Community, Conflict, Conversation 

Hosted by 
The Henry Ford, Dearborn, Michigan

Conference Venue and Lodging at Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, Michigan

ALHFAM’s 2026 Annual Meeting and Conference “Community, Conflict, Conversation” begins with workshops, grows through presentations and events that engage all attendees, and culminates in conversations that will sustain living history into the foreseeable future. The theme encourages us to examine community and conflict in ways that help living history practitioners engage in conversations that facilitate learning and lead to understanding and healing.

The Henry Ford, the host institution, is a large museum complex that includes the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, and the Ford Rouge Factory Tour. As the largest cultural attraction in Michigan, it is an ideal venue for ALHFAM 2026. Its historical resources document more than 250 years of colonial and U.S. history, from the 1700s to the present. THF's Greenfield Village, one of the largest open-air museums in the United States, will be full throttle during June 2026, having just opened a new historic house: the Jackson Home from Selma, Alabama, from which Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others mobilized to secure voting rights for African Americans.

The Student Center at Eastern Michigan University is the conference headquarters, where sessions, meetings, catered meals and other conference events will occur. Lodging will be available in new and refurbished EMU residence halls. Breakfast and other meals will take place in the EMU Dining Hall.

Workshops and tours will feature local museums, historic sites, cultural attractions and organizations that support ALHFAM-related work. The site visit day features a signature summer event at The Henry Ford, Greenfield Village’s Motor Muster, and offers opportunities to tour the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. 

Click HERE for the complete program Please note that the 2026 Conference team has taken steps to make this program as comprehensive as possible). For lodging information and other details, consult the program.

Questions? Email conference2026@alhfam.org

Registration Opens: February 15

Registration closes May 31 at 11:59 pm Eastern US Daylight time (EDT)

Guest Registration

Guests (non-registered speakers, spouses and other guests) may purchase specific meals as listed below. Guest registration does NOT include sessions, tours or workshops.

• June 17: Opening presentation by Joseph McGill, Jr., Slave Dwelling Project; access to Jackson Home; picnic at Greenfield Village, The Henry Ford - $75
• June 18: ALHFAM Auction Dinner - $20
• June 19: Presidential Banquet - $40
• June 20: Site Visit to Greenfield Village, The Henry Ford - $50

Conference Co-Sponsors