law-office-ornament-1.jpgSt. Joseph's Home of Springfield unveiled the Official City of Springfield Ornament for 2007 during a special ceremony held at the Tinsley Building in downtown Springfield on Nov. 6. The newest ornament, entitled The Lincoln Family in Springfield, is the 15th in a series of ornaments that honor Springfield's landmarks. The ornaments are issued annually by St. Joseph's Home.
The site of the unveiling was significant because the new ornament, which features Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln and two of their sons, has as its backdrop the Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices (located in the Tinsley Building), said Terri Hempstead, director of development for St. Joseph's Home.
Springfield artist and photographer Gale Myers designed the ornament based on her photographs of the Tinsley Building, which is brick Greek Revival dating back to the early 1840s, and sculptures on the south Old State Capitol Plaza, Springfield's Lincoln. "So, she composed the design that became the ornament," said Hempstead.
Lincoln invited William H. Herndon to join him as a junior partner in the mid-1840s. For many years, they had their law practice in an office in the Tinsley Building on Sixth Street, just south of the State Capitol (now the Old State Capitol Historic Site).
In 2004, artist Larry Anderson created the life-size sculpture of Lincoln, his wife and two of their sons. The sculpture is set on Oct. 4, 1854, as Lincoln is heading toward the Old State Capitol to give a speech. In the sculpture, Mary is seen adjusting her husband's lapel. Willie, who would have been 3 years old, is waving to Robert, who would have been 11, and is some distance away.
While St. Joseph's Home hasn't been around since Lincoln's time, it has been a part of Springfield for over 100 years, Hempstead said. "Community support of St. Joseph's Home has been a vital element in its 104-year ministry. It is an honor to be able to provide Springfield residents and businesses with a beautiful and high-quality collectible to display or give as gifts.
"The ornaments have been a wonderful project for raising funds to support the needs of the men and women of St. Joseph's Home," she said. In its first 14 years the ornament program has generated approximately $500,000 to support the home's ministries.
Each 24-karat gold-plated ornament comes in a green velvet-lined box and includes a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity. The ornaments are produced in a limited edition of 7,500 pieces.
Ornaments, which cost $26 each, are now available at these Springfield locations: St. Joseph's Home, Tinsley Dry Goods, the Illinois State Museum Store, St. John's Hospital gift shops, Heartland Credit Union, Vono Medical Supply, Pleasant Nursery, Pease's Candy, Wild Birds Unlimited, Prairie House, Avanti, Bank of Springfield and End of the Rainbow (Sherman). They can be ordered online at www.saintjosephshome.org or www.abelincoln.com.
Earlier ornaments in the series have depicted various historic places in Springfield and New Salem sites. Most ornaments are still available. For more information, contact Terri Hempstead at (217) 529-5596.