Lafayette figures prominently in Apple TV+'s 'Franklin'. What's his connection to Erie?

An exhibit celebrating the life of the Marquis de Lafayette opened this month at the Hagen History Center's Watson-Curtze Mansion.

The traveling "Guest of the Nation" exhibit by the American Friends of Lafayette Bicentennial Committee advances stops in the Revolutionary War hero's 1824-25 return tour of the United States.

The marquis, currently enjoying a resurgence as a character in Apple TV+’s "Franklin" series, was guest of honor at a dinner in Erie in June 1825.

More than a war hero

Born in 1757 in France, Lafayette was 19 when he came to the American colonies to fight the British during the Revolutionary War. Quickly a favorite with George Washington, he was commissioned as a major general in Washington's Continental Army.

Exhibit panels detail more than Lafayette's military career.

"The exhibit also addresses his human rights and humanitarian work, really his civil rights work," said Chris Anderson, director of collections and archives at the Hagen History Center.

Lafayette's human rights work included anti-slavery activism and advocacy for Native American and women's rights.

The exhibit additionally details Lafayette's 13-month, 24-state return tour of the young United States.

Lafayette in Erie

On June 3, 1825, Lafayette, then 67, was guest of honor at a dinner held on a 179-foot bridge that spanned a gully between State and French streets, near Second Street.

During the dinner, he was regaled with the story of the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. The table fittingly was "covered by an awning of the sails of the British vessels taken by justly famed Commodore Perry," according to the Erie Gazette account of the event.

The dinner was hosted by surveyor and businessman Judah Colt and prepared by tavern owner John Dickson.

A serving platter, commemorative glass, tablecloth, printed invitation and other Lafayette dinner memorabilia in the Hagen History Center collection are on display alongside the traveling exhibit.

Want to go?

Hagen History Center museums, at 356 W. Sixth St., are open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

Admission is $12 for adults, $7.50 for students and $7 for veterans. Hagen History Center members and children 6 and under are admitted free.

The "Guest of the Nation" exhibit will be on display at the center's Watson-Curtze Mansion through July. It came to Erie from the Braddock's Battlefield History Center in Allegheny County.

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'Franklin': How to watch

Learn more about the political machinations of the American Revolution in the Apple TV+ series "Franklin," starring Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin working in Paris on behalf of independence, Noah Jupe as Temple Franklin, Daniel Mays as Edward Bancroft and Theodore Pellerin as Lafayette.

Four episodes are now streaming. New episodes air Fridays.

There's a seven-day free trial, then a $9.99 monthly charge to subscribe.

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Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@timesnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Lafayette revival in Apple TV+ show 'Franklin', Erie PA history museum