ALA announces 25 libraries to host “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War” traveling exhibit

Contact: Angela Thullen


Program Officer, Communications


ALA Public Programs Office


312-280-5286

athullen@ala.org

NEWS


For Immediate Release


July 15, 2009

CHICAGO – The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office, in collaboration with the National Constitution Center (NCC) in Philadelphia, announces that 25 libraries have been selected to host a new traveling exhibit, “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War.” One copy of the exhibition will travel to public, academic and special libraries from mid-2009 through 2013. The traveling exhibition and tour are funded by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to the National Constitution Center.Â

The libraries selected to host the “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War” exhibit (in alphabetical order by state) are:

  1. Central Arkansas Library System, Little Rock, Ark
  2. Denver Public Library, Denver, Colo.
  3. Pueblo City County Library District, Pueblo, Colo.
  4. Norwalk Community College, Baker Library, Norwalk, Conn.
  5. Broward County Public Library Foundation, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
  6. University of Florida, Smather Libraries, Gainesville, Fla.
  7. Kennesaw State University, Sturgis Library, Kennesaw, Ga.
  8. Western Illinois University, Malpass Library, Macomb, Ill.
  9. Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Ind.
  10. Hopkinsville Community College Library, Hopkinsville, Ky.
  11. Southeastern Louisiana University, Sims Library, Hammond, La.
  12. Assumption Parish Library, Napoleonville, La.
  13. Calvert Library, Prince Frederick, Md.
  14. Eastern Michigan University, Halle Library, Ypsilanti, Mich.
  15. Central Piedmont Community College Library, Charlotte, N.C.
  16. Nebraska State Library, Lincoln, Neb.
  17. Long Island University, Schwartz Memorial Library, Greenvale, N.Y.
  18. Hudson Valley Community College, Marvin Library, Troy, N.Y.
  19. Columbus State Community College, Educational Resource Center, Columbus, Ohio
  20. Auglaize County Public Library District, Wapakoneta, Ohio
  21. Curry Public Library District, Gold Beach, Ore.
  22. East Tennessee History Center, Knox County Public Library, Knoxville, Tenn.
  23. Texas A&M International University, Killam Library, Laredo, Texas
  24. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Libraries, Blacksburg, Va.
  25. Waupaca Public Library, Waupaca, Wis.

 “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War” offers a fresh and innovative perspective on Abraham Lincoln that focuses on his struggle to meet the political and constitutional challenges of the Civil War. The exhibition explores how Lincoln used the Constitution to confront three intertwined crises of the war—the secession of Southern states, slavery and wartime civil liberties. Visitors will leave the exhibition with a more complete understanding of Lincoln as president and the Civil War as the nation’s gravest constitutional crisis.Â

The selected libraries will host the 1,000-square-foot exhibit for six weeks and receive a $2,500 grant from NEH for exhibit-related expenses.  Participating libraries will present at least two free public programs featuring a lecture or discussion by a qualified scholar on exhibition themes. All showings of the exhibition will be open to the public. For more information on the traveling exhibit, including the full itinerary, visit
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/ppo/programming/lincoln/index.cfm.

Established in 1992, the ALA Public Programs Office has a strong track record of developing library programming initiatives, including the acclaimed reading and discussion series "Let's Talk About It!," film discussion programs on humanities themes, traveling exhibitions, LIVE! @ your library®, and other programs. Recently, it has established the Cultural Communities Fund, an endowment fund created to help all types of libraries across the country bring communities together through cultural programming (
www.ala.org/ccf).

The National Constitution Center is one of the nation’s most exciting new museums and a leading provider of constitutionally-themed education programs. Created through the Constitution Heritage Act of 1988, the NCC addresses the need to better educate Americans about their Constitution and citizenship rights and responsibilities. Its mission is to increase public understanding of, and appreciation for, the Constitution, its history, and it contemporary relevance through an interactive museum facility and national outreach programs.

For more information about “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War,” visit
www.ala.org/publicprograms.