The First Ladies Experience Coming to Canton

Standing alongside a display case of gowns worn by Mary Todd Lincoln, Nancy Reagan and Michelle Obama, National First Ladies president and CEO David Lee gave a group gathered at the First Ladies National Historic Site in downtown Canton a glimpse of the organization’s new building.

The First Ladies Experience is set to open a few doors down the street in early 2028 with immersive and educational exhibits highlighting the contributions of America’s first ladies.

The Nov. 10, 2026, event also served as a kickoff to the $4.5 million capital campaign to raise the funds needed to construct the 4,000-square-foot facility. It will be built on what is currently a parking lot along Market Avenue next to the historic Saxton-McKinley Home, just down the street from the existing visitor center building. 

National First Ladies president and CEO David Lee makes remarks during the Nov. 10, 2026, event in downtown Canton. (photo by Jim Vickers)

“When you look at these plans, I hope you can imagine yourself being part of this,” Lee said during his remarks at the Nov. 10, 2026, event. “... Together we will take the visitor on a journey through the earliest years of first ladies to their life behind the White House doors to their continued legacy today.”

Mary Regula, the wife of then-Congressman Ralph Regula, founded the First Ladies National Library in 1995 to tell the story of our nation’s presidential spouses. The nonprofit was established in 1997, and the Saxton-McKinley home opened a year later. President Bill Clinton designated the attraction the First Ladies National Historic Site in 2000, and a bank building along Market Avenue became a visitor center with exhibit space in 2003. 

In 2011, the visitor center and the Saxton-McKinley home, where first lady Ida Saxton-McKinley grew up and where she and President William McKinley lived for a time, became property of the federal government. 

An interior rendering of The First Ladies Experience, which is projected to open in early 2028 (image from firstladies.org website)

The new museum will still be affiliated with the National Park Service, although the nonprofit National First Ladies will own the building and is spearheading the fundraising effort to finance it. The building will include an expanded gallery and modernized exhibit spaces that tell the story of our nation’s first ladies in compelling ways. 

“We will bring the first ladies’ stories to life through interactive technology, immersive experiences and invite visitors to step into their world,” Lee said during his remarks. 

For information on how to donate to the facility, visit firstladies.org. 

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