To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, an exhibit looks back to the opening.
Visitors can see an early architectural model of the museum, a shovel from the groundbreaking ceremony, a ticket to the 2005 grand opening and a poster from the museum’s first exhibit, an examination of the Lincoln assassination called “Blood on the Moon.”
Some items in the exhibit are from the ALPLM’s permanent collection. Others are on loan from staff members who have worked at the ALPLM since it opened. These volunteered items include commemorative brooms (one of which has been put to work cleaning the ALPLM conservation lab over the years) and a hard hat from a tour of the early construction of the museum.
“Two things make the ALPLM great – Abraham Lincoln and the dedicated employees who work tirelessly to share his legacy and all of Illinois history,” said Christina Shutt, executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. “I hope visitors who see this exhibit will take a moment to reflect on what the library and museum have accomplished over the past 20 years, both as a guardian for historic treasures and as a place for visitors to make special memories.”
The anniversary exhibit will run for six months outside the ALPLM’s “Ghosts of the Library” show. It is included with regular admission to the museum.
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum opened on April 19, 2005. The grand opening in 2005 drew a large crowd, including President George W. Bush and then-Senator Barack Obama.
Now, twenty years later, the museum has welcomed approximately 6 million visitors, preserving and sharing Lincoln’s legacy. The library portion of the ALPLM had opened about six months earlier.
“The artifacts in the exhibit are tangible reminders of the hard work that went into creating the museum and the tremendous excitement it generated,” said Claire Peters, an Illinois College student who helped curate the exhibit as an ALPLM intern. “For me, getting to collect these stories was a really special opportunity to connect with so many people who have put their heart and soul into the museum over the past 20 years.”
The mission of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is to inspire civic engagement through the diverse lens of Illinois history and share with the world the life and legacy of Abraham Lincoln.
