A trove of artifacts are newly on display at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and Library in Springfield.

Lincolns’ Life in Letters… The most impressive artifact is the desk that the then president-elect wrote his inaugural address from. A comprehensive restoration and preservation of the desk were undertaken to return it to its historical shape. ALPLM Director Christina Shutt says the desk, with its humble beginnings is a symbol of unity for anyone who sees it.

Another portion of the exhibit is letters written by not only Lincoln but also his wife Mary and his son Willie. The oldest piece is perhaps the “sum book” that Lincoln kept as a boy to teach himself mathematics. It even includes his first known signature.