What events took place inKentucky, Hodgenville, and at the Birthplace during the sesquicentennial ofLincoln’s birth?
On September 2, 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill establishing the Lincoln Sesquicentennial Commission. The Commission worked in cooperation with various government agencies and states in preparations for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. A special service was held at the Washington Cathedral in WashingtonD.C. on Sunday, January 11, 1959 to launch the “Year of Lincoln.”[42] Various government agencies, including the Library of Congress and the National Archives, established Lincoln Sesquicentennial Exhibitions that included letters, documents, photographs and other Lincoln memorabilia. The Commission also authorized the production of busts of Lincoln by noted sculptors Robert Berks and Avard Fairbanks to be unveiled at Ford’s Theater, of which Berks’ bust, “Gettysburg Lincoln,” became the portrait of the Lincoln Sesquicentennial and is currently on display in the Visitor Center of Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Si
