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Media contacts: Kim Schuette: 614.297.2314 or kschuette@ohiohistory.org
For Immediate Release
National Road Exhibit Takes Side Trip to Fort Meigs
(PERRYSBURG, Ohio) - After appearing at venues along Route 40, the Ohio Historical Society’s The National Road: Helping Build America is now making a stop at the Fort Meigs until April 5.
The exhibit tells the story of the history and evolution of the National Road from the perspective of a traveler. It was created in 2007 to celebrate the bicentennial of the 1806 authorization by Congress of the National Road, our nation’s first federally funded interstate highway. The Ohio portion of the National Road covers more than 225 miles in 10 different counties.
“A visitor will learn about why the National Road was initiated, how it relates to the larger story of westward expansion and the development of the United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries,” said Glenn Harper from the Ohio Historic Preservation Office, who helped design the exhibit. “The exhibit also covers the various eras of the Road from the stagecoach era through the pre-interstate automobile era and the role the Road continues to play locally and regionally.”
Using material from the popular Ohio Historical Society publication, "A Traveler's Guide to the Historic National Road in Ohio: The Road That Helped Build America," the 10-panel, highly illustrated exhibit explains why the National Road was built and how it relates to the larger story of westward expansion and the development of the United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Learn about the road from the stagecoach through the automobile era and the role that the road, now an All-American Road National Scenic Byway, continues to play locally and regionally as it is promoted as a travel destination.
For more information, call Fort Meigs at 419.874.4121/800.283.8916. After the exhibit closes at Fort Meigs, it then moves east to the Youngstown Historical Center starting April 7. The National Road: Helping Build America was funded in part by the Ohio Humanities Council.
Fort Meigs is located on West River Road (State Route 65) in Perrysburg, in Wood County. It is one of 58 sites administered by the Ohio Historical Society, a nonprofit organization that serves as the state’s partner in preserving and interpreting Ohio’s history, natural history, archaeology and architecture. For more information, call 800.752.2619 or visit www.ohiohistory.org.
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