President Lincoln’s Cottage to Display Emancipation Proclamation in Petworth

Photo by PoPville flickr user quigley_brown (Jim Hamann)

From a press release:

President Lincoln’s Cottage will be the first public venue to display a rare, signed copy of the Emancipation Proclamation recently purchased by David M. Rubenstein. The historic document will be displayed in the Robert H. Smith Visitor Education Center at President Lincoln’s Cottage from September 22nd, 2012, the date Lincoln issued the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, through the end of February 2013.

“Lincoln Cottage was where much of the Emancipation Proclamation was drafted and reflected upon
by President Lincoln, and it thus now seems among the most fitting places for this historic document
to be displayed to the public. I am pleased and honored to help make this possible,” Rubenstein said.
“We are extremely grateful to David M. Rubenstein for lending us the Emancipation Proclamation
for the 150th anniversary of Lincoln first issuing it to the public.” said Erin Carlson Mast, Director
of President Lincoln’s Cottage. “The Emancipation Proclamation is one of the foremost symbols
of freedom in our nation’s history. By viewing this rare copy of the proclamation at the very site
where Lincoln thought through these nation-changing ideas, visitors will be able to gain a deeper
understanding of the global and cultural importance of what took place at President Lincoln’s
Cottage.”

President Lincoln developed the Emancipation Proclamation while living at the Cottage in the summer
of 1862, making it the authentic place for understanding Lincoln’s ideas on slavery and emancipation.
President Lincoln’s Cottage, the “cradle of the Emancipation Proclamation,” is offering programs,
special tours, and events in partnership with national organizations to commemorate the 150th
anniversary of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.

President Lincoln’s Cottage, located in northwest Washington, D.C., is a site of the National Trust
for Historic Preservation. President Clinton declared the site a National Monument in 2000 and it
opened to the public for the first time in 2008, providing Americans with unparalleled insight into the
Emancipation Proclamation and Abraham Lincoln’s visionary leadership. Through innovative guided
tours, forward-thinking exhibits and quality educational programs, over 100,000 visitors have engaged
in conversations on freedom, experienced a personal transformation in how they view our shared
past, and reconsidered their role in our democracy today. Hours of operation: Tours on the hour,
7 days a week. Visitor Center open 9:30am-4:30pm Mon-Sat, 10:30am-4:30pm Sunday. For more
information on President Lincoln’s Cottage, visit: www.lincolncottage.org