Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Presidential library and museum in Springfield, Illinois, United States

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield holds documents, artifacts, and personal belongings of the 16th president. The collection includes handwritten speeches, proclamations, and everyday objects from Lincoln's life and family.

The library opened on October 14, 2004, and the museum on April 19, 2005, in downtown Springfield near other Lincoln sites. The library absorbed the Illinois State Historical Library collection, founded by the state in 1889. Architect firm HOK designed the complex, whose two main buildings are joined by an enclosed walkway over the street. It became an independent state agency in 2017.

The place shows how Lincoln remains central to American memory, especially through his role in ending slavery and preserving the nation. You can see how his legacy shapes how people understand their country's history.

The museum and library are separate buildings on adjacent blocks, linked by an enclosed walkway over the street. Each has a domed rotunda echoing the old State Capitol where Lincoln served four terms. The library's Steve Neal Reading Room is open to the public, but rare items do not circulate.

The Gettysburg Address on show is Lincoln's own handwritten copy, and in 2019 director Alan Lowe was fired for lending it to Glenn Beck's Mercury One group. The hat in "Under His Hat" has a 360-degree online view. First lady Lura Lynn Ryan began fundraising with $250,000, and Illinois schoolchildren's pennies added $47,000.