Federal appeals court says Trump administration can replace slavery exhibits at Philadelphia President's House

A panel of federal appellate judges has given the Trump administration the green light to replace slavery exhibits at the President's House in Philadelphia ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary.

The exhibit, which tells the stories of nine enslaved people who lived at the home when George Washington was president, has been in flux since early 2026. That's when the National Park Service — in accordance with one of President Trump's executive orders — began removing panels that told the stories of the nine people.

After arguments on June 2, the appeals court sided with the government, with judges ruling the City of Philadelphia does not have rights to control property they do not own.

Judge Thomas Hardiman, a George W. Bush appointee, authored the appellate court's opinion.

Recap of the legal battle around the Philadelphia President's House

After the Park Service removed the original slavery exhibits at the historic site in January, the City of Philadelphia filed a lawsuit and a district court judge ruled the exhibit must be restored. The Trump administration then appealed, which paused the restoration. That's why about half of the panels are still missing.

In April, the National Park Service's website was updated with images of new panels that told the story of the President's House. But the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, an organization that helped fight for the creation of the original exhibit, said those panels were "an attempt to sanitize history and present a version of the past that is more comfortable, but far less truthful."

Hardiman wrote in his opinion that the judges believe "these new panels are full of historical context ... they acknowledge the evil of slavery, including its injustices and hypocrisies."

Last week, a federal judge in Massachusetts ruled that changes to national monuments and parks in accordance with Trump's executive order "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History" should be undone. That order applied to the President's House and other historic sites.

It's not clear which order will take precedence and how the manner will be worked out in court.

Reactions to the President's House court rulings

Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro reacted to the decision on social media.

"No matter how hard Donald Trump fights in a court of law to whitewash our history, he will never change our values in Pennsylvania," Shapiro posted on X. "We are the birthplace of American democracy. We will continue to learn from our full history, even when it's painful, to build a better future for all of us."

Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Democrat who represents Philadelphia in Congress, urged the legislature to pass a law that would block changes to the exhibit.

"Today's ruling underscores the need for Congress to pass my Protecting American History Act to permanently block Trump from removing these exhibits," Boyle said in a statement. "This fight is not over — and I will not rest until we stop this censorship and live up to America's founding ideals."

We've reached out to the city of Philadelphia and the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition for comment and are waiting to hear back.

When reached for comment on the decision, a spokesperson for the Interior Department said only the following: "Trust in Trump."

This is a developing story and will be updated.