Meet my very good friend John Eden, 82 years young. If you take the beard off Lincoln, there is no greater likeness on earth to Lincoln than Mr. Eden. It is striking as to how much they truly look alike. There’s more. Like me, John is a fan of Lincoln and is the curator/owner of the Lincoln Long 9 Museum in Athens, Illinois, a building that Lincoln frequented often as New Salem Postmaster, and later as an Illinois legislator. On August 3, 1837, the citizens of Athens held a banquet for Lincoln and the eight other legislators (called the Long Nine) in the upper room of the building, mostly because Lincoln had successfully worked for passage of legislation that led to the relocation of the state capitol from Vandalia to Springfield. My friend John reinforced, updated and saved the building for future generations. He is one of 7 brothers who grew up in a tiny three-room house in Athens. He’s the only one left. Fascinating man and a great friend. That’s the Petersburg, Illinois court house behind him…we had lunch at Leo’s in the square. Thanks for saving a great piece of history John.
World’s greatest Lincoln look-alike
