SR0068 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0068 LRB104 03332 LAW 13354 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site provides a historic, interactive interpretation of the reconstructed 1830s village where Abraham Lincoln once lived, which at one time, when it was a premier site, hosted more than 400,000 visitors from around the world per year; and

WHEREAS, Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site has experienced extensive deterioration of the reconstructed log homes, roofs, buildings, foundations, chimneys, fences, steps, footbridge, flatboat, cemetery, and iconic Grist Mill; and

WHEREAS, Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site attracts students on field trips, volunteers, campers, hikers, canoeing and kayaking enthusiasts, college interns, cyclists, children partaking in Pioneer Life Summer Day Camps, historians, visitors from around the world, and descendants of those who lived, worked, and are buried there; and

WHEREAS, Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site serves as a living history museum, with volunteer interpreters in the homes, and features concessions, a gift shop, campgrounds, exercise areas, and trails; the site also hosts a number of events, including the Traditional Music Festival, Theatre in the Park, Summer Frolic, the Independence Day Celebration, which features a reading of the Declaration of Independence, the Fall Festival, the popular annual Fall Candlelight Walk, Boy Scouts of America (BSA) jamborees, and the BSA Abraham Lincoln Pilgrimage, where scouts hike while retracing Lincoln's footsteps to Springfield; and

WHEREAS, Over the past 40 years, the New Salem Lincoln League has invested more than a million dollars in programs and improvements to Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site, including introducing new cultural and educational programs in the village and outdoor theater, purchasing traditional wood shingles to replace the village structures' roofs and treated wood to replace cabin porches and steps, paying for the site's iconic statues to be professionally cleaned, treated, and restored, financing new LED lighting to save the site thousands of dollars, funding the veterinary care and transportation for medical care of the site's animals, and acquiring a horse, a horse trailer, feed, and hay; the league has also made a number of enhancements to the Visitor Center and its parking lot, including the production of an orientation video and the addition of a new state-of-the art system to replace the center's aging audiovisual equipment; and

WHEREAS, The New Salem Lincoln League relies on the work and dedication of volunteers to make Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site a memorable experience for visitors, and in turn, provides supplies and materials for volunteer efforts, such as clothing, materials for demonstrations, candles for the annual candlelight tour, and meals for all volunteers and staff during those tours; the league has also worked with Theatre In the Park, which attracts over 10,000 visitors a year, funding new seating and a new sound board, and it partners with the Illinois College Explorer program to fund up to six college interns each summer; and

WHEREAS, For Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site to continue, it is essential that the State of Illinois honors its commitment to preserve and maintain the site, ensuring its existence for future generations as a living history museum and as an opportunity to learn about Abraham Lincoln's transformative early years; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we support the creation of a New Salem Preservation Commission to monitor and recommend repairs and maintenance for Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site, including structures, signage, statues, overall condition of the grounds, and accessibility, and to make recommendations for the volunteer coordination efforts, including interactions and communications with current and potential volunteers, as well as guidelines for volunteer eligibility and retention; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to Governor JB Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and the New Salem Lincoln League.