Trump administration's reworked slavery exhibits installed at President's House Site in Philadelphia

New panels at the slavery exhibits at the site of President George Washington's home in Philadelphia have been installed after a long legal fight over whether the original exhibit disparaged the Founding Fathers.

The installation of the new panels caps a legal battle that began in January.

Earlier this summer, a federal appeals court sided with the Trump administration, allowing the feds to remove the slavery display that had been there for 20-plus years and replace it with new panels.

Advocates and founders of the site say the new panels whitewash the truth and sanitize George Washington's role as an enslaver.

One of the new panels says the nine enslaved people who lived at this site with Washington were dynamic participants in the daily life of the family and the city.

On Wednesday morning, about a dozen United States Park Police officers were at the site. One told CBS News Philadelphia that they were there to help because the new panels had been installed.

"To think that that's a description of enslaved people, that they had the ability at the time to be dynamic participants in anything in their lives," visitor Allison Egli said, "it's bothersome."

Earlier this year, the city of Philadelphia sued the government when the original display was removed.

A federal judge sided with the city and some of the panels were then reinstalled, but the Trump administration appealed and won, leading to a complete overhaul of the President's House at 6th and Market streets in Old City.

In a statement, Mayor Cherelle Parker said the city will continue to fight back and explore its next legal steps.

"Overnight, under the cover of darkness, the federal government removed panels at the President's House that told a thorough history of Philadelphia," Parker said in a statement. "It was allowed to do this by the decision of the federal court, but that it did so at night shows it understands this action is shameful, that it violates community trust."

Some advocates and historians say the new panels sanitize Washington's role as an enslaver. 

"It's a complete whitewashing of American history," Michael Coard, with Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, said. "The best lie is the one that has a little truth to it."

In a statement, the Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, said in part:

"These new panels are full of historical context and highlight the momentous events that took place in the President's House and the other sites at Independence National Historical Park. They acknowledge the evils of slavery, including its injustices and hypocrisies, and, by telling the stories of the nine slaves that Washington kept in the President's House, remind us of their essential humanity. The panels also recall the price our nation paid 'to finish the work that the Founders had begun and end slavery in the United States once and for all.'

"Through President Trump, we have encouraged Americans to visit our cultural and historic sites and engage in meaningful conversations about the moments that have shaped our country. By telling the full story, every triumph, every challenge and every step towards a more perfect union, we strengthen our shared understanding and ensure that future generations inherit not just the land we love, but the truth of the journey that brought us here."

The Department of Interior did not answer CBS News Philadelphia's question about where the original panels are being kept, nor did it say whether the installation of the new exhibit is complete.