[COMING SEPT 15] Building Bridges: The First Japanese Embassy to the United States


A hand fan with painted Japanese kanji characters and peonies.
A hand fan with the signatures of Matsumoto Sannojō, Osakabe Tetsurō, Hidaka Keizaburō, Naruse Zenshirō, Morita Okatarō, and Shinmi Masaoki Buzen-no-kami. From the Collections of LancasterHistory.

In 1858, Japan entered into a treaty with the United States and Europe, ending the centuries-long Tokugawa Shogunate that
had minimized Western influence. In 1860, a group of samurai traveled to the United States for the first time. There, they met President James Buchanan, First Lady Harriet Lane, and countless American citizens. In Building Bridges, we explore the bridge between the two nations through the gifts that they exchanged.

Building Bridges will be on display at LancasterHistory in Stoudt Gallery from September 15 through December 30, 2025 Admission to the exhibit is included with the purchase of a General Admission ticket or Exhibitions-Only ticket. LancasterHistory Members receive complimentary admission.