The United States of America will observe the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026. This semiquincentennial of the nation provides an opportunity to reflect on our complex founding and history, lift up under-told stories, and appreciate diverse perspectives about the past, present, and future of our nation.
At Oregon Humanities, we're calling our work around this anniversary Beyond 250. In 2025 and 2026, we will hold conversations, create spaces for reflection and mutual understanding, and think together about the next 250 years.
Trainings for Libraries
Since 2024, we have worked with Oregon libraries of all types (public, academic, school, and tribal) to train staff, volunteers, board members, and program partners to plan and lead conversations about freedom, equality, monuments and memories, the future, and other topics. To date, we have held trainings in partnership with libraries in Maupin, Grants Pass, and Newport for people associated with libraries throughout the wider regions where these libraries are situated.
In 2025, we will partner with libraries in Pendleton, Burns, and other communities to host trainings. Read more about these trainings.
Dear Stranger
Dear Stranger is an ongoing letter exchange program that invites Oregonians to write a letter to someone they’ve never met. For Beyond 250, we have partnered with libraries and museums across the state to host Dear Stranger drop-boxes and invite patrons and visitors to write letters. Hosts may keep the boxes for as long as they’d like, so there are plenty of future opportunities for participants to send a letter. We plan to design program templates in 2025 that hosts can use to engage their letter writers. In 2026, we’ll connect the prompts to the 250th anniversary.
Read more about Dear Stranger and see where our partners are hosting drop-boxes.
Additional Programming
As we near 2026, we’ll also add conversations to the Conversation Project Catalog, Consider This events, The Detour episodes, and Oregon Humanities magazine pieces connected to the 250th. Follow us on social media and subscribe to our newsletter to receive updates!
Beyond 250 Toolkit
Want to host your own Beyond 250 conversations? Dowload our toolkit to get started (PDF hosted on Google Drive).