Has anybody been to the Lincoln Library/Museum in Springfield?

In My Humble Opinion
1

And if so, what’d you think?

I’m considering a trip there in the near future but it gets very mixed reviews. Some think it’s great the way they use technology to “bring it to life” and others think it’s a Disneyfication of history. (There was a whole episode on a History Channel show about the controversy.)

I’m assuming they still have the “regular” exhibits as well (artifacts and documents under cases- I know the first draft of the G’burg address is there so surely it’s on display).

Anyway, what’d you think? And any recs on anything else to see in the Springfield area? (I’m hoping to road trip and I want to see New Salem Village and, possibly, Nauvoo while in the area.)

2

Pretty much everything in Springfield worth seeing is related either to Lincoln or the never-convicted parts of the Illinois state government. That said, I enjoyed the Lincoln museum, and there are plenty enough “regular” exhibits to satisfy even the fussiest historian.

3

If you’re going to get to Nauvoo, it might be worth the trip to Carthage, to the jail where Joseph Smith died. I found it interesting, partly for the fact that the attendant and the other visitors the day we were there were all Mormons. Although I almost felt like we were intruding, since it’s pretty much a sacred site for the LDS. It was a good look at a different point of view, if you will.