Turtle Bay Exploration Park will open a new exhibit, sure to delight American history buffs…Liberty on the Border: A Civil War Exhibit, presented by Senator Maurice and Marianne Johannessen. The exhibit will be on temporary display at Turtle Bay from October 11, 2014 through January 18, 2015.
“The exhibit was originally created by Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal as one of the 40 Legacy Projects for the State of Ohio’s Bicentennial Celebration during 2003. We are excited to have the opportunity to share the story of this border region both here in Cincinnati, and as a part of a national exhibit tour,” says Cincinnati Museum Center President and CEO, Douglass W. McDonald.
The exhibit, designed by Cincinnati Museum Center staff and historians, focuses on the relationship border states during the Civil War, to provide new insights into the events leading up to the war, the war years, and the “politics of memory” that has occurred from post-war to modern day. At this time the Ohio River and other state line border regions were not just a physical borders between neighboring states, but also represented a dividing line between North and South, “free” and “slave.” The exhibit looks at the Civil War in a new way, allowing visitors to look not only at the very real physical border that separated slave states from the free states, but also the wide spectrum of attitudes of people in those areas.
Liberty on the Border is a temporary exhibit that will include numerous artifacts, archival documents, broadsides, ephemera, lithographs, and photographs. Reproductions of certain artifacts provide visitors with a multi-sensory exhibit experience as they try on a soldier’s jacket, feel the weight of his pack and inspect the merchandise at the Sanitary Fair. A collection of items representing Redding’s part in the war will be included as well—some of which are already on display in the museum.
The exhibit is unique from other Civil War exhibits because it tells the story from a border area focus. It is unique, too, because of its strong focus on non-military events and civilian contributions, which puts the causes, effects, and meaning of the war in more personal terms.
Liberty on the Border is presented by Senator Maurice and Marianne Johannessen and supported by Best Western PLUS Hilltop Inn/C.R. Gibbs American Grille and KCNR1460am Free Fire Media with additional support by Drs. Promila and Piyush Dhanuka.
About Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
Cincinnati Union Terminal was a significant development in the history of Cincinnati transportation. One of the last great train stations built, Union Terminal has become one of the iconic symbols of the city and one of the most widely regarded examples of the Art Deco style. Since its opening in 1933, Union Terminal has had a long and storied history, from the exciting times of World War II to being the home of three museums, an OMNIMAX® Theater and the Cincinnati History Library and Archives.
About Turtle Bay Exploration Park
Turtle Bay Exploration Park is a fun, non-profit 300-acre gathering place featuring the Sundial Bridge, a museum, forestry & wildlife center, arboretum and botanical gardens. At the gateway to the Sacramento River Trails, Turtle Bay celebrates far Northern California as part of the world we share.
Mission: To inspire wonder, exploration, and appreciation of our world.
Vision: We envision Turtle Bay Exploration Park as a vibrant gathering place where our community is strengthened through education, cultural engagement and economic growth.
-from press release
