Sunday, November 6, 2011

Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum

Abraham Lincoln. The man who preserved the Union, helped win strategic battles, and was a great reader, powerful leader, and a wonderful man. We saw a museum about this man, leader, and legend, and today we will see his house. But back to the museum. We drove to the city of Springfield, where Lincoln had a house and practiced law. It was a pretty nice city, with nice buildings of a high sort but not skyscraping. We went underground in a parking garage right under the street, and after parking went up another staircase through many places of storage. Kind of creepy, and I was glad I got back in the open air after all the confinement. We were then in the middle of down town, and to our left was the actual Lincoln-Herndon Law Office, but we did not go into that because we wanted to go to the museum and library first. We walked to a modern, huge, one or two story complex of buildings that was the museum and library. It was of a beige color and was a sort of rock type. It had twisting circles and an awesome appearance; it really was a great splendor of masonry. We walked in the front door, and found ourselves in a domed room with a gift shop on the left, together with a ticket booth, a restroom on the right, and the sound of many, many children bustling around, talking, or yelling rather. A man who was pretty old and lean and shaved headed came up and asked us, "Hello. Did you know you can pay nothing today for the four of you if you only become a member to all state parks? It will take you to over 90 state museums and you can pay almost nothing to all of them. But that's not all..." He was cut off by the familiar tone all salesmen dread. I'm. Not. Interested. The ball dropped and the man hid his disappointment with, "That's okay. Enjoy the museum."

We got tickets and then entered the museum. We went through the metallic spinny things, and were reminded not to take pictures except on the marble floor. That is the words every cinematographer dreads. We walked into the plaza, and boy was it nice. On one side of the room was a fake log cabin with a boy on the fence, reading. On another side was a huge white house, the white house. (I'm sure you've heard of it and seen pictures.) It was built into the wall, looming over us, with a suspicious man up against one of the columns, and other figures I will go into details later. Anyway, we were told a movie was going on in a few minutes, so we went to one side where there saying: Ghosts of The Library Theater. Ghosts of the Library? What did they mean by that? I was led into the theater, and sat down facing a slanted stage that looked like a library, and in between us and that stage was probably a glass barrier, but I can have no way of knowing as it looked so real and open. It looked like a library, with shelves full of books, and a lot of bric-a- brac in the middle with two desks and tables, and in the back more shelves and a few things on the wall, like a beaten up flag and a picture of Mary Todd Lincoln. The show began, and the lights dimmed, ready to show their secret. The theater became dark as the night, and the library still light and illuminated. A man, in the 20's or 30's, with long black hair slightly curled about to the length of the shoulders, and having blue eyes, being tall, and a pretty handsome appearance walked into the library from the right in his hands being a bundled up box, a box full of something, something we did not know of what but desperately wanted to.

He went into some dialogue about how he didn't know we were here and was glad we were. The voice we heard did not go with the man, I cannot explain it, I just have an instinctive feeling that it was not his. It was deep, metallic, and un-life filled. His appearance was young, energetic, kind, but that is just me. The presentation, by good friends, was one of the best I've seen. The man told about ghosts, and how important all the things in the library were, and that it would be crazy if they could speak, that they would tell so many things. Then, slowly and with solitude, "But, sometimes they do speak, when the library lights go down, and you're all on your own, sometimes, you might even say there were ghosts..." There was a loud crack of thunder and a distant moaning. The lights went totally black, and the man was gone, and then I saw him slowly return. "But, there's no such thing as ghosts. Or are there?"

The man then showed us a few things that were cool, like the first draft of the Emancipation Proclamation, and then something cool happened as the man was seated in a chair, reading it. In front and upward of him, directly over the chair, a blue feather came to our eyes and wrote words in mid-air. It was a terrific display of special effects. I was stupidfyed, glued to my chair. An image that was blue looking like Abraham Lincoln bent over the man, nodding his head. I was really scared, and amazed. The rest of the presentation was more than spectacular, more than superb, more than fantastic, more than wonderful, it was something I cannot describe. The special effects! Oh it looked so real! At the end he said he liked the flag most of all the artifacts, after talking about them for a long time. He took it out, and put on an army suit of the civil war, pulled the flag out of the framing and waved it up in the air, and behind him were spine tingling images of the civil war, like people shooting and dying. Then he said he died there, and then became translucent and ghost like. The presentation was one of the best.

We walked out, and then saw yet another presentation, this time about Lincoln's life and the eyes of Lincoln, called Lincoln's Eyes. It was great too, having smells and sights and sounds and feelings, cannon balls firing, horses bucking, and a gun shooting in the back of a beloved man's head. It was great too, and it was about seeing the civil war and succession through the eyes of Lincoln, how much haters he had, and how much he had to overcome. We were annoyed by all the screaming and giggling immature school kids behind us, but all in all it was pretty good. We then excited the theater and started out for the museum.

We went into the fake log cabin, passing by the fake manikin of Abe as a kid on the fence. As I went past and prepared to go in, something totally unexpected. "No hats on unless it is religious or medical. Weren't you told that on the bus?" an old man, an employee, said to me. I thought he was joking, so continued in, and said, "Oh it's medical. And I didn't take the bus." A little girl of maybe fourth grade or maybe younger with pale skin and black said, "Didn't you hear him? Take off your hat!" I took it off quickly, confused and weirded out. I was just asked to take off my cap and then a young girl yelled at me. Why am I not allowed to wear a baseball cap? What did the man mean about Weren't you told that on the bus? I was very confused. I basically just stayed in a corner 'til that girl and her brother and sisters and group to leave. Another school kid came in and saw me, saying, "Woah, I was just scared about that kid right there." I was totally within earshot, and could hear him loud and clear. For the rest of the visit I would deal with immature kids and ignorant and un-polite ones at that. But back to the cabin. It was a really small area, but not that small. In one side of the room was a manikin of Lincoln reading a book by the fire, and up on that side where the ceiling should be was a hole and a ladder leading up, with an arm drooping down, and a snoring noise was made. A lot of other things were in that cabin too, a small, short bed housing a lump that was proposed to be Lincoln's sister, and a bed closest to us with Mr. Lincoln and his wife. (parents of Abe.) I learned a lot from a nice guy in there.

We then went through all of Lincoln's young adult hood, from his mom dying and him getting a step mother to him working at New Salem and becoming a lawyer and then moving to Springfield, where he married and had children. It was a nice exhibit and well thought out, and had very good displays like a scene of a slave family being broken up at a slave auction and an area where Lincoln was on a couch as a man reading the newspaper and his two kids were on the table of the law office, making papers fly and flinging ink at each other. It was really cool. Another part was when you watched a short movie where a modern news guy named Tim Russet talked about Lincoln, Douglas (Stephen A.) and Bell and Breckidge's campaign videos, and it was very funny, with modern people talking about 1800's elections like it was happening right there.

We then headed out for the White House exhibit. We saw up against the column a man named John Wilkes Booth. Right of the door, was an African American man with crazy hair named Fredrick Douglas, and an old African American lady named Sojourner Truth. To the left was two generals, McClellan and Grant. We walked in, and the first room by the door was a manikin of Mary Todd Lincoln in a large, blue dress, and other beautiful dresses around her. Being a boy, it wasn't my interests, so I passed on to other parts. After that was many other cool parts, like mean cartoons about Lincoln, and a sad part where a manikinned Lincoln and Mary Todd were weeping and caring for their dying son in bed, Willie. That was sad.

There were good parts, too. Like in the kitchen. I walked into a small, drafty, dark kind of, old kitchen, with all kinds of food and tools and such. It was pretty big, but not the biggest, which is weird for the white house. An unexpected thing happened again. A tall, skinny figure with a suit and a top hat on was seated in a chair in the kitchen. I thought it was another manikin, but as I passed by slowly, the figure stood up and said,"Hello, I'm Abraham Lincoln. How are you? Are you an orphan? There are a lot of orphans in this war, you know, because of all the fathers, dying.(a sigh. ) Are you an orphan?" All of this was said in a high, penetrating but friendly voice.

I didn't know what to say, but I decided I must play along. "No, I'm actually a friend of Tad's (Thomas "Tad" Lincoln, a son of Abraham). "

"Ahhh, I see! Yes well he is out playing with the ponies and goats and such, so you'll probably see him on the front lawn. What's your name, son?"

"I'm... um... John Hawkins."

"Well, nice to meet you Mr. Hawkins. It was very nice to meet you. (takes out hands to shake)"

"And you too, Mr. President."

"Please, call me Abe."

I left, and had just met the president, of the United States.

I saw a display of the conference room, with Lincoln, Stanton, Seward, and many other cabinet members huddled over a long, round table in the middle of a paper and map filled room, moving armies and taking forts. There were other parts, where I saw a movie called The Civil War in Four Minutes, every second counting for a week of the war, and showing them taking the south and all the casualties changing by the millisecond. That was really cool.

Also was a display of many faces on screens of all different backgrounds, people who wanted to not have the Emancipation Proclamation: farmers, soldiers, aristocrats, preachers, abolishments, and a lot of others.

Then it became sad again as I entered Ford's Theater, and saw a display of a mustached actor coming into the presidents box and pulling a trigger of a single- shot Derringer pointed at a beloved president. Next was a room with a casket, empty, probably, but representing the real man. I took off my cap, and felt the sadness I had experienced twice before, both times in D.C., one time at the Holocaust Museum and the other at The Vietnam and Korean War Memorials. It was a feeling of grief, of reflection, and of inspiration. And, it was a feeling to strive forward, and to continue what one man started.

Well, we left the museum after going to a few more exhibits like treasures of the past and a children's part. After that we went into the gift shop, and I got a really cool book of the chase for John Wilkes Booth called Chasing Lincoln's Killer, by James L. Swanson, an account of the chase written especially for young kids, like 12 through 16. It's very thrilling so far.

We went to a station to get info on where to go in Springfield, and met a nice elderly lady named Marge who told us to go to the house, and to see the tomb. She was very nice and interesting, and we told her about the trip, and gave her the blog address. Thanks Marge! Nice meeting you!
We then left, got our car and drove back, and went to a cool restaurant called Maldaner's , where we served by a nice, friendly waitress with black hair and tan skin, named Amanda, who was from Milwaukee. It was a nice environment, very pretty and fancy, with white table cloth and food from organic food. It was really cool, although most of the food I had no idea what it was, so selection and taking orders was a little strenuous. I had a very good broth/soup, and a wonderful salad. We then got in the car and left to go to home. I read.

I went to sleep back in the back. My back kind of got hit in the back of it, but back in there you always get your back hurt. Sleep was good and long, and back in my dreams I was back good. Well, now I'm awake, back to being awake. Back to the blogging. -

Andrew.

Beautiful Museum












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