Piano Played At Lincoln’s Wedding To Be Restored in Champaign
One of the nation's most historic instruments is getting back in working order.
The piano played at Abraham Lincoln's wedding is being restored to working condition.
The square grand piano at Edwards Place in Springfield has ties to Abraham Lincoln.
Edwards Place is the oldest surviving home in Springfield, and it belonged to a family related to Mary Todd Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln himself spent time there courting Mary and socializing.
Kickstarter was used to raise money to restore the couch that Abe and Mary sat on while getting to know each other.
Once again, Edwards Place wants to restore a piece in its collection and needs public support to do so.
The piano is one of only two surviving instruments that Lincoln is known to have listened to.
According to the curator of collections for Edwards Place, Erika Holst - the piano reportedly played at the Lincoln wedding, which occurred in the home.
Money is being raised through KickStarter again to help raise money for the project, which will take six months overall and cost $17,000.
Holst says the restoration work is being done by Steve Schmidt with The Piano People in Champaign.
A piano concert with the restored piece is scheduled for Feburary 6th and will be recorded.
As Holst puts it, "You can own a CD of Lincoln's favorite music played on the piano he used to listen to."
Proceeds from that will go toward restoring the second floor of Edwards Place.
The first floor was restored earlier this year to look as it did in the mid-1800s.
(UPDATE: This piece was revised Dec 26th to note Steve Schmidt's work on the piano's restoration)