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Springfield, IL was home to one of our greatest presidents –
Abraham Lincoln. I think a lot of people
might overlook this place…just drive by without stopping, but I had done my research and we were headed
for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. After Sandy and Barb in
Chicago went on and on about how great it was we knew for sure that we had to
go. As Dan drove I read the boys a book about young Abraham
Lincoln - how he grew up and became a
politician. (That was quite a feat for me. I usually get sick if I read in the car, but
this time I made it through the whole book without incident.) I like
to be able to familiarize them with what they’re going to see if it is
something that we haven’t covered in our history text yet, and we’re just now
starting the Revolutionary War. It’s too
bad that we can’t just dart back and forth and see whatever it is that we’re
reading about at the time, but with diesel at $4.70/gallon right now that’s
just not feasible. We’ll have to
continue learning from our history books and when we get to a historically significant place we’ll either relate it to what we’ve already
studied or give the kids a short briefing, take the tour, and let them know
that they’ll learn more about it later. It’s
not a perfect system, but it'll do.
The Lincoln Museum in Springfield is one of the best I’ve
seen, but probably more geared toward older children – maybe 4th
through 9th grade. There aren’t
many “hands-on” activities. Our kids
really enjoyed the “Ghosts of the Library” show, which is truly amazing. If you go, see this show first – maybe twice. Then make your way to the log cabin and begin
your journey with Abe Lincoln when he was a boy. From there watch the interactive film “Lincoln’s Eyes” in
the Union Theater (where the seat shakes and cannon smoke fills the air). After that, make your
way to the White House and follow Lincoln on the rough road to and through the
Presidency. This area was my favorite.
Pass through the Whispering Gallery , a dimly lit, gray
hallway full of political cartoons attacking the Lincolns, each of which is
mounted in a skewed frame. Even the
doorways are slanted. I loved the
symbolism. Then make your way through
Lincoln’s office where you see him and his cabinet at work over the
Emancipation Proclamation. Sometimes
there’s an actor there to explain, in character, what’s going on. The first time I saw him I thought he was
made of wax. From there you enter the “Illusion
Corridor” , a hallway full of special effects characters yelling at you as if
you were Lincoln, expressing their opinions about the Emancipation
Proclamation. Shortly after leaving that hall you see a
series of portraits of the president and I could see the toll that his
responsibility had taken on his face.
Deep wrinkles. A furrowed brow. Sad eyes.
The sad eyes are facing a digital map. "The Civil War in Four Minutes",
also known as The Electronic Map , is a map of the war with battle lines that
continuously move, showing the changing progress of the war. Here, each week of the war has been condensed to
one second. In the corner of the map, a
casualty counter tracks the mounting butcher's bill - an odometer of death. I cried.
It is stunning to watch the casualties add up. Stunning – and watching it made me so sad and
yet so proud that this nation was not divided.
Lincoln was right when he said, “A house divided against itself cannot
stand.” (He was paraphrasing Jesus from Matthew 12:25.) His leadership helped to hold it
together. Because of his conviction and
determination, and the determination of those union soldiers, we are still the
United States of America, not merely a fragment of what it once was. Because of that, he is one of my heroes.
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