THE LINCOLN GROUP OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA THE ABRAHAM LINCOLN BICENTENNIAL FOUNDATION THE LINCOLN ARCHIVES DIGITAL PROJECT THE WILLARD INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL THE LINCOLN FORUM Commemorate the Sesquicentennial of The First Inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln Saturday, March 5, 2011 (Washington, D.C.) The 150thanniversary of the first inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln will be commemorated on March 5, 2011, at a public ceremony in the United States Capitol Visitor Center auditorium and a banquet luncheon at the Willard InterContinental Hotel. Distinguished actor Sam Waterston will read Lincoln's First Inaugural Address at the public ceremony at the Capitol. The first inauguration of President Lincoln took place on March 4, 1861. These events are co-sponsored by the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia, the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation, the Lincoln Forum, the Lincoln Archives Digital Project, and the Willard InterContinental Hotel. They are the first events commemorating the Lincoln presidency to receive the support of the new Foundation-the successor organization to the Bicentennial Commission which commemorated the 200thanniversary of Lincoln's birth in 2009. The Capitol ceremony will be hosted by Representative Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., from the 2ndDistrict of Illinois and co-sponsored by Senator Jim Webb of Virginia. The Lincoln Inaugural Sesquicentennial Ceremony at the Capitol Visitor Center auditorium will begin at 10:00 a.m. and will feature remarks on the 1861 inauguration by Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer, chair of the Foundation; the public reading of Lincoln's inaugural address by Sam Waterston; and a re-enactment of the swearing-in of President Lincoln. As was the sequence in 1861, the swearing-in will follow the reading of the inaugural address. The Capitol ceremony is free and open to the public. January 2011 Press Release: Lincoln Inauguration Sesquicentennial Page 2 In announcing the Capitol ceremony, the president of the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia, Burrus Carnahan, stated, "Under the leadership of President Lincoln, our nation passed through its greatest trials and extended to all Americans the fundamental rights which a government of, by, and for the people was founded to protect. Remembering these critical years can strengthen our commitment to the principles of freedom today and in the years ahead. Young people especially will benefit from recalling the struggles for liberty that made this country the last best hope of earth." "The newly reconstituted Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation is proud to be co-sponsoring and providing support for this important commemoration," commented Foundation chair Harold Holzer. "Our goal is to perpetuate the Lincoln story throughout the Civil War Sesquicentennial, and this event fits perfectly into that mission. Lincoln's immortal inaugural appeal to the 'better angels of our nature' resonates in our own time as it did in his own: as an aspiration to unity and national spirit, and we look forward to hearing them pronounced on March 5 by the incomparable Sam Waterston." At 1:00 p.m. participants in the Capitol program and other guests will attend an Inaugural Banquet Re-enactment Luncheon at the Willard InterContinental Hotel. The menu will be reminiscent of the inaugural luncheon served to President Lincoln who stayed at Willard's Hotel with his family before the inauguration. Live music of the Civil War period will be performed. Special presentations will be made by Sam Waterston and Harold Holzer. The principal speaker will be Lincoln biographer Ronald L. White, Jr, author of A. Lincoln: A Biography (2009); The Eloquent President: A Portrait of Lincoln Through His Words (2005);and Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second Inaugural (2002). Illustrations and documents related to the 1861 inauguration will be displayed. Invited guests include Congressman Jackson, Senator Webb, Archivist of the United States David Ferriero, and Librarian of Congress James Billington. Reservations for the Willard Hotel banquet luncheon are $75 and must be made by February 25, 2011. Order by mail: The Lincoln Group of DC, 3119 N. Harrison St, Arlington, VA 22207, or online at www.lincolninauguration2011.com. For more information visitwww.lincolngroup.org or contact Karen Needles at 240-462-9802 "The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it." Karen Needles "Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed, is more important than any other one thing." Abraham Lincoln to Isham Reavis, Nov. 5, 1855 Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln. Volume 2, p. 328 ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html