Under the Oaks Historic Site Clean Up

We are excited to announce our first community project! We are teaming up with Experience Jackson and The City of Jackson Department of Parks & Recreation to clean up the Under the Oaks Historic Site! This will be a one day activity on July 6th from 9:00am-11:00am.

Volunteers should expect to clean the area, plant fresh flowers/plants and mulch. Volunteers are also are encourage to follow federal and state COVID-19 guidelines that are set during the time of the event.

Why July 6th? On this date in 1854, just after the anniversary of the nation, an anti-slavery state convention was held in Jackson, Michigan. The hot day forced the large crowd outside to a nearby oak grove. At this “Under the Oaks Convention” the first statewide candidates were selected for what would become the Republican Party.

United by desire to abolish slavery, it was in Jackson that the Platform of the Under the Oaks Convention read: “…we will cooperate and be known as Republicans…” Prior to July, smaller groups had gathered in intimate settings like the schoolhouse in Ripon, Wisconsin. However, the meeting in Jackson would be the first ever mass gathering of the Republican Party.

The name “Republican” was chosen, alluding to Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republican Party and conveying a commitment to the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.