o

The Lincoln Memorial

JO The Lincoln Memorial Architecture of the Memorial This memorial honors the 16th President of the United States The memorial is of white Colorado-Yule marble. Its architec­ " it is rather for (1861-65), a statesman who practiced the virtues of tural lines are similar in plan to those of the Greek Parthe­ tolerance and honesty, and whose life, mind, and character non, the temple to the goddess Athena on the Acropolis in have become an enduring inspiration to the world. Athens. The outer columns are Doric; the columns inside us to be the great hall are Ionic. Together these features represent Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12. 1809, near classical architecture at its perfection. The memorial build­ Hodgenville, Ky. The son of Thomas and Nancy Hanks ing would not seem out of place if set down among the great Lincoln grew up in a primitive environment and knew none here dedicated antiquities of Greece and Rome. Its beauty and purity of of the advantages of good schooling, wealth, or social design equal the best of the ancient world. position. Yet he became proficient in the law and rose from political obscurity to become President of the United States The structure itself has a motif that symbolizes the Union. to the great during one of the bloodiest civil wars ever fought. War, The 36 columns surrounding the walls represent the 36 which has a way of testing a man's worth, put Lincoln States in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death. The to the supreme test: and when he died from an assassin's names of these States are cut into the frieze above the col­ task remaining bullet in 1865, he was mourned and elevated to greatness onnade. On the attic walls, above the frieze, are the names by people the world over. of the 48 States comprising the Union in 1922 and their dates of admission. The 1802 date for Ohio has since been before us... Few Americans recognized Lincoln's greatness while he recognized as 1803 by a 1953 act of Congress. The addi­ lived; it was the impact of his death that made them realize tion of Alaska and Hawaii to the Union in 1959 is noted he was something more than an ordinary President, some­ by an inscription on the terrace leading to the memorial. thing more than an ordinary hero. To honor him, they Ernest Bairstow of Washington carved the frieze and attic that this nation sought to erect a memorial in the Nation's Capital, but wall decorations. more than half a century passed before an appropriate memorial arose. And the memorial they built is neither The memorial chamber contains three commemorative fea­ under God temple, palace, nor tomb, but embodies something of tures—a colossal seated statue of Lincoln and two huge each. Its marble walls seem to hold the spirit of Lincoln's inscribed stone tablets. The marble statue of Lincoln oc­ character and his belief that all men should be free—free cupies the place of honor, centrally located near the back of shall have a to think and express themselves, and free to apply their the chamber and facing the Washington Monument and the natural talents and ambitions to lawful enterprise. Capitol. On the north wall, inscribed in stone, is Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address; on the south wall, similarly in­ Building the Memorial scribed, is the Gettysburg Address. The decorations of the new birth The first organized effort to erect a monument to Lincoln in Gettysburg and Second Inaugural Addresses were done by Washington came 2 years after his death, when an act of Evelyn Beatrice Longman under the direction of Daniel Congress, approved March 29, 1867, incorporated the Lin­ Chester French. of freedom-and coln Monument Association. The association appealed for subscriptions and prepared plans for a monument, but noth­ The Statue of Lincoln ing was accomplished. The years passed and, although many Daniel Chester French designed and made the model for the that government subsequent efforts were made to secure a memorial, it was statue of the seated Lincoln. It represents Lincoln as the not until February 1911 that Congress passed the legislation War President. The statue from head to foot is 19 feet high, that procured it. A commission, appointed "to secure plans the scale being such that if Lincoln were standing he would of the people and designs for a Monument or Memorial to the memory be 28 feet tall. The extreme width of the statue, including of Abraham Lincoln," decided on the location in West the drapery over the chair, is the same as its height—19 Potomac Park on the axis of the Capitol and the Washington feet. There are 28 blocks of Georgia white marble in the Monument. Henry Bacon and John Russell Pope, architects sculptured statue, which rests on an oblong pedestal and by the people from New York City, were invited to prepare designs for a platform of Tennessee marble. structure. Bacon was selected to submit the final design that Congress approved on January 29, 1913. The Piccirilli brothers carved the statue in their New York for the people studio, spending more than 4 years on the project. French Workmen broke ground at the memorial site on February personally assisted in this work. Experiments with models 12, 1914, and the cornerstone was laid a year later. As work showed that the statue, originally intended to be 10 feet tall, shall not progressed, the commission chose Daniel Chester French would be dwarfed and out of scale in the large hall where it to sculpture the Lincoln statue and Jules Guerin to design would stand. This led to a change in the contract whereby and execute murals for the end walls. The completed memo­ the size of the statue was doubled. perish from the rial was dedicated on Memorial Day, May 30, 1922. Chief The Murals Justice William Howard Taft, chairman of the commission, The two murals on the north and south walls represent, allegor- presented the memorial to President Warren Harding, who ically, principles of conduct and thought evident in the life accepted it for the United States. of Abraham Lincoln. These murals, painted by Jules CCll LI1. Gettysburg Address, Nov. 19, 1863. Guerin, are each 60 feet long and 12 feet high. The mural above the Gettysburg Address on the south wall shows an Angel of Truth freeing a slave; on the left and right, groups of figures represent Justice and Immortality. The mural Administration above the Second Inaugural Address on the north wall de­ The memorial is alwa i. A ranger is in attendance from picts the unity of North and South; on the left and right, 8 a.m. until midnig cept on Dec. 25. The memorial is groups of figures symholize Fraternity and Charity. administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Depart­ ment of the Interior. Address all inquiries to the Superin­ The Memorial in Statistics tendent, National Capital Parks-West, 1100 Ohio Drive, c Retaining wall: SW„ Washington, DC 20242. Height, 14 feet. Length, 257 feet, east and west sides; width, As the Nation's principal conservation agency, the Depart­ 1 87 feet, north and south sides. ment of the Interior has responsibility for most of our na­ Foundation of Building: tionally owned public lands and natural resources. This 44 to 65 feet to bedrock below original grade. includes fostering the wisest use of our land and water re­ sources, protecting our fish and wildlife, preserving the Height of Building: environmental and cultural values of our national parks 80 feet above top of foundation. 99 feet above grade at foot and historical places, and providing for the enjoyment of o of terrace walls. life through outdoor recreation. The Department assesses ji »mMgg»f«MHHl imiMlV our energy and mineral resources and works to assure that Doric colonnade: their development is in the best interests of all our people. Length, 188 feet. Width, 118 feet 6 inches. Number of The Department also has a major responsibility for Ameri­ columns, 36 plus 2 in entrance. Height of columns to cap, can Indian reservation communities and for people who 44 feet. Diameter of column at base, 7 feet 5 inches. Num­ live in Island Territories under U.S. administration. ber of stone drums in column, 11. Ionic Columns Inside Memorial: Height, 50 feet. Diameter at base, 5 feet 6 inches. Number of columns, 8. CD Central chamber: Width, 60 feet. Depth. 74 feet. Side chambers: national park service The Lincoln Memorial Width, 63 feet. Depth, 38 feet. u.s. department of the interior Cost of building, $2,957,000. Cost of statue, $88,400. The interior walls are of Indiana limestone. The ceiling, 60 feet above the floor, includes bronze girders ornamented with laurel and oak leaves. The panels between the girders are Alabama marble saturated with paraffin to produce trans- lucency. The floor and the wall base are of pink Tennessee marble. The two tripods, one on either side of the steps to the en­ trance of the memorial, are 11 feet high. Each is cut from a single block of pink Tennessee marble. The Piccirilli brothers of New York carved the tripods.

Tourmobile Service The National Park Service has concessioner-operated, guided CO tourmobiles with unlimited reboarding privileges. Call 638-5371 for rate information. The Mall and West Potomac Park. Tourmobiles stop at 11 points to discharge and pick up passengers from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., June through Labor Day; and from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., the rest of the year. CO Arlington National Cemetery. Tourmobiles stop at Arlington House, President Kennedy's Gravesite, Tomb of the Un­ knowns, and the visitor center from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. May through October and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. the rest of the year.