From Ford's Theatre to the National Gallery of Art to the Lincoln Memorial, America's 16th President is getting a birthday celebration like few before him.
Want to join the party?
Here are some of the events and exhibits in Washington commemorating Abraham Lincoln's Feb. 12 birthday:
- The National Gallery of Art on Thursday will open the exhibit, "Designing the Lincoln Memorial: Daniel Chester French and Henry Bacon." It will feature the 6-foot plaster final model of the Lincoln Memorial statue by sculptor Daniel Chester French, as well as the original wood model of the memorial by architect Henry Bacon.
- Ford's Theatre will reopen to the public after an 18-month renovation with open houses on Feb. 12 and on President's Day, Feb. 16. The theater will commemorate Lincoln's 200th birthday with a wreath-laying ceremony Thursday morning and will offer hourly performances and free tours. A gala celebration Wednesday will feature Katie Couric, Kelsey Grammer, James Earl Jones, among others and will honor Sidney Poitier and George Lucas with the Lincoln Medal.
- The National Park Service will celebrate "Honest Abe's" birthday Feb. 12 at the Lincoln Memorial with singer Michael Feinstein slated to perform.
- The Smithsonian Institution has several Lincoln exhibits on view, including objects from Lincoln's life at the National Museum of American History and documents on loan from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Illinois. The National Portrait Gallery features an exhibit showing the evolution of Lincoln's presidential portraits over time.
To learn more about Lincoln events in D.C., click here.
For more on the exhibit at the Library of Congress, check out this link.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
