Join Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum Chief of Acquisitions Ian Hunt for the latest installment in our “Tales from the Vault” series during our next Facebook LIVE! event on Thursday, November 5 at 7 p.m. Central Time.

The St. Andrew’s Fall Book Fair, featuring over 20,000 used books, will be held on November 6-7 at 406 Hillsboro Avenue in Edwardsville, Illinois. The books are well organized and priced to sell. Categories include fiction (hardcover and paperback), children’s books, history, literature, pets, sports, regional history, cookbooks, gardening, art, biography, music, humor, large print, religion, reference, science fiction and much more. The books are sorted by category with some categories also alphabetized by author. DVDs, CDs, vinyl, jigsaw puzzles and games are also available. Reservations are required.

The Wilmette Historical Museum will host a virtual lecture via Zoom with Kevin Wester discussing “Luxembourgers in Chicago: From North Avenue to Wilmette.” His lecture will provide a broad overview of Luxembourg immigration during the second half of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, when the Chicago area, including Wilmette, became home to the largest number of Luxembourg immigrants in America.

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum will honor our veterans with free admission on Veteran’s Day, Wednesday, November 11, 2020. If you have ever served in the armed forces, you qualify for free admission. Call 217-558-8844 in advance to get your free ticket. (Military identification will be required.)

During the American Civil War, women on both sides of the conflict, radiating patriotic fervor equal to their male counterparts, contributed to the war effort in countless ways: forming charitable societies, becoming nurses, or even marching off to war as vivandières, unofficial attachés to the regiments.

In Faces of Civil War Nurses, Ronald S. Coddington explores the lives of 77 women of all ages and backgrounds who provided care during the war as nurses, aid workers, and vivandières.

During the famous Battle of the Bulge in World War II, Army paratrooper Vince Speranza visited a fellow soldier who was laid up in a makeshift military hospital. His friend wanted a beer and Vince set out on the war-torn streets of Bastogne to find one. Little did Vince realize at the time this simple gesture would become the stuff of legend.

“Your letters are worth more to me than gold.” That was the sentiment of one soldier from Illinois fighting in the Civil War that was likely shared by most of his fellow comrades. Letters from soldiers and sailors to their family and friends back home were equally cherished by their loved ones and provide an important insight into the soldiers’ lives and experiences from the field of battle.

Editor Mark Flotow has documented the lives of 165 Illinois Civil War soldiers through the lens of their personal letters for his book In Their Letters, in Their Words: Illinois Civil War Soldiers Write Home.

Have you ever wanted to learn more about life in the 1800s? If so, this exciting Junior Historians LIVE! event is for you. Join the museum's Education Director, Heather Nice, and Illinois and Midwest Studies Historian, Dr. Jacob Friefeld, as we chat about what it was like to live 200 years ago.

2020 has been a year unlike any other—filled with political divisiveness, social justice protests, and major economic turndowns, all under the cloud of a worldwide pandemic. 157 years ago, during another critical point in our nation’s history, President Lincoln gave a short address at the dedication of the Gettysburg National Cemetery that has since become one of the greatest and most influential statements of American national purpose.

Little Lincoln’s (Virtual) Fireside Tales invites children 0 to 5 years old (or any child who enjoys story time) to share in an exciting virtual story time, hosted via Zoom, with our Education staff and special visitors. Staff will lead this interactive story time and at-home arts and crafts activities will be provided at the conclusion of the event. The votes are in from our special October Little Lincoln’s election. It was super close, but we’re excited to announce that you chose “Food” for our November theme!