The Kibbe is pleased to announce that the grand opening ceremony for Lincoln: The Making of a Man will be at 1 pm on Saturday, 14 April 2012.
Alexander Gardner, photographer, 5 February 1865. From the Library of Congress
Photo by Alexander Gardner taken at Gardner's Gallery in Washington, DC, on Sunday, February 5, 1865. This last photo session from life was long thought to have happened on April 10, 1865, but more recent research has indicated the earlier date in February.
The museum and grounds will open at noon. Area re-enactors, led by the Southeast Iowa Civil War Roundtable, will bring the Civil War era to life, with tents and a campsite set up on the west lawn. The Carthage chapter of PEO, an organization that raises funds for women’s education, will sell light refreshments. Visitors are encouraged to come in period dress if they have it.
At 1pm, a horse-drawn hearse will arrive at the entrance to the east hall of the museum. Carthage mayor Jim Nightingale will make some remarks and then a uniformed honor guard will transfer the replica of President Lincoln’s casket from the hearse into the museum. The casket will be placed in a period reproduction of the East Room of the White House as it was when Lincoln lay in state.
About the exhibit:
Honest Abe. The Railsplitter. The Great Emancipator
Everybody knows about Abraham Lincoln. Thousands of books, articles, and web pages aspire to cover every detail of his life. His image is on our currency, both the penny and five-dollar bill. Photos and paintings of him hang in countless courtrooms, schools, government buildings, and homes. We hold him up as a role model of integrity, perseverance, and wisdom. We raise a mirror to his image, seeing in his reflection the sort of country — and people — we wish to be.
Nature or Nurture?
This giant of history did not just spring out of the ground fully formed, with an axe in one hand and the Emancipation Proclamation in the other.
Fully human, he sobbed for the loss of a mother on a harsh frontier; walked among us as a young man seeking his way in the world; and knew the joys and compromises of marriage and family. He applied himself to learning his profession as lawyer and legislator; he mourned with the inexpressible grief of a parent over the loss of two sons. He lived, worked, and socialized with our own ancestors, exchanging ideas, suffering through shared hardships, laughing at the same jokes.
This exhibit is about the culture and communities that helped to form the adult character of the man who would be one of our greatest Presidents. This exhibit is his story, but it is also ours.
Treasures From The Kibbe Museum 