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Four days of activities will mark the
museum's opening, including the April 19 public dedication, hosted
by the governor and attended by other prominent state and national
figures. "The debut of this
new world-class institution and the exploration of our shared
national history gives Springfield and Illinois ample reason to
celebrate," Gov. Blagojevich said. "These festivities offer a
tremendous opportunity to showcase the new museum for a national
audience and to raise the Land of Lincoln's profile in the process."
The museum joins the already-open
library as part of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and
Museum complex in Springfield. Museum opening events begin on April
16 with "Looking for Lincoln," a two-day historical block party in
downtown Springfield. The celebration will feature Lincoln-era
re-enactors, music, theater troupes, church choirs, folk dancers and
artists from the Springfield area. Most events are free to the
public.
Some of the other major activities
planned for the grand opening:
April 17 and 18, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library -- A two-day
scholarly conference will examine Lincoln, from his attitude
toward race and his domestic life to his wartime leadership and
assassination. The conference will conclude on April 18 with a
panel hosted by Brian Lamb, C-SPAN founder and chief executive
officer, and will feature three generations of the world's
foremost Lincoln scholars: David Herbert Donald, Harold Holzer and
Matthew Pinsker.
Interfaith service of thanksgiving for the life of Abraham Lincoln ,
April 17, 11 a.m., Union Square Park -- The community will come
together and find strength in the celebration of religious
diversity in a public service led by various community religious
leaders.
Re-creation of Lincoln's farewell
address and a torchlight parade,
April 17, 6:30 p.m., Old Train Depot to Union Square Park and the
library-museum complex.
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Outdoor
concert, fireworks and laser spectacular ,
April 17, 8 p.m., Union Square Park -- A public concert by the
312th Army Band.
-
Re-created Lincoln White House state dinner ,
April 18, 7:30 p.m., Springfield Renaissance Hotel -- This
fund-raiser for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
Foundation will feature a Lincoln-era menu and 19th-century music
courtesy of the 311th Army Band. The first David Herbert Donald
Prize for Excellence in Lincoln Studies will be presented to its
namesake, the author of the definitive one-volume Lincoln
biography.
- Public dedication
,
April 19, 11 a.m., Union Square Park -- Gov. Blagojevich and other
prominent leaders will speak at this hour-long event signaling the
official opening of the museum. Music will be provided by the
312th Army Band. In addition, the winner of a student essay
contest sponsored by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and
Museum and C-SPAN will read his or her modern-day version of the
Gettysburg Address to the crowd.
The museum's grand opening will
follow the dedication, giving the public the opportunity to
experience firsthand the museum's 46,000 square feet of permanent
exhibits -- twice the size of any other presidential museum. The
galleries, which employ 21st-century technology to make the 19th
century live again, are the result of collaboration by the state of
Illinois; the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency; Burbank,
Calif.-based BRC Imagination Arts; and a distinguished panel of
renowned historians.
"The opening of the Abraham Lincoln
Presidential Museum will be a popular celebration of public history
at its best," said Richard Norton Smith, the museum's executive
director. "Just as the exhibits inside invite visitor participation,
so will the events outside. Like the museum, they will recreate
another time, even as they remind us of what is timeless. It will
be, literally, a time to remember."
For more information about the
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum or about the slate
of opening activities, visit
www.alplm.org.
[News release from the
governor's office] |
