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PEORIA, Ill., October 20, 2026—The Peoria Riverfront Museum announces on its 14th anniversary the acquisition of the most important photo ever taken in Peoria: the rare, only original ambrotype of Abraham Lincoln in Peoria.

It was confirmed by Daniel Weinberg of Abraham Lincoln Book Shop Inc., located in Chicago, that this image is the original. Weinberg has 20 years of experience in authenticating historic documents on Lincoln, and corresponded extensively with other Lincoln experts, all of whom agree: this image is the original from which all other ambrotypes were produced.

Known as the “Peoria Portrait,” it is one of the most famous early photographic images of Lincoln without a beard, and was used in his 1858 U.S. Senate campaign. It is generally agreed that Roderick M. Cole created the image in 1858 at his Peoria studio at the corner of Main and Washington Streets, using the ambrotype process.

Aware of the importance of Lincoln’s 1854 turning point speech in Peoria and the interest of the museum in telling the Peoria-Lincoln connection, curator for The Promise of Liberty Seth Kaller and Daniel Weinberg found the Lincoln ambrotype at a rare book fair in New York City. Recognizing it had been taken in Peoria, he negotiated the sale to the Peoria Riverfront Museum after decades in private hands. The America 250 donors to the museum sponsored the acquisition for the permanent collection of the Peoria Riverfront Museum.  

Lincoln frequently visited Peoria, where he handled legal business and delivered political speeches in the years leading up to his historic 1858 U.S. Senate campaign against Stephen A. Douglas. Four years earlier, on October 16, 1854, Lincoln delivered his famed Peoria Speech, a pivotal address opposing the expansion of slavery into the territories.

Lincoln reportedly favored the 1858 portrait among his early photographic portraits. The image was later mass-produced as a carte de visite, a small paper photographic collectible, and distributed to voters and supporters. Its widespread circulation provided a powerful tool for national name recognition by visually introducing the resolute, beardless candidate to the American public.

The acquisition comes during a landmark year for the Peoria Riverfront Museum. In celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, the museum staged a record eight self-curated exhibitions, headlined by The Promise of Liberty, guest curated by Ken Burns. The exhibition features more than 200 rare, original founding documents and objects, including the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, a Lincoln-signed Emancipation Proclamation, and other rare documents from Lincoln’s presidency, curated by Seth Kaller, special advisor to the museum and rare documents expert.

The museum also recently opened Transportation Revolutions: How America Moves, its largest transportation exhibition to date, and We Remember: Stories from the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, featuring objects from the September 11 attacks and their aftermath, including “Ground Zero” objects displayed publicly for the first time.

In another major milestone this year, the museum announced that the All-Illinois Student Pass, which provides free admission to every K-12 student in Illinois, will be extended through 2027 through the generous support of Ashley and Jeremy Bellamy. The first-of-its-kind statewide access program was established earlier this year with support from the Bellamys, the Gilmore Foundation, and an anonymous Chicago-based foundation.

Since opening its doors on October 20, 2012, the Peoria Riverfront Museum has welcomed more than 2 million patrons.

About Peoria Riverfront Museum

The Peoria Riverfront Museum is the only multidisciplinary institution of its kind in the nation, combining art, science, history, and achievement. The museum is dedicated to using its collections, exhibitions, giant screen theater, dome planetarium, and programming to tell the stories that build confidence, spark life-long learning, and unleash the full talent and genius of every individual. Learn more at riverfrontmuseum.org.

Contact Melody Konrad, Peoria Riverfront Museum assistant director of marketing and communications at MKonrad@peoriariverfrontmuseum.org