The Lincoln Chair
The Lincoln Chair is proudly on display in Old Main, available for students and visitors to sit in. It serves as one of many material reminders of Knox college's connection to Abraham Lincoln. As prospective students are told during tours, Abraham Lincoln sat in this chair before his October 7, 1858 debate against Stephen A. Douglas at Knox College. Students are also told that, as the newly-erected debate stage blocked the door of Old Main, Lincoln had to climb out a window to get on stage, later saying, "at last I have gone through college." There are many material reminders of Knox's relationship with Lincoln, such as photographs and artwork depicting Lincoln, rooms named after him, and even a Lincoln impersonator that is hired every Spring Term. While all of these objects serve as reminders, the chair invites students, staff, and visitors to interact with history in a different way than other objects. Lincoln actually sat in the chair, as current Knox students do, connecting him to Knox in a direct and physical way.
On tours, orientations, and websites, Knox continues strengthening its mythical relationship to the anti-slavery movement, discussing its abolitionist roots and connections to Lincoln. In focusing on these relationships, Knox perpetuates the story of its role in the abolition movement and its current dedication to racial equality. At the 1858 Galesburg debate, the issue of slavery was brought up, and Lincoln said that Douglas was "blowing out the moral lights around us when he contends that whoever wants slaves has a right to hold them."
Lincoln lost the Senate race that year, but was elected president two years later. In addition to Lincoln, multiple celebrities have sat in the chair, including presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.