The United States is celebrating 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. As memories are shared across the county, a pair of local museums have collaborated to introduce a special joint exhibit on immigration, identity and belonging in West Michigan.
Holland Museum and the Zeeland Historical Society are hosting the multi-site collaborative exhibit and oral history project — called “We the People” — with funding support from America250MI. The exhibit debuted in early February, and will remain on display at Holland Museum until January 2027 and Dekker Huis Museum until December.
“Obviously there’s not a lot of connection to the Revolutionary War, but Michigan’s story and West Michigan’s story are still part of (our) national narrative,” said Zeeland Historical Society Interim Director Audrey Rojo. “It’s been really nice for people to engage in America250 that way.”
The exhibit has two parts, with Zeeland focused on the early history of the area and Holland exploring more recent events, according to Rojo — who added the initial response to the display has been positive.
“It’s been so great,” she said. “Especially (since) we weren’t sure how it would go, being a multi-site exhibit where part of the story is being told in one location and the other part of the story in another.”
Artifacts include the naturalization records of early Dutch immigrants, voter identification cards, citizenship papers signed by Gerald Ford, and items from the bicentennial — including a quilt made by students at Zeeland High School.
Holland Museum also has a second-floor installation called “Renouncing Tyranny: The Dutch Act of Abjuration and The American Declaration of Independence.” The exhibit places the defining documents of the Dutch and American revolutions side-by-side, exploring how the Netherlands provided an example for the United States.
“While these two documents share a similar origin story, they more importantly reflect a shared belief in freedom, accountability and collective responsibility,” said Michelle Stempien, executive director of Holland Museum, during an event March 17. “The (exhibit) reminds us that we have far more in common than we have differences.”
Both museums are also undertaking an oral history initiative to preserve firsthand accounts from community members.
“That project is really capturing voices of people today, what it means to belong, what it means to be an American,” Rojo said. “We have a recorded history of voices … that we’ll preserve long after the exhibit is over through our archives and digitization at both organizations.”
While the semiquincentennial is officially July 4, organizations nationwide are commemorating the event year-round. For more information, visit hollandmuseum.org and zeelandhistory.org.
— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland, Zeeland museums explore belonging for America250
Reporting by Mitchell Boatman, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
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