Two Weeks Left to Check Out Lincoln Exhibit at Clinton-Macomb Library

If Daniel Day-Lewis' Oscar-nominated performance as Abraham Lincoln sparked your interest in America's 16th president, a traveling exhibit offering another view of Honest Abe will be available at the Clinton-Macomb Public Library for two more weeks.

"Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War" examines how President Lincoln used the Constitution to address the secession of Southern states, slavery and wartime civil liberties.

Although Honest Abe is considered by many to be one of America's greatest presidents, history has not always shown Lincoln in the best light.

"This exhibit encourages visitors to form a nuanced view of Lincoln by engaging them with Lincoln’s struggle to reconcile his policy preferences with basic American ideals of liberty and equality," according to a library press release. "It will help develop a more complete understanding of Abraham Lincoln as president and the Civil War as the nation’s gravest constitutional crisis."

Located on the second floor of the main library on Romeo Plank Road, the exhibit consists of a series of panels featuring photographic copies of original documents, including a draft of Lincoln’s first inaugural speech, the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment.

“We are delighted to have been selected as a site for this exhibition,” said Library Director Larry Neal, in a statement. “As a new president, Abraham Lincoln was faced with enormous challenges. This exhibition shows how Lincoln struggled with issues of secession, slavery and civil liberties — all questions our country’s founding charter left unanswered. Each section of the exhibit features information about a different aspect of Lincoln’s presidency. Most importantly, the exhibit helps visitors understand why Lincoln’s struggle with the Constitution still matters today.”

The exhibit, which is free to all library visitors, will remain on display until Feb. 7.

Library patrons are also invited to view a special documentary on Lincoln at 10 a.m. Jan. 31. advance registration is required.

This exhibit was made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.