FOR THE SOUTHERN

ANNA - A Union County group, focused on historic preservation, will announce Friday an effort to purchase a privately owned home in Anna where President Abraham Lincoln stayed.

The group, Promoting Appreciation of Structural Treasures (PAST), is interested in buying a home at 511 S. Main St., where Lincoln spent two nights during his 1858 Jonesboro debate with Senator Stephen Douglas.

D.L. Phillips was the original owner of a house. Today, the home is owned by Jim and Pat Tripp and has been completely restored. The Tripps, now retired, are planning to move to live near a daughter.

The organization's vision is to provide displays and activities at the home so the public may appreciate more fully the importance of Union County during the years before and during the Civil War, said PAST president Linda Hileman.

The announcement will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at the home. Dr. Larry Peterson, president of Shawnee Community College, and Lincoln enthusiast, will join PAST along with others interested in the home's future.