Lincoln Memorial Kicks Off Inauguration Events

U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama at Lincoln's Monument

Jan 6, 2009

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama Inauguration welcome event will be held at the Lincoln Memorial, built for the 16th President of United States who was from Illinois.

The Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. will be the site where Presidential Inaugural events kicked off in the days preceding the January 20 Inauguration of President-Elect Barack Obama. A welcome event, hosted by the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) will be held at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday, January 18.

The afternoon welcome event, to be held on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at the west end of the National Mall, will be free and open to the public. Dedicated to the memory of America’s 16th President, the Lincoln Memorial has been the site of many Presidential Inauguration activities in recent years.

Lincoln Memorial

The Lincoln Memorial is especially appropriate for this historic event, as President Elect Barack Obama is the second person to take the office of the United States President from the State of Illinois.

The Lincoln Memorial was built to honor Lincoln, who was the 16th President of the United States. The memorial was designed to assemble stories from several regions of the Union. Architectural elements were designed to impress, inspires and ensure that Lincoln, who was a simple man, was elevated to a level commensurate with his historic role.

The Lincoln Memorial, which is operated by the National Park Service, was founded in 1922. The memorial has been the site of many famous speeches, including the famous speech by Martin Luther King “I Have a Dream.”

President Abraham Lincoln

The United States has been in the midst of the celebration of Abraham’s Lincoln’s Bicentennial year of his birthday. Lincoln grew up as a poor boy on the frontier of Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois. He educated himself by reading books by candlelight in his family’s rough log cabin.

As a young adult, Lincoln worked many trades; including a river trader, store clerk and rail splitter. Lincoln blended his love of the written word with his strong work ethic and pursued a legal career, which led to his political career. Lincoln served in the Illinois State Legislature before being elected to United Stated President.

Abraham Lincoln led the divided country through the bloody Civil War between the Union and Confederate forces. Lincoln was assassinated in 1865.

Presidential Inaugural Events

The PIC also plans to hold a youth concert on the evening of Monday, January 19th, at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington. Sunday’s welcome event and Monday’s concert will continue President-Elect Obama and Vice President-Elect Biden’s commitment to hold an Inauguration that is open, accessible and reflects a spirit of unity for Americans of all ages.

President Clinton held a free concert on the grounds in 1993 with performances by Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett, and Bob Dylan. In 2001, President Bush kicked off his inaugural festivities at the site with performances by Ricky Martin, Charlotte Church, and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

The Presidential Inaugural Committee announced that a free concert for America’s children will be held the night before the Inauguration, Monday, January 19th. Although the concert is free, tickets will be required.

For the latest information on the 2009 Presidential Inauguration, please visit www.pic2009.org.

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