Gettysburg Address reading falls short of record

SPRINGFIELD -- An attempt to honor Abraham Lincoln by setting a new world record for the most people reading aloud fell short of the goal -- and by a lot more than four score and seven.

Roughly 180,000 people read the Gettysburg Address in unison last month to mark Lincoln's 200th birthday. That's more than 40,000 shy of the mark recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records, officials said Monday.

The participants were mostly schoolchildren across Illinois.

But organizers vow to try again in two years for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War's start.

Next time, they'll read the farewell address Lincoln gave in Springfield after he was elected president.

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