It sure is, Lan. And you can get there by hopping on the Lincoln Highway and heading west. And surprise surprise, the shuttles that take you to and from the parking lot are....you guessed it....Lincoln Navigators...
Dang it, from your thread title, I was hoping this was about dinosaurs. [img]redface.gif[/img] Sounds like that museum is worth a visit. This is in Lincoln Nebraska, right? [img]graemlins/angel.gif[/img]
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ October 29, 2007 01:02 PM: Message edited by: LanDroid ]</font>
It sure is, Lan. And you can get there by hopping on the Lincoln Highway and heading west. And surprise surprise, the shuttles that take you to and from the parking lot are....you guessed it....Lincoln Navigators...
Sounds really cool Lew, but I have a problem with history being presented in a "modern" context. It's all well and good to take a modern spin on it, but to children it would be very confusing. Rather I think a reconstruction of how the news was relayed in 1860 would be far more appropriate (IE: a telegraph room reconstruction with reports posted on the walls, old newspapers, etc) There will be a lot of stupid people waling away from such an exhibit thinking "I didn't know they had television that far back..." But then there is a fairly pervasive trend to dumb down the public as much as possible so they will vote for the person who promises most to take away their freedoms and responsibilities for a Nanny State control of every aspect of their lives...
Well we just came back from a successful Lincoln-Palooza in Illinois.
The Lincoln Museum was excellent for what it does. If you knew nothing at all about the man, by the time you left you'd have a good idea. Now, maybe the hardest of the hardcore Lincolnphiles may not go for it, but them, across the street, is the Lincoln Library, where they can geek out over his papers.
Unfortunately, for the the first time in its 2-year history, the fire alarm went off and the building had to be evacuated. I will give everyone credit, they all made their way to the exits in an orderly manner. We left the museum, went to the Lincoln home, then returned about an hour and a half later to the museum, which had re-opened. No one there seemed to know what had been the cause of the alarm, or if there had even been a real fire. However, several witnesses reported that, right before the alarm went off, a couple on a Harley with Ohio plates were seen speeding off.
we stopped by the Licoln depot but it was closed. Then Sunday, we went to the Law Office, the Old State Capitol (where his "House Divided" speech was made), and then stopped at the cemetery before coming home.
I will say the museum establishes what I think will be the modern trend in museums for some time to come. Gone are the days where you'd have signs on the wall and the occasional movie. This place has interactive exhibits, modern special effects, multimedia, etc. Believe it or not, one of the coolest things they had was a modern newsroom, complete with the actual Tim Russert, doing a story on "Campaign 1860" as if there had been television coverage at the time. Inter-mixed with the news stories, they had "ads" by Lincoln, Davis, Breckenridge and Bell. For a young person, it would be a good way for them to learn about the issues at the time.
I thought, on the whole, they did a good job. Since it is a Lincoln museum, of course he's going to get the favored treatment. But to their credit, there are numerous exhibits dealing with Lincoln's critics and what their concerns were.
I suppose the one thing I noticed was not as much Civil War as I would have thought. 1860 gets a lot of coverage, 1861-1864 considerably less (except for the Emancipation, of course), and then it picks up in 1865.
Like I said, hardcore Lincoln buffs may find it too "mainstream," but again, they're free to go across the street to the library. To the average visitor, to the lay person, to schoolchildren, I think it hits a home run.
As for the facilities themselves, no complaints. Friendly staff, clean, easy to navigate, and reasonable prices.
GL-
I hear what you're saying, and your points are valid. Like I said, my suspicion is you would have been more comfortable across the street in the library as opposed to the museum.
I look at this way- to me, after English and math, history is the most important subject there is. Unfortunately, to most students it is their least favorite, and as a result we have a populace that's ignorant beyond ignorant about it. So anything that can get people in the door (assuming it's not fraudulent), I'm all for it.
And I think you have to adapt to the time. I'll give you a perfect example- my all-time favorite, the U.S.A.F Museum at Wright-Patt. I've been going there since I was a kid. Originally, it was a bunch of planes with signs in front of them. Yes it was a tremendous collection of planes, but that's all you did- walk up to a plane, read about it, move onto the next plane.
Over the years, they have really built on that. The planes are still there, but now they're part of a more thematic display. In the WWI section, there are exhibits that talk about WWI and that period in history, not just the planes. Same with WWII, Cold War, Modern, etc. They have more interactive exhibits, they have more kid-friendly exhibits. My wife is a big fan of the mannequins; in the past, the B-25 just sat there by itself. Now, they've reconstructed it to look like it's on the U.S.S. Hornet, ready to bomb Tokyo in 1942, complete with the flight deck crew getting it ready. The plane is still there; the sign telling you about it is still there. But there's more to it now, and if you go there on a weekend that place is packed, especially with kids and their families.
I agree with you regarding our dumbed-down population. But that's all the more reason why I support anything that will get young people interested in learning.
And I forgot...
Regarding the Tim Russert thing, I understand your point. But again, let's pretend that we went around to area high schools that had just completed studying the pre-Civil War period. Let's say we quizzed the students, tell us who ran, tell us what the issues were, etc. Obviously, the St. X students would answer each and every question thoroughly and with well-reasoned, articulated arguments. But as for the other schools, God knows what they'd tell you. Hell I'd be thrilled if there were high school kids that just knew Lincoln was a President.
OK now you take a group of those idiots and they watch the Tim Russert thing.....and then ask them afterwards, I bet you anything that more of them can remember what they saw in the exhibit than they can what they read in their book. Is that more of a testament to the "dumbing down" you alluded to? Of course it is. As Trav has commented in the past, this generation knows everything there is to know about downloading ringtones, and listening to songs on their iPod. But once you get past that, the bottom starts to drop fast.
Suppose a kid goes to the Lincoln museum this year. And maybe on a future trip, he visits Ft. Sumter. When the ranger starts the tour at Ft. Sumter, they don't talk about the Fort itself or any of that, they talk about the election of 1860. Maybe the kid remembers the Tim Russert exhibit and all of the sudden it starts to come together.
Then, of course, he goes and gets Trav and we all roadie on over to Virginia so we can pay homage to the holiest of holy sites, Appomattox Court House [img]wink.gif[/img]
You want to die young?
We can learn from the character of a man through his own words. General Robert E. Lee's wisdom and thoughts on various topics:
Character: As a general principle, you should not force young men to do their duty, but let them do it voluntarily and thereby develop their characters.
Choices: I think it better to do right, even if we suffer in so doing, than to incur the reproach of our consciences and posterity.
Conduct: We have only one rule here (at Washington College) to act like a gentleman at all times.
Defeat: We may be annihilated, but we cannot be conquered.
Determination: We had, I was satisfied, sacred principles to maintain and rights to defend, for which we were in duty bound to do our best, even if we perished in the endeavor.
Dreams: All I ever wanted was a Virginia farm, no end of cream and fresh butter and fried chicken-not one fried chicken, or two, but unlimited fried chicken.
Duty: Do your duty. That is all the pleasure, all the comfort, all the glory we can enjoy in this world.
Education: The education of a man or woman is never completed until they die.
Faith: I trust that a kind Providence will watch over us, and notwithstanding our weakness and sins will yet give us a name and place among the nations of the earth.
Farewells: After four years of arduous service marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources. With an unceasing admiration of your constancy and devotion to your country, and a grateful remembrance of your kind and generous consideration for myself, I bid you an affectionate farewell.
Forgiveness: Abandon your animosities, and make your sons Americans.
Honesty: The trite saying that honesty is the best policy has met with the just criticism that honesty is not policy. The real honest man is honest from conviction of what is right, not from policy.
Honor: A true man of honor feels humble himself when he cannot help humbling others.
Integrity: There is a true glory and a true honor: the glory of duty done-the honor of the integrity of principle.
Loyalty: If the Union is dissolved, the government disrupted, I shall return to my native state and share in the miseries of my people. Save in her defense, I will draw my sword no more.
Patriotism: These men are not an army-they are citizens defending their country.
Perseverance: We must expect reverses, even defeats. They are sent to teach us wisdom and prudence, to call forth greater energies, and to prevent our falling into greater disasters.
Promotion: What do you care about rank? I would serve under a corporal if necessary!
Purpose: I am glad to see no indication in your letter of an intention to leave the country. I think the South requires the aid of her sons now more than at any period in her history. As you ask my purpose, I will state that I have no thought of abandoning her unless compelled to do so.
Regrets: If I had taken General Longstreet' s advice on the eve of the second day of the battle of Gettysburg ...[then] the Confederates would today be a free people.
Union Atrocities: I have never witnessed on any previous occasion such entire disregard of the usage of civilized warfare and the dictates of humanity.
Vengeance: It must be remembered that we make war only upon armed men, and that we cannot take vengeance for the wrongs our people have suffered without lowering ourselves in the eyes of all whose abhorrence has been excited by the atrocities of our enemies.
I suspect if Lee had accepted Lincoln's offer to command the Army of the Potomac at the onset of hostilities, the "war" would have been over before it ever started. Instead he had to suffer one incompetent after another until Grant and Sherman. Lee assuming the command would have been quite a psychological blow ot the Confederacy as well.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Lee assuming command of the Army of the Potomac was never an option for him. Lee's first loyalty was to his State.Originally posted by Beachcomber:
I suspect if Lee had accepted Lincoln's offer to command the Army of the Potomac at the onset of hostilities, the "war" would have been over before it ever started. Instead he had to suffer one incompetent after another until Grant and Sherman. Lee assuming the command would have been quite a psychological blow ot the Confederacy as well.
I also don't see Grant as anything special. He benefited from superior communication, transportation, maufacturing and manpower. If the playing field was level Lee would have kicked his ass.
Is the house built of lincoln logs?!?!?!? [img]graemlins/hmmm.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/sure.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/wonder.gif[/img]
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