Postville Courthouse celebrates Lincoln’s birthday with an open house

[February 14, 2023]    In honor of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, the Postville Courthouse in Lincoln hosted an open house on Saturday, February 11th from noon to 4 p.m.

The event is the first to occur at the landmark in the last several years. Current Historic Site Manager Denise Martinek said that with this being a revival event, she was happy with the number of visitors that came to the courthouse, and is hopeful that returning to an annual schedule will bring more guests in the future.

Also on hand Saturday was former site director and current volunteer Stu Churchill.

As part of the open house birthday celebration Mike Anderson the Dulcimer Guy was on hand the entire afternoon entertaining guests with music from the mid-1800s. The Dulcimer was a popular musical instrument in that time period and Anderson was happy to share with guests his experiences as a dulcimer player and a teacher.

Among the other attractions to the open house was a refreshment table with vanilla and chocolate cupcakes, a birthday cake for Abe and punch.

Guests had the opportunity to enjoy some refreshments, sit a listen to the music and explore the many items on display related to our 16th President of the United States.

Before Lincoln was elected President, he had strong ties to Lincoln and Logan County. He rode the circuit practicing law in several courthouses in the mid-section of Illinois including the Postville Courthouse and the Mount Pulaski Courthouse.

As a surveyor for the state, he was the one who marked the lines for Logan County and named the county after a dear friend of his, John A. Logan.

In addition to all this, the city of Lincoln was officially named for and by Abraham Lincoln prior to his presidency. The Postville Courthouse annually hosts the National Railsplitter Festival where a re-enactment of the christening of the city is an annual event.

[Nila Smith]