(WAND) - Abraham Lincoln's birthday will be commemorated over the weekend with a series of events at historic sites.Â
State leaders announced events will take place at the 8th Judicial Courthouse where Lincoln practiced law at Metamora, Mt. Pulaski and Postville, the Bryant College in Bement, where Lincoln and Stephen Douglas met to arrange their series of debates in 1856, and the Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site, located in Lerna.Â
The schedule is as follows:Â
FRIDAY
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Guided tours of the Bryant Cottage, 146 E. Wilson St., Bement
FRIDAY AND SATURDAY
Noon to 4 p.m.
The Postville Courthouse, 914 S. Fifth St., Lincoln also will offer tours Friday and Saturday afternoon.
SATURDAY
1-3 p.m.
Visitors to the Mount Pulaski Courthouse can see a recreation of Mary Lincoln’s famous white cake and enjoy the 19th century fiddle and mandolin music of Steve Stanley and Mark Mathewson.
1-4 p.m.
Visit the grand reopening of the Metamora Courthouse State Historic Site, 113 S. Washington St. in Metamora, to view the site’s new exhibits and enjoy a children’s story time and special craft activity.
11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site, 402 S. Lincoln Highway Road in Lerna, for a special program featuring the National Trail Amateur Radio Club, which will set up a special event station in the lobby of the visitor’s center. NTARC members will communicate with other amateur radio operators from across the world using the Special Event call sign, W9L. Visitors also can learn more about how Abraham Lincoln embraced the original electronic messaging technology, the telegraph. He may be remembered for his soaring oratory, but the nearly 1,000 bite-sized telegrams that he wrote during his presidency helped win the Civil War by projecting presidential power in unprecedented fashion.
To learn more about these events and others, call (217)345-1845.Â
