Museum celebrates anniversary, nation

SANDUSKY — This year, it's "happy anniversary" for the U.S. and for a local history museum. The museum in question, Follett House Museum, is celebrating both anniversaries. This year, 2026, is considered the 250th anniversary of the U.S., as the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. But July 1 is also the 50th anniversary of when the Follett House opened as a local history museum run by the Sandusky Library, said Jeremy Angstadt, museum services manager for the library. The museum opened on July 1, 1976, in an event tied to the nation's bicentennial. Let's party To mark the dual anniversaries, the museum is: • Getting a new name The museum's new name will become the Sandusky History Museum at the Follett House. The new name preserves the Follett House reference yet aims to make it clearer that it's a local history museum, not just a period mansion open to the public. • Receiving a new historical marker from the state The site, at 404 Wayne St., is getting a new state historic marker. One side of it will talk about the Folletts and their contribution to history, while the other side will give the history of what the building has been used for. • Throwing a big party The library is planning a big event on July 1 to celebrate the museum's anniversary. The marker will be dedicated at 1 p.m., but the museum will be open until 8 p.m. and will host a community art show. There will be a variety of activities during the day with tours, music and refreshments, said Shea Alltmont, the library's community engagement manager. History lesson The Follett House was built between 1834 and 1837. It originally was the home of Oran Follett (1798–1894), who published the Lincoln-Douglas debates that helped turn Abraham Lincoln into a national figure. His wife, Eliza Follett, was active in helping slaves escape the South on the Underground Railroad in the days before the Civil War. The Follett House had many other uses before it became a museum. At one point, for example, it was the local headquarters for the Works Progress Administration, the 1930s New Deal agency under President Franklin Roosevelt that provided public works jobs. Sandusky's school system took over the building, which was used both for a home economics class and as a nursing school, Angstadt said. When the library took over the location in 1974 — with the aim of opening a museum — the school system had been using the house for office space. The museum opened in 1976, but for years, the library rented the building from the school system. The library did not acquire the house from the school district until 1981. Follett House hours vary according to the time of year. It's visited by appointment only through March, for example, but, during the main tourist season, June 1 to Labor Day weekend, it's open 1-4 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. For much of the year, it's open 1-4 p.m. on Saturdays. Preserving local history has been a major focus of Sandusky Library for many years. Angstadt runs the museum and provides other history-related activities, such as history-related tours of local cemeteries. Another library employee, Ron Davidson, is a local historian who maintains the library's special collections. And the library, for many years, has offered a local history blog at sanduskyhistory.blogspot.com.