President Lincoln’s Cottage To Become An Autonomous Museum

Originally published April 2016 · p. 22

President Lincoln’s Cottage To Become An Autonomous Museum WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Lincoln’s Cottage, which opened to the public in 2008 under the National Trust for Historic Preservation, has a new form of governance and administration. Effective Jan. 1, the site is transitioning from a “stewardship” site to a “co-stewardship” operation with autonomy as President Lincoln’s Cottage at the Soldiers’ Home, a new 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. A new board of trustees will assume responsibility for operations and staff management while the National Trust will continue to lease the property from the Armed Forces Retirement Home, provide technical services and grant funding, and consult with the new entity on the property’s ongoing preservation and interpretation of the property. Stephanie K. Meeks, Trust president and CEO, said that the Trust has been working to develop new models of stewardship for its 21 historic sites and house museums, with governance by boards that are rooted in each site’s community of supporters and stakeholders. Lester “Ruff” Fant, chairman of President Lincoln’s Cottage Site Council, praised the National Trust for creating and supporting President Lincoln’s Cottage. He said generous members of the Council and others provided resources that gave the Cottage financial stability while Executive Director Erin Carlson Mast and the staff developed the Cottage as a museum of ideas that shows how President Lincoln’s ideals and values are important in developing solutions to today’s problems. “As we move to independent operation I am confident that President Lincoln’s Cottage will achieve a greatness that is worthy of a home of President Abraham Lincoln,” Fant said. President Lincoln’s Cottage has received national awards for preservation, education and museum technology. “Through our programs, 362 days out of the year, President Lincoln’s Cottage demonstrates that Lincoln’s fight for liberty is not a relic of history, but a struggle for the present and future,” said Mast. The Cottage is on the grounds of the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Washington. Lincoln spent more than a quarter of his presidency there. He drafted the Emancipation Proclamation during his first summer in residence. He met soldiers, veterans, self-emancipated blacks and others while traveling to and from the White House and on the soldiers home grounds. The Robert H. Smith Visitor Education Center is open from 9:30-4:30 Monday-Saturday and 10:30-4:30 on Sundays. Cottage tours are on the hour every day. For more information visit www.lincolncottage.org or call 202-829-0436.