Freedom 250 unveiled details on Tuesday about the Great American State Fair set to mark 250 years of U.S. independence in the capital this summer.
The landmark celebration in Washington, D.C., will highlight all 56 U.S. states and territories “in a single World’s Fair-scale event,” according to Freedom 250, the organization President Donald Trump spearheaded to honor the semiquincentennial. The 16-day fair will take place from June 25 through July 10, spanning from the U.S. Capitol to the Washington Monument.
“As our nation prepares to celebrate 250 years of freedom and opportunity, the National Mall will once again serve as the stage for telling our nation’s story,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement. “Thanks to President Donald J. Trump’s leadership, the Great American State Fair will bring all 56 states and territories together in one place, showcasing the people, landscapes, and traditions that define this country.”
The event is one of many being planned by Freedom 250 and America250, a separate nonpartisan organization tasked by Congress to mark the anniversary.
Freedom 250 is leading a nationwide plane tour featuring nine “original Founding-era documents,” a UFC fight at the White House in June, and a Grand Prix Indy car race in Washington, D.C., set for August, among other initiatives.
“When we think about America’s 250 years, it’s really hard to think about anything that’s more American than cars. It’s been long been said Americans have always had a love affair with their cars, and this has been the center of innovation in a major, major industry,” Burgum said when officials unveiled the racetrack last month. “So it’s a combination of both history and horsepower that’s going to be happening here.”
America250 is likewise leading a host of events, including nationwide block parties on July 4 that it says will be “the largest synchronized Fourth of July celebration in U.S. history.”
The three major initiatives America250 is overseeing are Our American Story, a yearlong effort traveling the nation to record stories of heroic Americans to be archived in the Library of Congress, America’s Field Trip, which asks students in grades 3-12 to share their perspectives on what America means to them, and America Gives. The organization announced last month that through America Gives, it had surpassed 2.5 million volunteer hours in its effort to pull off the largest such national initiative in U.S. history.
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Kellyanne Conway, an America250 commissioner with close ties to the Trump administration, heralded Freedom 250 in March.
“We have full alignment around a shared goal of making this the biggest and most inspirational moment for at least one of them in our nation’s young but inspiring and very robust history,” she said. “I had the opportunity to discuss what we’re doing with the president, with the chief of staff, with members of the Cabinet, and with others who are so aligned. And I think that’s incredibly important, because we are one movement and one nation having this one celebration.”