FROM GAIL BORDEN LIBRARY:

ELGIN — Steam locomotives replaced wagon trains and the Pony Express to bring people and mail across the country beginning in the 1860s. The Leviathan 63 Steam Locomotive is a replica of these locomotives that traveled on the Transcontinental Railroad, the rail line that President Abraham Lincoln envisioned for the country and the one that pulled his funeral car past millions of mourners.

The Leviathan 63 Steam Locomotive, built by contractor Dave Kloke in Elgin, will be on display all day on Saturday, April 21, in front of Gail Borden Library, 270 N. Grove Ave. Abraham Lincoln is scheduled to visit the library at 3:15 pm. To set the mood of this time period, the mid-1800s, talk to Civil War-era impersonators from the Elgin History Museum and view a model railroad display manned by Boy Scout Troop Adventure Crew 9911.

Other performances that day include:

11:00 am Songs of the Civil War performed by Dean Milano
1:30 pm Lost River, Lincoln’s Secret Weapon film screening
3:15 pm Meet President Lincoln portrayed by Fritz Klein
4:30 pm Learn about the building of Leviathan 63

All events are free to the community. No registration is needed.

Tags: abraham lincoln, elgin, gail borden, gail borden public library, illinois, library, lincoln, train

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