A few weeks ago, Matt and Lynne sat down to plot out their 8 hour drive to Pittsburgh (more pictures on that later). Lynne inquired about zoos or children's museums en route.
Then Matt found it: the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center just off I-80 near Toledo. A perfect stop! There was no way to talk him out of it... although admittedly, Lynne didn't try very hard. Who wouldn't want a closer look at the disputed election of 1876? An opportunity to study the man who sold out freed slaves and negotiated the end of Reconstruction? A look at an oft-forgotten bearded president?
By the time we set off on our trip, even Mark was excited. Matt had even taken him to the library and checked out a book on Hayes. The kid was literally leaping and bounding into the Hayes museum.
And as it turned out, the Hayes center was pretty nice. It was situated in a beautiful grove that was worth walking around, and the museum had lots of stuff a kid could identify with -- Hayes' clothes, the seat he sat in in Congress, even his stagecoach and his children's toys. Plus, Mark's favorite--a randomly organized display on each president that he insisted on viewing in chronological order.
With parents like us, the kid really can't help but be nerdy. He LOVED the stop and can't wait to visit more presidential libraries. Matt proimised to print out a list so they can chart them on a map of the United States. Looks like the Hayes stop was the first in a series.
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