SLADE, Ky. – As Kentuckians prepare to celebrate the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s 200^th birthday, Natural Bridge State Resort Park is offering guests a chance to get a head start.

The park is hosting a free Chautauqua performance of Lincoln, portrayed by Jim Sayre of Lawrenceburg, on Thursday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Hemlock Lodge. The appearance is sponsored by the Kentucky Humanities Council, the Red River Historical Society, Natural Bridge State Resort Park, the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels and the Kentucky Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, which provided a grant for the Chautauqua program.

Natural Bridge State Resort Park has a lodge, cottages, the Sandstone Arches Restaurant, gift shop and hiking trails. For more information or for room reservations, phone 1-800-325-1710. The resort near Slade is 52 miles southeast of Lexington off the Mountain Parkway on KY 11.

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The Kentucky State Park System is composed of 53 state parks plus an interstate park shared with Virginia. The Department of Parks, an agency of the Commerce Cabinet, operates 17 resort parks with lodges -- more than any other state. Each year, Kentucky parks draw 7 million visitors and contribute $317 million to the economy. For more information on Kentucky parks, visit our Web site at http://www.parks.ky.gov