Servants Tour of the Hayes Home
Category: Events
Date & Time: Thursday, November 16, 2023. 6:00 pm
Event Description
Winnie Monroe was much more than a household staff member to President Rutherford and First Lady Lucy Hayes and their family.
Born in Kentucky, Monroe moved to Ohio and met Lucy’s family. She later was hired as the cook, gardener, housekeeper and nanny for Lucy, her husband, President Rutherford B. Hayes, and their family.
Monroe developed a close relationship with Lucy and worked for the family while they lived in Cincinnati, Columbus, Fremont and the White House in Washington, D.C. She even delivered one of the Hayes children, Scott Russell Hayes.
Determined, ambitious and outspoken, Monroe was good at most things she took on, from whipping up delectable multi-course holiday meals to planting and tending to the manicured flower garden at Spiegel Grove.
Monroe eventually left the Hayes family and moved back to Washington D.C., where she started her own catering business and also sold jams and jellies.
Her story is one of many of the lives of the Hayes family’s servants that Hayes Presidential Library & Museums staff will share during a special evening servants tour of the historic Hayes Home on Thursday, Nov. 16.
Visitors will learn about the servants’ experiences, from the domestic staff to the staff who tended to the trees and gardens, and enjoy ginger snaps and lemonade.
Tours are at 6, 6:30, 7 and 7:30 p.m. each day. They last 60 minutes.
Tickets for non-members are $13 for adults, $5 for ages 6-19 and free for ages 5 and younger. Tickets for Hayes Presidential members are $10 for adults, $5 for ages 6-19 and free for ages 5 and younger.
They are available at below. Members will need to log in to receive their discount.
Tickets will also be available at the museum front desk on the days of the event, pending availability.
The tour involves going up and down stairs. An elevator that can accommodate walkers is available.
If you need special accommodations for mobility or vision or hearing impairment, Hayes Presidential requests a notice of 72 hours. Please contact Crystal Johnson, visitor services manager, at 419-332-2081, ext. 217, or [email protected]. Requests received with fewer than 72 hours of notice will be handled to the best of Hayes Presidential’s ability.
Hayes Presidential is America’s first presidential library and the forerunner of the federal presidential library system. It is partially funded by the state of Ohio and affiliated with the Ohio History Connection. Hayes Presidential is located at Spiegel Grove at the corner of Hayes and Buckland avenues.
For information, call 419-332-2081, or visit rbhayes.org. Like Hayes Presidential on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram at @rbhayespres.