Eileen R. Mackevich (May 18, 1939 – March 14, 2022) was an American historian who was the executive director of the

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum documents the life of the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, and the course of the American Civil War. Combining traditional scholarship with 21st-century showmanship techniques, the museum ...

from 2010 to 2015. She was unanimously recommended for this position by the Board of Trustees for the

Illinois Historic Preservation Agency The Illinois Historic Preservation Division, formerly Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Illinois, and is a division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. It is tasked with the duty of m ...

(IHPA), and the title was officially bestowed upon her in December 2010, by

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Pat Quinn. A radio journalist, she had previously served as executive director of the national Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, and was founder of the

Chicago Humanities Festival The Chicago Humanities Festival is a non-profit organization which hosts an annual series of lectures, concerts, and films in Chicago. There are two seasons each year, including a spring festival from April through May, and a longer fall festival ...

Education

Mackevich earned her bachelor's degree from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, Master's degree in British history at

Northeastern Illinois University Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) is a public university in Chicago, Illinois. NEIU serves approximately 9,000 students in the region and is a Hispanic-serving institution. The main campus is located in the community area of North Park wi ...

, and took additional graduate coursework at the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a Public university, public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side, Chicago, Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus esta ...

. She has honorary doctorates from Dominican University and Lincoln College.

Career

Mackevich co-founded the

with Richard J. Franke. She served as president from 1989 to 2005. From 2006 to 2009, Mackevich was the executive director of the

Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jews ...

. For 18 years, Mackevich had a career as a broadcast journalist and talk show host on

WBEZ WBEZ (91.5 FM) – branded ''WBEZ 91.5'' – is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to serve Chicago, Illinois, and primarily serving the Chicago metropolitan area. Financed by corporate underwriting, government funding and lis ...

, Chicago Public Radio. In 2004, she was named one of the "100 Most Powerful Women in Chicago" by the '' Chicago Sun Times.''

Personal life

Mackevich died on March 14, 2022, at the age of 82.

Honors and awards

Mackevich was a member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

References

External links

* 1939 births 2022 deaths 21st-century American historians Historians from Illinois People from Chicago {{US-historian-stub