Acting Superintendent

Date: March 19, 2011

Gail Bishop, Chief of Interpretation and Education at Gulf Islands National Seashore, began a 120-day detail as acting superintendent at Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park on February 28, 2011. Former Superintendent Keith Pruitt, who managed the park during the Lincoln Bicentennial, retired last month and relocated to Arizona.

Acting Superintendent Bishop began her permanent career in the National Park Service at Ford's Theater National Historic Site in Washington, D. C. which observes Lincoln's assassination on April 15, 1865. "I appreciate the opportunity to work at Lincoln's Birthplace, especially as the nation commemorates the sesquicentennial of the Civil War beginning this year," said Bishop.

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park memorializes the birth and early childhood of the 16^th President of the United States. The Memorial Building that houses the symbolic log cabin was dedicated almost one hundred years ago in November 1911. The Visitor Center was refurbished for the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth and features exhibits, a park film, "Abraham Lincoln: The Kentucky Years,"  and an Eastern National bookstore. A picnic area with the Big Sink Trail through the site includes information on what pioneers used and what they grew.  The Abraham Lincoln Birthplace unit is open daily from 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Eastern time from Labor Day to Memorial Day. During the summer months the site is open from 8:00 a.m. to 6:45p.m. 

The Knob Creek Unit of the historical park will be staffed on weekends during April and later staffed daily during the summer months. This unit offers wonderful opportunities for bird watching and other wildlife viewing. A nature trail is maintained along the pristine waters of Knob Creek and ascends to the top of the adjacent knob where an overlook allows a magnificent view of the surrounding valley.

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park is free and open to the public. For more information please call 270-358-3137 or visit the park's website at www.nps.gov/abli.