Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum News


	For Immediate Release: January 24, 2007	Contact: Jill Burwitz (217) 558-8970 office (217) 299-6165 cell
	Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum announce events in celebration of African American History month Internationally-known genealogist Tony Burroughs to lecture Springfield, Ill. In recognition of African American History Month, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library will host professional genealogist, Tony Burroughs, who will present "Researching Your African-American Roots," on Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 6:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room of the Library. Burroughs' lecture is described as a fun, inspirational talk of tracing family history and solving family riddles. It contains easy, practical methods and sources that anyone can use to trace their family history. A question and answer session will follow. This program is free, but reservations are recommended. For reservations, call 217-524-7216. Burroughs is a professional genealogist who has been teaching genealogy at Chicago State University for 15 years. He was a guest expert in Oprah's Roots (PBS 2007), African American Lives with Henry Louis Gates (PBS 2006). The program airs this month on PBS stations. Burroughs was the genealogist in search of the family of Jesus on three continents in, The Real Family of Jesus. The documentary was produced by the BBC and aired as a two-hour Easter special on The Discovery Channel (2005). He was a featured genealogy expert in six episodes of the PBS television series, Ancestors 2 (2000), and was the African American Genealogy expert in the original PBS Ancestors (1997). Burroughs has also been interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning, CBS News, ABC World News Tonight, and BET Nightly News. His book, Black Roots: A Beginners Guide to Tracing the African American Family Tree (Simon & Schuster, 2001) was number one on Essence Magazine's Best Seller List and is now in its fourth printing. On Saturday, Feb. 10, at 10:00 a.m. in the Presidential Library's Multi Purpose Room, Library Services Director, Kathryn Harris, will portray Harriet Tubman. Tubman is probably the most well-known figure associated with the Underground Railroad, a network of people and places that helped escaping slaves to freedom. Harris has been portraying "Harriet" for several years. Her one-woman show depicts the faith, tenacity, bravery, and determination of a woman who was called the "Moses of her People." This performance is free and open to the public. ###