First Ladies National Historic Site


First Ladies National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located in Canton, Ohio. During her residency in Washington, D.C. , wife of Ohio congressman Ralph Regula, spoke regularly about the nation's first ladies. Recognizing the paucity of research materials available she created a board to raise funds and for a historian to assemble a comprehensive bibliography on American first ladies. From these inspirations came a National First Ladies’ Library, established in 1996, and the First Ladies National
Historic Site.
The site was established in 2000 to commemorate all the United States first ladies and comprises two buildings: the Ida Saxton McKinley Historic Home and the Education & Research Center.
Tours start at the Education & Research Center, located one block north of the Saxton McKinley house on Market Avenue. The 1895 building, formerly the City National Bank Building, was given to the National First Ladies’ Library in 1997.
The first floor features a theater, a large exhibit and meeting space and a small library room with a collection of books that replicates First Lady Abigail Fillmore's collection for the first White House Library. The center's second floor is home to the main National First Ladies' Library. Other floors contain conference rooms, storage and office space.
The Ida Saxton McKinley Historic Home preserves the home of Ida McKinley, the wife of U.S. president William McKinley. The brick Victorian house, built in 1841 and modified in 1865, is furnished in the style of the Victorian era. Costumed docents provide tours, and exhibits focus on President and Mrs. McKinley, photos of first ladies, and Victorian decorations.
Admission to the First Ladies National Historic Site includes both the exhibits in the Education & Research Center and a guided tour of the Ida Saxton McKinley Historic Home. Reservations for the house tour are recommended due to limits on tour size. Reservations are required for groups of 6 or more.
The site is operated by the National First Ladies' Library in a partnership agreement with the National Park Service and managed by Cuyahoga Valley National Park.