Abe Lincoln library opens -- honestly

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library has finally opened after months of delay and years of political infighting.

Hundreds of history buffs joined state officials in Springfield, Ill., this week to celebrate the opening of the mammoth three-story state-of-the-art facility, which is now home to the Illinois State Historical Library and its 12 million items, including 47,000 Lincoln artifacts.

There are six miles of bookshelves inside and room for 258,400 reels of microfilm, along with reading rooms, research areas, classrooms and conference rooms.

The goal is to preserve those artifacts and make them more accessible to scholars. Meanwhile, the public will get a high-tech look at Lincoln’s life at a museum being built across the street.