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Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War
The exhibit presents visitors with
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provocative questions, along with information that enables visitors to answer them on their own;
suggestions for linking the Civil War era with our own; and
opportunities to respond to the exhibit from their own perspectives.
Lincoln was one of our most eloquent presidents, and wherever possible, the text of this exhibition is taken from his own
words. Exhibit text includes the Gettysburg Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the Thirteenth Amendment, as well
as the Order to Blockade the Southern Ports, which marked the official start of the Civil War.
The traveling exhibition content is organized into six thematic sections, which together tell a story that is both cohesive and
chronological.
1. The Introduction lays out the three critical questions—concerning slavery, secession, and civil liberties—facing the nation
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in 1860, when Lincoln was elected President with less than 40 percent of the vote.
“Oath of Office” focuses on Lincoln’s inauguration on March 4, 1861, at a time when the Constitution was being challenged
and the United States was falling apart. The new President promised that the government would not attack the South if
the South did not attack the Union, but he also took a solemn oath to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution.
“Divided” asks the question, “Are we a single nation or a confederacy of sovereign and separate states?” Lincoln believed
that his inaugural oath compelled him to preserve the Union, that secession was unconstitutional and undemocratic. The
Southern states believed that they were under attack.
“Bound” reflects the nation’s struggle with the problem of slavery, with which it had been vexed since America’s founding.
The Constitution left the matter of slavery in the hands of the individual states. But many asked, “How can a country
founded on the belief that ‘all men are created equal’ tolerate slavery?”
“Dissent” raises the question: “Must civil liberties give way to save the Union?” In face of the chaos and danger facing
Lincoln and the Union, Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus—the constitutional provision that protects citizens of
the United States against arbitrary arrests.
“Legacy” focuses on the Gettysburg Address and on the work yet to be done to achieve the ideals of equality, freedom,
and democracy articulated in the Constitution and cherished by Lincoln. Acknowledging the shortcomings of his own age,
Lincoln challenged future generations of Americans to continue the work of realizing our nation’s highest ideals. Using selfstick notes on an exhibition panel, visitors are invited to answer the question, “Has America lived up to the ideals Lincoln
fought for?”
Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War, a traveling exhibition for libraries, was organized by the National Constitution Center and the American Library Association
Public Programs Office. The traveling exhibition has been made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Lincoln: The Constitution
and the Civil War is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.