The Gettysburg Address on Display at the ALPLM
November 15 - November 24
An original edition of the Gettysburg Address is going on display for 12 days — from November 15 through 24 — at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, the only place in America where the public can regularly see Lincoln’s most famous speech written in his own hand.
As part of our special display of the ALPLM’s original edition of the Gettysburg Address, we’ll be giving visitors a chance to talk about the speech with Lincoln Historian Christian McWhirter. At 12:30 p.m. on Thursday and Friday, November 21 and 22 in “Mr. Lincoln’s Theater” adjacent to the museum plaza, McWhirter will discuss what inspired Lincoln to write it and what message he may have been trying to send to his divided nation.
To give more people the opportunity to appreciate this powerful document, admission to the museum will be free on Tuesday, November 19, the 161st anniversary of Lincoln delivering the speech at a military cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. And for the full 10 days the address is on display, visitors also have the option of paying just $5 to see the document without touring the rest of the museum.
The anniversary day will also see students from Springfield’s Japanese sister city, Ashikaga, visit the museum and recite the address during a special ceremony at Noon.
The display includes features to assist people with visual impairments. By scanning QR codes with their mobile phones, visitors will be able to hear a reading of the speech and the display label that explains the speech’s significance or see an easy-to-read text version of the speech.
For anyone who can’t visit in person, the ALPLM offers a WEBPAGE that provides an up-close look at the presidential library’s copy of the speech, explaining its history and how it differs from other copies. It also examines the meaning and impact of Lincoln’s words. Just click on key words in the speech and up pop boxes full of helpful information.
The page also includes educational resources for teachers and parents, a photo gallery and links to other sources of information about the address.
