Obama announcement site evokes more than Lincoln

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Barack Obama will be able to evoke a long list of positive images when he stands outside Illinois' Old State Capitol and tells the world whether he's running for president.

He could remind people that Abraham Lincoln served as a legislator there. He could note Lincoln's role in ending slavery and ultimately making it possible for a black politician to run for president.

Obama might mention his own eight years as a state senator in Springfield or talk about the city's Main Street values and common sense.

But don't expect him to mention some other pieces of the city's heritage: a race riot, government corruption, even a brush with cannibalism.

Obama could have announced his presidential plans in Chicago, where he lives, or Washington, where he works. Instead, he chose to do it Saturday in Lincoln's hometown, outside a building indelibly linked to the 16th president.

"There is a terrific Lincoln aura around that site and the city," said local historian and author Taylor Pensoneau. "By picking Springfield as opposed to Chicago, it goes along with the attempt to push this almost fairy tale aspect of the whole Obama political explosion."

Even some of Springfield's biggest fans admit that Americans know little about the city beyond its Lincoln connections. If they have any impression, it's probably of a pleasant, nondescript midwestern city.

Still, Springfield has had dark moments, including its share of Illinois' famously corrupt politics.

When one state official died, a shoebox was found among the personal items in his Springfield hotel room -- inside was $800,000 in cash.

A state auditor embezzled at least $2.5 million.

The last Illinois governor was convicted on a variety of corruption charges in 2006.

Springfield also has struggled with race.

Its police department is embroiled in a discrimination lawsuit right now. City government was overhauled in the 1980s because of a voting-rights case.

Most famously, though, it was the scene of lynchings and rioting in 1908 that helped inspire the creation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

A black barber was shot and hanged from a tree, where his body was riddled with more bullets. An 84-year-old shoemaker had his throat slashed and, still alive, was hanged. Black-owned homes and businesses were burned. The Illinois National Guard had to restore order.

Obama also may want to avoid thinking about another historic quest that began in Springfield, a westward expedition known as the Donner Party. Their wagon train became trapped in California's Sierra Nevada mountains.

Nearly half the party died, and some of the rest survived only through cannibalism.