Occupying an entire city block in downtown Springfield, Illinois, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum is the largest Presidential Museum. With over 50,000 square feet devoted to state-of-the-art full-immersion exhibits, special effects theaters and displays of original artifacts, it is also the first major Experience Museum of its kind.

Instead of the traditional museum design of static exhibits with flat images and dead objects in glass boxes, this Museum employs 21st century technology to bring 19th century history to life. The experience envelops visitors in the life and times of Abraham Lincoln. 

Reinventing the Museum Experience

Designed, created and produced by BRC Imaginations Arts, under the direction of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, the museum combines scholarship with showmanship. More than 36 scholars, Illinois public school teachers, and historical advisors – including some of the world’s foremost authorities on Lincoln’s life and presidency, as well as 41 other organizations, gave rigorous input and guidance.

Designed from the inside out, the concept and experience design were created before the building itself. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum engages visitors in a new way, leaving them more informed and inspired than when they entered the museum.

The Layout and Concept

The Plaza is at the center of the museum, an open gathering place from which all the areas of the museum are accessed. It welcomes and invites visitors to journey through the remarkable life and times of Abraham Lincoln, from his childhood through his presidency.

The Plaza: Lincoln's boyhood log cabin (start of Journey I);
White House South Portico, 1860 (start of Journey II)

The Journey is a walk-through experience divided into two parts – The Journey, Part I -The Pre-Presidential Years, and The Journey, Part II- The White House Years. They feature:

Immersive Settings: Highly researched, dramatic, “you-are-there” settings that put you “inside” dramatic moments in Lincoln’s life through great storytelling and vivid immersive environments.

Object Galleries: World-class traditional museum gallery rooms, or “object galleries,” present the real historical artifacts. The authentic objects become all the more powerful because the visitors have just personally experienced the story context that explains their importance.

Take Your Picture With The Lincoln Family
In the Plaza you can take a photo of your family posing with the Lincolns as they would have appeared shortly after arriving in the White House.