the Hayes Home. Enjoy cake and festivities for President Hayes’ birthday. Free.

Tuesday events

• 7:30 a.m. – Sunrise tree and grounds tour highlighting President Hayes. Afterward, a light breakfast will be served on the Hayes Home Verandah. Tickets are $12 for non-members and $8 for members. Tickets are available at www.rbhayes.org/events/2022/10/04/events/sunrise-grounds-tour.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Birthday treats in the lobby. Free.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Take your picture in the birthday photo booth with President Rutherford and First Lady Lucy Hayes. Free.

• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Anyone whose birthday is Oct. 4 receives free admission. Site passes purchased in-person for adults, which include a tour of the Hayes Home, are reduced to $18.22 in honor of President Hayes’ birth year.

Hayes Presidential staff, volunteers and other stakeholders are working on additional events, including an inaugural ball, musical performances and a performance of the play “Looking Over the Presidents’ Shoulder,” to commemorate the president’s birthday.

Signature events that take place annually, such as the Civil War Winter Camp and History Roundtable with Mike Gilbert, also will incorporate aspects to commemorate Hayes’ milestone birthday.

dacarson@gannett.com

419-334-1046

Twitter: @DanielCarson7

This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Rutherford B. Hayes' bicentennial birthday celebrated with full slate of events