Abraham Lincoln celebrated at the Lincoln Heritage Museum

 

[February 13, 2025] 

Wednesday February 12th was the 2016 birthday of our 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. In observance of the day, the Lincoln Heritage Museum in Lincoln hosted a morning coffee with free admission to the first floor of the museum for all visitors.

Museum director Ron Keller was on hand with three local volunteers who where there to share their knowledge of Mr. Lincoln and the museum with anyone who had questions.

There were also several items on display in the front room of the museum that were brought out of the archives specifically for the birthday observance.

Items ranged from very serious works of art such as the Lincoln Death Mask, to some light-hearted items like comic books and bags of popcorn depicting Lincoln wearing a pair of 3D movie glasses.

In addition, the museum was featuring a selection of birthday cards from 2009, when the 200th birthday of the president was celebrated in at the Lincoln Home in Springfield. The cards were varying in their style and level of sophistication, but for the most part all were well wishes to the late president.

Keller pointed out one card that was in stark contrast to all the others. Written in 2009 by a Native American in Oklahoma name Jean SmilingCoyote, the card opened by calling Lincoln a racist.

The card brings to memory that while most of America remembers President Lincoln for his noble efforts to achieve equality for African American slaves who were considered as property rather than people, he was also struggling with some serious issues with the Native American Tribes in the west, particularly the Sioux.

Several historians who have written on the topic of the civil war have also included the conflict with the Sioux and worked to make the readers understand the pressures of the presidency during the civil war. Lincoln was said to have acted in the case of the Sioux based on erroneous information given to him by advisors. It is also noted that the death toll of the civil war and the loss of his son were taking their toll on the president, and leaving him with little peace or even time to contemplate right from wrong in regard to the Sioux. In addition, Lincoln’s father had been killed by members of a Native American tribe.

In the card by SmilingCoyote there was reference to the Homestead Act. That act signed by the president opened the west to expansion by pioneers wishing to own land in America. SmilingCoyote says that that act cost the Native Americans their land, and may also have contributed to the great dust bowl because Oklahoma was not farmland, and settlers tore up the land and tried to turn it into something it was never intended to be.

The note, serves to remind everyone, that Lincoln was only human. He did what he though was right, and he tried to serve his country well as president. The letter does not mention that during the Sioux trials, 300 people were sentenced to die by hanging and Lincoln pardoned all but 38 which he considered had performed the most heinous of crimes.

On the flip side, the other cards in the display sang the praises of the president that we all know best.

On read: “Many thanks for the leadership and great example. If your honesty existed today, we’d be a better place. Thanks for helping West Virginia be a state.”

On that same card signed by many people: “Honest, true, kind and loved by many. We think of you each time we use the penny!”

On the same card: “Your honesty about the cherry tree became a tradition in our home as a child we celebrated with cherry pie every Feb 12!.......P.S. I just found out it was George, not you! So much for my memory!!”

And on a separate card the sender finished her writing with the following paragraph: “You’ve gone down in history as our greatest president with so much respect and appreciation and warmth. You’ve experienced many sad events in your life and had the courage to go on. Your life is a lesson for all!”

Perhaps the last statement is the best. Lincoln was loved and respected. He did face many trials. He was only human, made some mistakes, but got a lot of things right. But no matter what, he was always moving forward and showing leadership and courage.

In the museum there are many examples of the good that Lincoln did. He was a part of the Logan County community long before he was president, and it is still a great pleasure for most of us to remember him and honor him on his birthday.

On Wednesday the weather was not pretty at all and Keller said he felt that attributed to it being a slower morning than in past years. He said this time of year, there is not a lot of out-of-town visitors at the museum, but he is looking for business to pick up in the next 60 days when spring comes upon us and tourists are once again out and about.

Keller said that the museum gets its fair share of visitors traveling Route 66, and he looks forward to next year and the 100th anniversary of the Mother Road. It is expected that there will be numbers in the multi-millions traveling through Illinois during that anniversary year. With Logan County being one of the two or three counties where Abraham Lincoln and Route 66 intersect, this community can offer a double whammy for tourists traveling the beloved highway from Chicago to Las Angeles.

What was very nice about the slower day at the museum was that visitors had the opportunity to grab a cup of coffee, enjoy a cookie and just sit down and have a nice visit with Keller and the volunteers. It made for a very pleasant way to celebrate the birthday of our 16th president.

[Nila Smith]