Peoria Riverfront Museum Kicks Off America 250 with The Promise of Liberty Exhibition, opening January 31, 2026
Guest-curated by Ken Burns, this original exhibition features 250+ rare objects never before displayed together, including a 1776 edition of the Declaration of Independence, a first printing of the United States Constitution, and Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington.
PEORIA, Ill., January 30, 2026—The Peoria Riverfront Museum announces the kickoff of one of the nation’s largest America 250 celebrations with the debut of the museum’s flagship America 250 exhibition, The Promise of Liberty, a sweeping and unprecedented exhibition of American history and ideas, guest-curated by acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, opening January 31, 2026.
Headlined by a 1776 edition of the Declaration of Independence and a Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington, The Promise of Liberty features an extraordinary assemblage of 250+ of the rarest objects, documents, and artworks, coming together for the first time in history. The exhibition is the most enterprising self-curated exhibition in the museum’s history and the centerpiece of all the museum’s America 250 activities.
The Promise of Liberty accompanies other exhibitions, programs, and performances, including “I Hear America Singing,” produced by Nathan Gunn and Julie Gunn, under the banner of America 250.
“Here in the quintessential American city – Peoria, Illinois – we have curated one of the most significant collections of original American documents ever assembled,” said John D. Morris, President and CEO of the Peoria Riverfront Museum. “This exhibition represents the most comprehensive display of consequential letters, broadsides, publications, and rare prints related to the promise of liberty. It is the one exhibition in the country that will inspire the full talent and genius of everyone who encounters it.”
THE PROMISE OF LIBERTY
With the esteemed collaboration of legendary filmmaker Ken Burns as guest curator, and curator and special advisor Seth Kaller, the nation’s foremost expert and dealer in historic American documents, with Alice Walton’s Art Bridges Foundation partnering, The Promise of Liberty is among the most ambitious exhibitions ever assembled on the American experiment.
“This is not merely a collection of dates, wars, or papers behind glass,” said Ken Burns. “America is a promise – laid out in ideas – and in the work that still lies ahead of us. I’m proud to have been part of this extraordinary, one-of-a-kind exhibition telling the story of us.”
“We are here reintroducing the Declaration, the Constitution, and other documents of freedom not only as history, but also as technology – a system of applying knowledge to solve problems,” said Seth Kaller. “By revisiting these sources of common values and strength, we hope to inspire new generations to embrace the rights, responsibilities, and benefits of civic participation.”
Spanning the founding era through the civil rights movement and beyond, the exhibition presents democracy not as a fixed achievement, but as a living, evolving system – one that demands participation, compromise, and imagination from every generation.
The Promise of Liberty’s 250+ objects include extraordinary works of American art as well as more than 100 premium, rare documents, facilitated by curator and special advisor Seth Kaller, including:
- Declaration of Independence, original 1776 edition
- U.S. Constitution first printing (1787)
- Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington, on loan from Colonial Williamsburg
- Edward Hicks’ Washington Passing the Delaware (1835-40), on loan from Alice Walton’s Art Bridges, and the first time on display since its acquisition
- Captain Meriwether Lewis’ pipe tomahawk (1814), considered the only remaining object from the Lewis and Clark Expedition Corps of Discovery
- John Mitchell map, the most historically important American map in existence, courtesy Graham Arader Galleries
- Rare photograph of Abraham Lincoln taken in Peoria, Illinois, in 1858-59, on loan from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
- Abraham Lincoln-signed Emancipation Proclamation
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 March on Washington “I Have a Dream” speech
- George Washington-signed Thanksgiving Day Proclamation (1789), one of only two in existence
In addition, a person-sized hologram box, a first for the area, will bring characters to life, adding new experiences throughout the exhibition’s yearlong run. David Nussbaum, the pioneering inventor of the freestanding hologram, is debuting his Proto Hologram Inc. box in central Illinois as part of The Promise of Liberty exhibition.
The Peoria Riverfront Museum curatorial team worked nonstop, led by chief curator Bill Conger, with Zac Zetterberg, curator of the Center for American Decoys; Renae Kerrigan, planetarium director and science curator; Everley Davis, director of community engagement and assistant curator; and Megan Nguyen, Art Bridges Fellow.
The Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, the city’s namesake Tribe, in a partnership with the Peoria Riverfront Museum, built the cases through Tribe’s Henley Custom for the important documents of liberty featured in the exhibition. Tribe chief Rosanne Dobbs, at the museum last fall for a signing ceremony, will be here for the dedication and opening.
Peoria Riverfront Museum is grateful for the leadership of The Promise of Liberty sponsors, including the Gilmore Foundation, led by president Laura Cullinan; Ashley and Josh Bellamy; and the McKinnon Family Foundation.
AMERICA 250 EXHIBITIONS AND PROGRAMS
The Peoria Riverfront Museum’s America 250 celebration includes a lineup of focused exhibitions, programs, and performances that began with Joyful Resistance (November 22, 2025 - January 3, 2027).
Opening the same day as The Promise of Liberty is Deep Rivers/Long Roads: The Journey of America, January 31, 2026 - April 12, 2026. In conjunction with the Deep Rivers exhibition, the Peoria Riverfront Museum presents a signature performance: “I Hear America Singing,” produced by Nathan and Julie Gunn, a musical journey through 250 years of liberty, presented by Shot in the Dark Productions, on two days, Friday, March 27, 2026, and Saturday, March 28, 2026.
A featured exhibition is the first-ever collaboration of the New York 9/11 Museum with another museum: We Remember: Stories From the 9/11 Memorial & Museum (August 29, 2026 - April 11, 2026). The exhibition is guest-curated by Andrew “Andy” Card, who served as President George W. Bush’s chief of staff on September 11, 2001, and who spoke at a special museum 9/11 ceremony last fall.
EXHIBITION LINEUP
- The Promise of Liberty, Ken Burns, guest curator, January 31, 2026 - January 3, 2027
- Joyful Resistance, November 22, 2025 - January 3, 2027: For the first time in the museum’s history, this exhibition brings together a multidisciplinary collection of works by pioneering Black American artists, authors, and designers from across the nation, spanning generations.
- Deep Rivers/Long Roads: The Journey of America, January 31, 2026 - April 12, 2026
- “I Hear America Singing,” produced by Nathan and Julie Gunn, the museum’s signature America 250 performance, Friday, March 27, 2026, and Saturday, March 28, 2026, in conjunction with the exhibition Deep Rivers/Long Roads.
- Peoria Plays America: the series spotlights central Illinois icons of American performance and also sport, in partnership with the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame. The series opens in its first iteration on February 13, 2026, and continues throughout the year, featuring legends such as Harlem Globetrotter Curley “Boo” Johnson, Olympic figure skater Matthew Savoie, REO Speedwagon guitar legend Gary Richrath, singer Dan Fogelberg, and legendary comedian Richard Pryor.
- Exquisite Creatures, from the collection of Art Bridges, February 17, 2026 - August 9, 2026
- Toytopia, May 9, 2026 - September 7, 2026
- We Remember: Stories From the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, guest curated by Andrew “Andy” Card, guest curator, September 5, 2026 - April 11, 2027. This is the first time that the New York institution has ever collaborated with another museum.
- Transportation Revolutions: America on the Move, October 3, 2026 - April 11, 2027.
ALL-ILLINOIS STUDENT PASS
Donors committed $1 million to support free admission for all students in the state of Illinois to The Promise of Liberty and all exhibitions at the Peoria Riverfront Museum throughout 2026.
During the museum’s America 250 celebration, there will be no barriers for students to see the 1776 Declaration of Independence, Emancipation Proclamation, March on Washington (I Have a Dream) speech, and more than 250 other documents, artworks, and objects that tell the story of the Promise of Liberty.
The program is supported by Ashley and Josh Bellamy, the Gilmore Foundation, and an anonymous Chicago-based foundation.
The All-Illinois Student Pass is offered in addition to the Peoria Riverfront Museum’s ongoing comprehensive Every Student Initiative, which provides free access for classroom visits and free family passes for the families of ESI students.
The Promise of Liberty is sponsored by the Gilmore Foundation, Ashley and Josh Bellamy, McKinnon Family Foundation.
View Ken Burns’ video for the Peoria Riverfront Museum’s America 250 celebration.
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
