A Lincoln Pilgrimage

James A. Percoco

“History,” said Lincoln in an 1852 speech to the Springfield, Illinois, Scott Club, “is philosophy teaching by example.” Part of what works for me, particularly outside the painted and poster covered cinder block walls of a traditional high school classroom, is generating a sense of enthusiasm among the young people about persons and places that have stirred our national memory and consciousness. Beneath the exterior of their sometimes entitled teenage nature is a genuine hunger to see, touch, and feel what is substantive about the world. Abraham Lincoln provides great substance upon which to ponder, consider, and experience. I always love it when students experience for themselves, in their own personal inner sanctums, the joy of learning about and touching the past, particularly when the shades of preconceived notions slip quietly away. In their honesty, students can impart great charm. For Chelsea, the trip exceeded all expectations. “I thought,” Chelsea wrote on her reflection index card, “I was going to be sick of Lincoln within two days, but I never realized how dynamic our sixteenth president was. Not only was it interesting to learn about Lincoln’s life, but I also enjoyed seeing the different ways it was presented.”

In Lincoln's image: A gathering of Lincoln impersonators at the Association of Lincoln Presenters in Springfield, Illinois. (Photo courtesy of the author.)

Nine hours after leaving Springfield, Virginia, we finally arrived at our first destination, the Quality Inn and Suites in Norwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati. Road weary but still enthusiastic, my travel companions squealed with delight when they saw a large hotel sign heralding, “Welcome Association of Lincoln Presenters (ALP).” Boasting over one hundred and sixty members, living in each of the continental United States and Alaska, as well as one in Spain, the ALP is an organization dedicated to preserving the life and legacy of the sixteenth president through dramatic presentations. In other words, they dress up and role play Lincoln for civic groups, schools, nursing homes, churches, and anyone who wants to have them bring Lincoln to life. It is a privilege for them to live out their motto, “In Lincoln’s Image.” Not even Washington, Jefferson, or Franklin has such a group of boosters.

Two years before our present excursion, I traveled to Vandalia, Illinois, to attend the ALP conference. Held in the old state capitol, it was a delightful experience augmented by their willingness to embrace the history teacher in their midst. During that trip, I promised myself at the time that somehow I would get my students to connect with this interesting group of fellows. Now that vision was reality.

The following day we joined the Lincolns at George Grey Barnard’s controversial 1917 sculpture of Lincoln. When it was first unveiled, Barnard’s sculpture of a pre-presidential Lincoln triggered a firestorm in the art world and spilled over into mainstream press. Critics contended that Barnard depicted a “slouch” and a “hobo-democrat,” not a great statesman. The editor of Art World declared it should be “blown up with dynamite.” Robert Todd Lincoln, guarding the mantle of his father’s memory, weighed in on the piece calling it a “hideous monstrosity.” Supporters of Barnard argued that he had uncovered the true Lincoln, the man who “came out of the wilderness” to serve his country in time of crisis. Complicating matters further was an effort to send a duplicate cast of Barnard’s statue to London, England, for placement outside of Parliament as a gift of friendship from the American people to the United Kingdom. Behind the scenes, Lincoln’s son worked tirelessly to prevent delivery of the sculpture. His efforts paid off. London received a duplicate of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’s 1887 Standing Lincoln located in Chicago, while Barnard’s second casting went to the more working-class community of Manchester. The bottom line, as always with Lincoln, comes down to interpretation.

Good spirits prevailed as the students and Lincolns made connections with one another, posing for pictures, talking and laughing together. I pulled out of my satchel a copy of the 1917 monument dedication book, signed by Barnard, and shared it with everyone. Its presence served to heighten the experience by virtue of bringing an object from eighty-nine years ago into a contemporary context. Meredith considered the exchange at the statue a highlight of the trip. “Lincoln is not just one style or stereotype,” she wrote. “He had multiple qualities which probably explain his extraordinary personality. The pre-presidential statue is a good one. Here he is a rumpled, ordinary man; a relatable human being. Another statue may be another interpretation. Such a man cannot be confined to one stereotype.” For Tom, one of the parent chaperones, Barnard’s Lincoln struck a similar chord to Meredith’s examination. “I believe,” he wrote, “Barnard’s Lincoln should have been used for Parliament Square in London. I think the United States missed an opportunity to generate a discussion about Lincoln’s incredible ability to ignore social convention and appearance on any side of an issue. Rather, he had a strong moral compass that guided him, allowing him to become an enduring and beloved leader. ‘Hobo-democracy’ concerns say much more about American detractors than Lincoln’s appearance or leadership.”

Clambering aboard our charter coach, we traveled to the Lincoln Museum in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where we were treated like visiting royalty. In the library, we were given a rare, up close look at one of the museum’s holdings. There, under subdued lighting, was one of the thirteen copies of the Thirteenth Amendment that abolished slavery. This rare document is made more unique by virtue of the fact that Lincoln affixed his signature, something he was not constitutionally required to do. Lincoln felt compelled to sign, though, given his position on slavery. We also took time to visit Paul Manship’s 1932 Lincoln the Hoosier Youth statue on the steps of the entrance plaza to the Lincoln National Life Insurance Company. Standing here provided a forum for discussion about the “uses of history”­—in this case Lincoln’s image—to hawk everything from cars to beer and bail bonds. It seems that Lincoln is not only our greatest president, but also one of our greatest salesmen.

Our next stop was the mecca of Lincolndom, Springfield, Illinois, where we visited the Lincoln Home National Historic Site.  Historians Tim Townsend and Cat Mancuso gave us a first class tour of the only home that Lincoln ever owned, the modest two story structure at 8^th and Jackson Streets complete with the nameplate on the door, “A. Lincoln.” Standing in Lincoln’s backyard, it was easy to be transported back to 1860 when the place would have been not only home to the Lincoln family but also to their dog Fido, his horse Old Bob, and a lone milk cow. Here Lincoln chopped his own wood, and his two young sons Willie and Tad played. We found it easier to connect with this historical president, than with more recent chief executives.

The apex of our time in Springfield was at the new Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM). Opened in April 2005, the Museum is a clever fusion of state-of-the-art technology with more traditional public history presentations. Although there have been a fair share of naysayers—some historians have criticized the museum for “Disney-fying” the Lincoln story—I found this to be the most fulfilling museum visit I have ever had in all my years of trundling students through museums. It was a pure delight to witness students enjoying history for history’s sake. They live in a world of iPods, cell phones, and digital cameras, so the museum’s use of technology resonated with them. But the students were equally moved by the story of Lincoln behind the technology. Though surrounded by twenty-first-century light, sound, bells and whistles, the museum preserves Lincoln’s humanity.

Our visit was coordinated by the education director, Erin Bishop, who provided us with a private showing of the “Ghosts of the Library” theatrical experience. Here, an actor interacts with ghostly holographic images as he explains the purpose and power of such a repository of presidential memory while answering two important questions: why does history matter and why do we save all this old stuff? Meeting with the actor after the performance and going up on the stage provided the students with an opportunity to see “how it is done.” Equally impressive was the other theatrical production, “Lincoln’s Eyes.” The production included a multiscreen program of the Civil War   and we literally felt the effects of the war as seats rumbled when cannons fired. The production allows visitors to approximate Lincoln’s experiences during the years when he held the ship of state together. The presentation confirms author Joshua Wolf Shenk’s idea that “in order to appreciate Lincoln’s significance for our time, we have to understand his time and how he lived.” Offsetting these contemporary approaches is the “Treasures Gallery” which respectfully presents a number of significant Lincoln documents.

As a special treat, we were afforded an opportunity to visit the Lincoln Presidential Library with Kim Bauer, Curator of the Lincoln Collection. Bauer arranged a look at some unique Lincoln artifacts, including a survey Lincoln drew for Huron, Illinois (a town never built), a walking cane that was sent to the Lincoln as a gift, and the original 1865 photograph of Lincoln lying in state inside New York’s City Hall in April 1865. This chance encounter with the past equally matched the museum experience as once again the walls reverberated with, “This is so cool!”

The ALPLM takes history education seriously. According to Bishop, the mission of the Education Department is to “provide education opportunities for learners of all ages to explore Illinois and U.S. history and the legacy of Abraham Lincoln through the museum and library collections.” One of the primary goals, she adds, “is to help teachers teach. To that end we offer teacher workshops with strong content-based programs on a variety of topics to assist educators in developing a solid background on unfamiliar topics or in mastering a discipline they already know and love.”  These workshops provide practical “ideas the teachers can take back to their students and implement across their curriculum.” The ALPLM Education Department has both secondary and elementary education coordinators.

Students seek good luck by rubbing the nose on Abraham Lincoln’s bust at the entrance to the Lincoln Tomb State Historic Site at Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois. (Photo courtesy of the author.)

After a visit to the Old State House and the Lincoln-Herndon Law Office, we paid our respects at Lincoln’s Tomb in Oak Ridge Cemetery. Quietly, we shuffled past his marble sarcophagus beneath Edwin Stanton’s gold epitaph, “Now he belongs to the ages.” Mickey and Sarah were particularly moved by our last stop. Mickey wrote, “I felt touched in the greatest way at his tomb. To see how much was done for one person’s resting place, he must have meant a lot.” Sarah reflected, “The most real part of the trip for me was walking into Lincoln’s Tomb knowing that he was actually there.”

In 1832, while still an aspiring twenty-three-year-old politician, Lincoln wrote in his first public paper that education is, “the most important subject which we as a people can be engaged in.” As a twenty-six year veteran high school history teacher, I could not agree more. 

Jim Percoco has been a teacher at West Springfield High School in Springfield, Virginia, since 1980. He is the author of A Passion For The Past: Creative Teaching of U.S. History (1998) and Divided We Stand: Teaching About Conflict In U.S. History (2001).