I hadn’t realized that Abraham Lincoln was the tallest man to serve as U.S. President (6’4”) and the only one to have a patent in his name (for creating a buoy system to hoist submerged boats). Impressive height and ingenuity–two unexpected traits I mentally add to the resume of our most beloved president.
The La Quinta Museum is honoring the bicentennial year of our 16th president with a simple but affecting display of photographs and memorabilia. Recognizing the power of the nascent medium, Lincoln allowed himself to be photographed steadily throughout his presidency, most of them grave, head-on shots that reveal his craggy, somber visage.
Some of the shots are iconic, some were new to me, like the tiny tintype of a younger man with mussed hair entitled, “Tousled Lincoln”, that supporters inserted into lockets and wore during his first presidential election. One taken one month before his assassination shows a glowering Lincoln; he felt sidelined by the photographer who came to the White House to shoot son Tad riding his horse and then urged the boy to collar his father for an unplanned session. I found this final portrait of a man unaware of his imminent fate mesmerizing.
Memorabilia includes a Union musket, bullets, coins, Confederate currency, hardtack (I’d always wondered what this maligned food staple looked like! The answer, sort of a large Saltine), a document bearing Lincoln's signature, and Union Captain Lawrence's embellished sword that he wielded during the horrific Battle of Fredricksburg but which did not protect him from being mortally wounded. Civil War-era music softly plays in the background. Hearing the haunting Ashokan Farewell always reminds me of Ken Burns' epic miniseries.
Abraham Lincoln is one of two revolving exhibitions currently underway at the beautiful year-and-a-half-old museum opened located next to the historic La Quinta Historical Society on Avenida Montezuma in old downtown. The other, 400 Years of Astronomy, drew my astronomy-minded husband into its colorful displays of historical and recent discoveries.
Linda Williams, president of the La Quinta Historical Society, credits museum manager, Johanna Wickman, with ferreting out interesting and eclectic subjects for the three-month-long rotating exhibits in the upstairs galleries. Since opening in May 2008, the museum has hosted National Geographic photographs of grasslands, a teapot collection, Picturing America, and Paris in Plein Air.
The vivacious Wickman—clad in pirate gear after leading a Talk Like a Pirate Day today for children 4 to 9—recently snagged a miniature diorama of the Cahuilla Indians from the Palm Springs Art Museum.
“She just happened to be online when they were offering it and said ‘I’ll take it!’“ Williams laughed. “And, even better, it was free.” The meticulously-rendered diorama of ancient Indians building traditional palm-frond huts now graces the downstairs historical gallery, just in time for a special focus on the area's very first inhabitants. November’s month-long event will feature singers, lectures, photography, basketry demonstrations, and pottery by David Salk.
“Museum attendance has shot up this year, even in our traditionally off-season,” Williams noted happily. “We had a waiting list of more than 100 children for the recent astronomy camp held in conjunction with the astral exhibit.
“I love seeing the excitement of families, children and teachers when they participate in the museum activities. Art and history come alive in such a wonderful setting,” she added.
Shepherding the nascent museum is a perfect fit for the gracious, articulate Williams, a full-time Realtor with Windermere La Quinta, who brings a lifelong history of community involvement to her most recent position.
For those fascinated by our most eloquent president, Don McCue, curator at the Lincoln Memorial Shrine in Redlands, will be giving a presentation September 25 from 5 to 6 p.m. The exhibit runs through October 27.
For more information, check out the La Quinta Historical Society's website
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