The restoration of the Garfield home was complete in 1998, and the site re-opened to the public on June 19, 1998. The night before there was a Garfield Family Reunion, where over 100 members of the family spanning multiple generations came to celebrate the reopening of their ancestor’s beloved home. The main day consisted of a large ceremony with live music and people all over the site. There was an open house for visitors to finally see the finished interior, and when they were done people were able to enjoy the other historically restored buildings on the site. The line to get into the home wrapped around the whole east side of the house, and people were parking at the mall and walk down to the site. There were even people from the Post Office doing same day cancellations commemorate the event. Although the restoration had faced both good and bad press during the work itself, the reopening of the home was ultimately met with a positive response from the Mentor community and beyond. | Date: 1998 | Source: National Park Service Download Original File
