About the library > News Releases > 2006 > Exhibition examines Lincoln's role in emancipation

Exhibition examines Lincoln's role in emancipation

October 26, 2006

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PORTLAND, OR – Why did a nation founded on ideals of freedom and equality tolerate for so long one of the harshest labor systems the world has known? Forever Free: Abraham Lincoln's Journey to Emancipation, a new exhibition on display from Nov. 10–Dec. 21, 2006 at Multnomah County Library's Central Library Collins Gallery (801 S.W. 10th Ave., Portland), looks for answers to this question by tracing Abraham Lincoln's gradual transformation from an antislavery moderate into the "Great Emancipator," who freed all slaves with a revolutionary war-time proclamation in 1863.

Abraham Lincoln was an obscure Illinois lawyer and politician of humble origins who rose in an astonishingly short time to world renown as the leader of a young nation during one of its most troubled times. Throughout his life, Lincoln's dedication to the ideals of freedom and equality for all people did not waver. "I want every man to have the chance — and I believe a black man is entitled to it — in which he can better his condition," he said early in his career.

Lincoln was also a pragmatic politician who believed that a direct attack on slavery in the South would split the Union and end America's experiment in self-government. He steered a middle course during the early years of the Civil War but became convinced that ending slavery would help the Union. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation transformed the character of the war by re-committing the nation to its founders' vision of freedom and equality for all.

Using reproductions of some 60 rare historical documents from the Huntington Library and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and drawing on the latest scholarship, the exhibit encourages audiences to reexamine Lincoln's role in the destruction of slavery during the Civil War.

Also on display will be selected volumes of Abraham Lincoln, a history; Extra-Illustrated Edition (1890), from the Multnomah County Library's own John Wilson Special Collections. This rare 20-volume biography by John G. Nicolay and John Hay features woodcuts, engravings, lithographs and photos; two portraits of Lincoln from Brady negatives; a campaign ribbon; a Confederate bond with coupons attached and an example of Confederate currency. Also included are a number of autographs and handwritten documents, many of them extremely rare, including several from Lincoln himself, abolitionist John Brown, Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant.

An opening reception will take place Tue., Nov. 14, 6-7:30 p.m. in the Collins Gallery. Skip Crittell, noted Lincoln presenter, will appear as Abraham Lincoln and read from the Gettysburg Address and other speeches and writings.

Thirty-minute guided tours of the exhibition will also be given by Elliott Trommald, retired educator and Lincoln authority, on Thu., Nov. 16, 11 a.m.; Sun., Dec. 3, 2 p.m.; Wed., Dec. 6, 6:30 p.m. Interested parties should meet in the Collins Gallery.

The library is also sponsoring free programs in connection with the exhibition. All programming takes place at Central Library in the U.S. Bank Room.

On Sun., Nov. 19, at 2 p.m., Dr. Darrell Millner, professor of Black Studies at Portland State University, presents the keynote lecture, exploring the portrayals of Abraham Lincoln as the "Great Emancipator" and the ways in which his reputation has evolved.

On Sat., Dec. 2, at 2 p.m., the film Glory (1989), the story of the American Civil War's first all-black regiment, will be shown. The film is rated R for violence and adult language and runs 122 minutes.

On Sun., Dec. 3, at 3 p.m., Civil War educators William and Carla Coleman present "The Haunting War: An American Tragedy Revisited," a moving program complete with historically accurate costumes, props and music. This Oregon Chautauqua program is funded by the Oregon Council for the Humanities.

On Sat., Dec. 9, at 2 p.m., David Biespiel of The Attic Writers Workshop presents "Of Love and War: Abraham Lincoln and Walt Whitman," which will examine this tragic period in American history and the ways in which a public death can touch an individual life.

The Collins Gallery is open the same hours as Central Library: Sun. noon-5 p.m., Mon. 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Tue. & Wed. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Thu-Sat. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Admission is free. For more information go to www.multcolib.org/events/collins.

Forever Free: Abraham Lincoln's Journey to Emancipation has been organized by The Huntington Library, San Marino, California, and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, New York City, NY, in cooperation with the American Library Association Public Programs Office. This exhibition was made possible by major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, promoting excellence in the humanities, and the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, created by Congress and charged with planning the national celebration of Lincoln's 200th birthday.

Local support for the exhibit has been provided by Portland State University, Millar Library at Portland State University, Oregon Historical Society, Oregon Council for the Humanities, Oregon Chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers and End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.