Today: 8th annual Lincoln Lecture on Mary Todd & sisters and birthday activities!

Join us today for the 8th annual Lincoln Lecture in commemoration of Lincoln’s birthday at 9 a.m. in the Trutter Center. “Abraham Lincoln and the Todd Women of Aristocracy Hill” will be presented by Erika Holst, author of “Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal during the Lincoln Era” and “Edwards Place: A Springfield Treasure.”

Erika HolstMs. Holst, a frequent contributor to the Illinois Times, spent four years with The Papers of Abraham Lincoln project before joining the Springfield Art Association as curator of collections for historic Edwards Place in Springfield. She will discuss her research on how Mary Todd Lincoln and her sisters influenced a rough looking country lawyer who became President of the United States.

The lecture is free and refreshments will be served.

Student Life and LLCC Outreach Centers will sponsor various Lincoln-themed educational displays and contests.  In A. Lincoln Commons, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Epicurean Club will have cookies and Student Life is hosting trivia and Lincoln selfie contests. LLCC-Jacksonville will donate Lincoln birthday bags to the local Food Center, and LLCC-Beardstown is planning an upcoming trip for students to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. On Monday, Feb. 15, LLCC-Taylorville and Litchfield will show the documentary “Lincoln” from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.