Daniel Stowell, head of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln Project at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, was shown the door a couple weeks ago after being put on leave in November. The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency says it can’t comment on the reasons behind Stowell’s departure, but he’s not going down without a fi ght, having requested a hearing before the Illinois Civil Service Commission. “We believe he will be fully exonerated at that hearing,” said Carl Draper, Stowell’s attorney. Stowell has already won one round, having been put on paid leave after initially being placed on unpaid leave. Draper said that Stowell has not been accused of dishonest conduct, rather, the IHPA’s concerns are over “management issues.” The project’s website that provides access to documents written or read by the Great Emancipator is, apparently, part of the concern. “Dr. Stowell didn’t have the authority or opportunity to handle fi nancial matters,” Draper said. “He did raise fi nancial concerns, that if the agency wanted changes to the website, that it would cost money, and they refused to provide the funds, even sometimes modest funding to achieve what they wanted to do.” Draper also said that Stowell has a history of receiving excellent performance evaluations.