New Lincoln museum exhibit to showcase how Illinoisans made the state a ‘home’

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — A new exhibit showcasing Illinoisans and how they have made the state their home is coming to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

The exhibit is called “Here I have Lived: Home in Illinois” and features artifacts and photographs from many eras of history in Illinois.

The title of the exhibit is named after a Lincoln quote, when he said goodbye to the city of Springfield one final time.

“Here I have lived a quarter of a century, and have passed from a young to an old man. Here my children have been born, and one is buried. I now leave, not knowing when, or whether ever, I may return …”

Abraham Lincoln

Included in the exhibit is information from former First Ladies Michelle Obama and Mary Todd Lincoln, leader of the Sauk tribe Black Hawk, and attorney Charles Gibbs, whose office was where the 1908 Springfield Race Riots started. The list of all subjects featured in the exhibit can be found here .

Also in the exhibit are audio interviews from current Illinois residents. Museum officials encourage visitors to reflect on what home means to them.

“Illinois has welcomed refugees and entrepreneurs. It has produced artists and reformers. It offered a helping hand to some and a cold shoulder to others. Every one of them had a different idea of what it meant to call Illinois their home,” Christina Shutt, the executive director of the ALPLM, said. “What better way to connect with people of the past, both famous and unknown, than by focusing on the very personal idea of home.”

The exhibit opens on March 23 and will run through mid-January. The exhibit is included with general admission to the museum.

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