Two exhibits feature American treasures
By MIKE RAMSEY
COPLEY NEWS SERVICE
CHICAGO — American history enthusiasts — and Americans in general — will have it particularly good in Chicago this year.
In a slightly confusing convergence, two exhibits at separate Lincoln Park museums will showcase rare national artifacts, including the Abraham Lincoln-signed Emancipation Proclamation and several objects connected to his death.
The Chicago Historical Society will host "The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden" in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution until Sept. 2. And the nearby Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum will offer "American Originals: Treasures from the National Archives" until April 28.
The traveling shows, which arrive in time for Presidents’ Day and Black History Month, were booked independently. Now that they’re neighbors, organizers say each exhibit can benefit from the other.
"In a way, it makes Lincoln Park a destination for people who want cultural and historical offerings," says Marty Cusack of the Chicago Historical Society. "They’re good things to check out — of course, check out ours first."
As the title suggests, "The American Presidency" examines the history and traditions of the country’s highest office and boasts more than 350 artifacts. About 30 are from the historical society’s own collection, including a seldom-seen life mask cast from President George Washington’s face.
Visitors also will see the pen used by Woodrow Wilson in 1917 to sign a declaration of war against Germany and the radio microphone that relayed Franklin D. Roosevelt's "fireside chats" to the American people.
"I think what the exhibit is attempting to do is show people the presidency is not simply a product of the U.S. Constitution," said historical society historian Ralph Pugh, who helped set up the displays.
"It's a product of the individuals who held (the post) and a product of the first man who held the office, George Washington. Washington set this example of being a servant of the nation, but not being above the nation."
Lincoln is represented, too, primarily in a grim section of the exhibit that explores the tragedy of losing an incumbent president.
Among the physical remnants of his passing are the velvet cape that his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, wore to the theater when Lincoln was shot and the bed on which he later died.
Also slated for display is a sheet believed to be stained with the president's blood, two coins that covered his eyes after death and the medical kit used for Lincoln's autopsy on April 15, 1865.
In contrast, the Nature Museum's showing of "American Originals," which opened Friday, is a collection of more than two dozen precious documents.
The loaned inventory from the National Archives will tour the country for the next couple of years while the department's exhibition hall in Washington is being renovated.
The Nature Museum has customized the Chicago leg to highlight scientifically or environmentally significant artifacts, including Thomas Edison's 1879 patent application for the electric lamp.
By far, the item with the biggest marquee value is the government's official copy of the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by Lincoln, which declared Southern slaves free in 1863. The fragile pages will be on display through Monday, during extended museum hours.
"This is probably the only chance to see the Emancipation Proclamation in your lifetime," said Mike Sarna, the Nature Museum's director of exhibits.
Additional "American Originals" include a Civil War telegram Lincoln received in 1864 from Gen. William T. Sherman, who offered to present Savannah, Ga., as a "Christmas gift" to the Union.
Mike Ramsey can be reached at (312) 857-2323 or cnsramsey@aol.com.