We congratulate our friends at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site for their recent award from the Organization of American Historians. At the OAH conference in California last month, the park was recognized for Excellence in National Park Service History because of the many public events and programs honoring last year’s 200th anniversary of Ulysses Grant’s birth.
Park staff members used the occasion of the Grant Bicentennial year as a “hook” to connect park visitors to many aspects of the former president’s life, both public and private. Rangers offered more than 100 in-person education programs, six special events (one with horses!), 26 off-site programs, and 16 virtual programs in 2022. They also created online exhibits, videos, and articles on the park’s website to reach audiences that couldn’t attend on-site programs.
Among the Grant-related events held at the park was an extravagant dinner recognizing benefit the Grant bicentennial, held in partnership with the Campbell House Museum, where Grant sometimes dined. The September event featured local chefs who offered historically inspired recipes from the 1800s. More than 400 guests attended the occasion, which JNPA was proud to host.
For a more complete list of the programs and events that earned the park its recent award, click here.
JNPA Blog 