Learning About Lincoln at the Library

There is an exhibit about Abraham Lincoln on display on the second floor in the Marvin Library until Feb. 28. This exhibit is nationally known as “Lincoln: the Constitution and the Civil War.”

Out of only 50 libraries throughout the nation, Hudson Valley’s Marvin Library was one of those chosen to display the exhibit. Hudson Valley was chosen by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library Association.

Brenda Hazard, Library Director, had originally applied to host this exhibit here at Hudson Valley in 2009. “I thought the display provided an opportunity for informal learning and discovery,” said Hazard.

The HVCC library houses books on a wide variety of subjects. “This exhibition complements the library’s extensive collections on Lincoln, the Civil War, the Constitution, and related issues,” said Brenda Hazard.

Funds that accompanied the grant helped the library purchase new books related to the exhibit, including “Claiming Lincoln: Progressivism, Equality, and the Battle for Lincoln’s Legacy in Presidential Rhetoric,” “Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation: the End of Slavery in America,” and “Lincoln, Inc.: Selling the Sixteenth President in Contemporary America.”

The exhibit first debuted in the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 2005.

This exhibit shows viewers the struggles Lincoln went through while serving as America’s president during a time of many hardships.

Using pictures to illustrate a story, the exhibit is divided into six different sections. All sections tell a different story, but overall there are three major topics displayed. The three topics include succession, slavery, and civil liberties.

There are many reproduced photographs displayed, which show important documents during that period of time. These include the Emancipation Proclamation, the Thirteenth Amendment, and drafts of Lincoln’s speeches.

Seeing the photos from the actual time period and the details of each, viewers can learn parts of history that they may have not known. It gives an understanding to the viewers of how we have come to become a free nation today.

By having different local newspapers promote this exhibit, the college has been visited by numerous people from the Capital Region.

“It’s a great way to attract positive attention to the college and to offer lifelong learning opportunities to the community;” says Hazard.