The Gettysburg Address

Of the five known original manuscripts of the Gettysburg Address, two are in the collection of the Library of Congress. Since 1979, the Library's two drafts have been displayed during the spring and the summer at the Gettysburg National Military Park, which is run by the Park Service. The Library plans to substitute a high-quality facsimile for display at the park after 1994, a move the Park Service opposes. This report discusses (1) the risks inherent in exhibiting a draft at the park or elsewhere, (2) whether the Park Service has met the Library's exhibition and preservation requirements and can meet future requirements, and (3) the estimated cost of exhibiting the document at the park in the current or an upgraded facility versus the cost of building a comparable facility at the Library. GAO notes that exhibiting the drafts at the park has allowed millions of Americans to see the original documents in a historic setting and that the Park Service seems capable of meeting evolving exhibition and preservation requirements. The conference report accompanying the fiscal year 1994 legislative branch appropriations act supports exhibiting an original draft in Gettysburg and encourages the Library and the Park Service to reopen discussions on extending the loan of the address. Ultimately, it is Congress' call as to where the drafts should be displayed.

GAO found that: (1) the risks of exhibiting two drafts of the document are related to the environment, facility safety and security, document handling, and accelerated degradation caused by exposure to light; (2) these risks will exist wherever the drafts are exhibited; (3) Library of Congress officials believe that the Park Service has met, and often exceeds, existing exhibition and preservation requirements; (4) the Park Service's ability to meet future preservation requirements is contingent on sufficient funding; (5) the Library of Congress and the Park Service have established specific environmental parameters to protect the drafts from damage that include the appropriate temperature, humidity, and illumination levels for exhibition; and (6) the estimated cost to exhibit the documents could not be determined, since the current facility exists solely to exhibit the drafts and a new facility at the Library would exhibit all the Library's national treasures.