By the 1950s Ann Arbor had outgrown its old, ornate courthouse. The 1877 structure was falling into disrepair, but stipulations limited its relocation. So our city’s leaders embarked upon a novel solution: constructing a new building right around the old!

LEGO builder extraordinaire David Lorch will be recreating our court’s unique construction with hands-on help. Attendees will assemble the large-scale LEGO model of the newer courthouse surrounding the older courthouse's LEGO replica.

Join us for a series of short performances and interviews with local mime Michael Lee and special guests O.J. Anderson and Perry Perrault. The performance, which will consist of short 4-6 minute pieces will be for many, an introduction to “the actor’s art” of mime. With credit given to the mime artists that inspired and taught Michael Lee, we’ll connect the dots between legendary mimes, and the local Ann Arbor mimes who knew and trained with them.

This project is part of AADL’s commemoration of the city’s bicentennial year.

Join retired Detroit News and Ann Arbor News reporter Stephen Cain for a reading and discussion of his memoir, Relentless. During his career, Stephen freed a Midland woman falsely convicted of murdering her infant daughter, corrected the mis-identity of a getaway driver in a robbery-murder of a Brinks guard, and helped spring four outlaw motorcyclists from death row in New Mexico. His undercover assignments included a stint as a patient in a state mental hospital and an ambulance driver.

Join us for an interactive event on the history, benefits, challenges, and misconceptions about cannabis with experts in the field.

Whether you're curious about historical trends, the latest research, health and wellness, or policy implications, this event invites all to explore the complex and evolving world of cannabis.

Featured Speakers:

Erin Bonar, PhD., Department of Psychiatry and Addicition Center

Chris Frank, MD, PhD., University Health & Counseling, U-M

Joan Lowenstein, Attorney (retired), Former Ann Arbor city Council Member

The University of Michigan Summer Symposium in Theoretical Physics brought great minds from all over the world to Ann Arbor for 15 years between WWI and WWII. One evening in 1939, Enrico Fermi tried to convince his friend Werner Heisenberg not to return to Germany, where he would certainly be compelled to help the Nazis develop nuclear weapons.

Join the Ann Arbor District Library for the dedication of the Black History Bicentennial Mural newly installed on Library Lane.

Ann Arbor’s affection for vinyl records has endured throughout the medium's highs and lows. Despite technological advances, records remain a collectible object representing a listener’s connection to an artist and their work. In contrast to the convenience of streaming music, records must be found, purchased, and played intentionally. This exhibit pays tribute to the stores and employees that have made our city a destination for record lovers, and the ways recorded music has shaped our community.

Land has always been central to many conflicts in the United States, especially regarding the land that Indigenous people lived on. Continuously moving westward, it became increasingly difficult for tribal nations to continue to hold onto their land. Having sided with the French during the French and Indian War, at the war's end and a British victory, life was changing drastically for tribal nations. Pontiac's Rebellion was in response to a British victory in the French and Indian War and the disdain for British policies that were coming into play.

Indigenous land steward Mary Parr will discuss Ishkode, or “fire” in Anishinaabemowin, and its significance in Anishinaabeg culture and historical use to maintain resilience in fire-dependent communities. This presentation will also explore findings from Parr’s graduate thesis at Grand Valley State University, which examines the use of historical fire regimes in present-day restored tallgrass prairie. Following the presentation, Parr will lead a short hike through the prairie of Stapp Nature Area to discuss prescribed fire application and plant community response.

Come for a spooky evening of history and ghost stories about Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti with the hosts of Haunted Mitten Podcast!