Lincoln Memorial
Template:Short description Template:Hatnote group Template:Stack begin Template:Infobox NRHPTemplate:Stack end The Lincoln Memorial is a U.S. national memorial honoring Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, located on the western end of the National Mall of Washington, D.C. The memorial is built in a neoclassical style in the form of a classical temple. The memorial's architect was Henry Bacon. In 1920, Daniel Chester French designed the large interior Statue of Abraham Lincoln, which was carved in marble by the Piccirilli brothers.<ref>"Lincoln Memorial National Memorial; Washington, DC National Park Service</ref> Jules Guerin painted the interior murals, and the epitaph above the statue was written by Royal Cortissoz. Dedicated on May 30, 1922, it is one of several memorials built to honor an American president. It has been a major tourist attraction since its opening, and over the years, has occasionally been used as a symbolic center focused on race relations and civil rights.
Doric style columns line the temple exterior, and the inscriptions inside include two well-known speeches by Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address, and his second inaugural address. The memorial has been the site of many famous speeches, including Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech delivered on August 28, 1963, during the rally at the end of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
Like other monuments on the National Mall, including the nearby Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, and World War II Memorial, the national memorial is administered by the National Park Service under its National Mall and Memorial Parks group. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since October 15, 1966, and was ranked seventh on the American Institute of Architects' 2007 list of America's Favorite Architecture. The memorial is open to the public 24 hours a day, and more than seven million people visit it annually.<ref>"Annual Park Recreation Visitation (1904 – Last Calendar Year)" National Park Service</ref>
HistoryEdit
Construction and dedicationEdit
The first public memorial to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in Washington, D.C., was a statue by Lot Flannery erected in front of the District of Columbia City Hall in 1868, three years after Lincoln's assassination in Ford’s Theatre.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Demands for a fitting national memorial had been voiced since the time of Lincoln's death. In 1867, Congress passed the first of many bills incorporating a commission to erect a monument for the sixteenth president. An American sculptor, Clark Mills, was chosen to design the monument. His plans reflected the nationalistic spirit of the time and called for a Template:Convert structure adorned with six equestrian and 31 pedestrian statues of colossal proportions, crowned by a Template:Convert statue of Abraham Lincoln. Subscriptions for the project were insufficient.<ref name="nrhp4">NRHP Nomination, p. 4</ref>
The matter lay dormant until the start of the 20th century, when, under the leadership of Senator Shelby M. Cullom of Illinois, six separate bills were introduced in Congress for the incorporation of a new memorial commission. The first five bills, proposed in the years 1901, 1902, and 1908, met with defeat because of opposition from Speaker Joe Cannon. The sixth bill (Senate Bill 9449), introduced on December 13, 1910, passed. The Lincoln Memorial Commission met for the first time the following year and President William H. Taft was chosen as the commission's president. Progress continued steadily, and in 1913 Congress approved the commission's choice of design and location.<ref name=nrhp4/>
There were questions regarding the commission's plan. Many thought architect Henry Bacon's Greek temple design was far too ostentatious for a man of Lincoln's humble character. Instead, they proposed a simple log cabin shrine. The site too did not go unopposed. The recently reclaimed land in West Potomac Park was seen by many as either too swampy or too inaccessible. Other sites, such as Washington Union Station, were put forth, but the commission stood firm in its recommendation, feeling that the Potomac Park location, situated on the axis connecting the Washington Monument and Capitol, overlooking the Potomac River and surrounded by open land, was ideal. Furthermore, the Potomac Park site was already designated in the McMillan Plan of 1901 to be the location of a future monument comparable to that of the Washington Monument.<ref name=nrhp4/><ref>Thomas, Christopher A. (2002) The Lincoln Memorial and American Life Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Template:ISBN</ref>
With Congressional approval and a $300,000 allocation, the project got underway. On February 12, 1914, contractor M. F. Comer of Toledo, Ohio; resident member of the memorial's commission, former Senator Joseph C. S. Blackburn of Kentucky; and the memorial's designer, Henry Bacon, conducted a groundbreaking ceremony by turning over a few spadefuls of earth.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The following month is when actual construction began. Work progressed steadily according to schedule. Some changes were made to the plan. The statue of Lincoln, originally designed to be Template:Convert tall, was enlarged to Template:Convert to prevent it from being overwhelmed by the huge chamber. As late as 1920, the decision was made to substitute an open portal for the bronze and glass grille which was to have guarded the entrance. Despite these changes, the Memorial was finished on schedule. Commission president William H. Taft – who was then Chief Justice of the United States – dedicated the Memorial on May 30, 1922, and presented it to President Warren G. Harding, who accepted it on behalf of the American people. Lincoln's only surviving son, 78-year-old Robert Todd Lincoln, was in attendance.<ref name=nrhp5>NRHP Nomination, p. 5</ref> Prominent African Americans were invited to the event and discovered upon arrival they were assigned a segregated section guarded by U.S. Marines, a policy implemented by director of the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds, Lieutenant Colonel Clarence O. Sherrill.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=sherrill>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Following historyEdit
The Memorial has become a symbolically sacred venue, especially for the Civil Rights Movement. In 1939, the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow the African-American contralto Marian Anderson to perform before an integrated audience at the organization's Constitution Hall. At the suggestion of Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harold L. Ickes, the Secretary of the Interior, arranged for a performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday of that year, to a live audience of 75,000 and a nationwide radio audience.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On June 29, 1947, Harry Truman became the first president to address the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The speech took place at the Lincoln Memorial during the NAACP convention and was carried nationally on radio. In that speech, Truman laid out the need to end discrimination, which would be advanced by the first comprehensive, presidentially proposed civil rights legislation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On August 28, 1963, the memorial grounds were the site of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, which proved to be a high point of the American Civil Rights Movement. It is estimated that approximately 250,000 people came to the event, where they heard Martin Luther King Jr., deliver his historic "I Have a Dream" speech before the memorial honoring the president who issued the Emancipation Proclamation 100 years earlier. King's speech, with its language of patriotism and its evocation of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, was meant to match the symbolism of the Lincoln Memorial as a monument to national unity.<ref>Fairclough, Adam (1997) "Civil Rights and the Lincoln Memorial: The Censored Speeches of Robert R. Moton (1922) and John Lewis (1963)" Journal of Negro History v.82 pp.408–416.</ref> Labor leader Walter Reuther, an organizer of the march, persuaded the other organizers to move the march to the Lincoln Memorial from the Capitol Building. Reuther believed the location would be less threatening to Congress and that the occasion would be especially appropriate underneath the gaze of Abraham Lincoln's statue.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The D.C. police also appreciated the location because it was surrounded on three sides by water, so that any incident could be easily contained.<ref>Jennings, Peter and Brewster, Todd (1998) The Century: A Chronicle of the 20th Century. New York: Doubleday. Template:Isbn</ref>
The Memorial was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.<ref name="nrhp6">NRHP Nomination, p. 6</ref>
At the memorial on May 9, 1970, President Richard Nixon had a middle-of-the-night impromptu, brief meeting with protesters who, just days after the Kent State shootings, were preparing to march against the Vietnam War.<ref name="Nix Prez Rev3">Template:Cite video</ref>
On August 28, 1983, crowds gathered again to mark the 20th Anniversary Mobilization for Jobs, Peace and Freedom, to reflect on progress in gaining civil rights for African Americans and to commit to correcting continuing injustices. King's speech is such a part of the Lincoln Memorial story, that the spot on which King stood, on the landing eighteen steps below Lincoln's statue, was engraved in 2003 in recognition of the 40th anniversary of the event.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ExteriorEdit
The exterior of the Memorial echoes a classic Greek temple and features Yule marble quarried from Colorado. The structure measures Template:Convert and is Template:Convert tall. It is surrounded by a peristyle of 36 fluted Doric columns, one for each of the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death, and two columns in-antis at the entrance behind the colonnade. The columns stand Template:Convert tall with a base diameter of Template:Convert. Each column is built from 12 drums including the capital. The columns, like the exterior walls and facades, are inclined slightly toward the building's interior. This is to compensate for perspective distortions which would otherwise make the memorial appear to bulge out at the top when compared with the bottom, a common feature of Ancient Greek architecture.<ref name=nrhp2>NRHP Nomination, p. 2</ref>
Above the colonnade, inscribed on the frieze, are the names of the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death and the dates in which they entered the Union.Template:Efn Their names are separated by double wreath medallions in bas-relief. The cornice is composed of a carved scroll regularly interspersed with projecting lions' heads and ornamented with palmetto cresting along the upper edge. Above this on the attic frieze are inscribed the names of the 48 states present at the time of the Memorial's dedication. A bit higher is a garland joined by ribbons and palm leaves, supported by the wings of eagles. All ornamentation on the friezes and cornices was done by Ernest C. Bairstow.<ref name=nrhp2/>
The Memorial is anchored in a concrete foundation, Template:Convert in depth, constructed by M. F. Comer and Company and the National Foundation and Engineering Company, and is encompassed by a Template:Convert rectangular granite retaining wall measuring Template:Convert in height.<ref name=nrhp2/>
Leading up to the shrine on the east side are the main steps. Beginning at the edge of the Reflecting Pool, the steps rise to the Lincoln Memorial Circle roadway surrounding the edifice, then to the main portal, intermittently spaced with a series of platforms. Flanking the steps as they approach the entrance are two buttresses each crowned with an Template:Convert tall tripod carved from pink Tennessee marble<ref name=nrhp2/> by the Piccirilli Brothers.<ref>Concklin, Edward F. (1927) The Lincoln Memorial, Washington. United States Government Printing Office</ref> There are a total of 87 steps (58 steps from the chamber to the plaza and 29 steps from the plaza to the Reflecting Pool).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
InteriorEdit
The Memorial's interior is divided into three chambers by two rows of four Ionic columns, each Template:Convert tall and Template:Convert across at their base. The central chamber, housing the statue of Lincoln, is Template:Convert wide, Template:Convert deep, and Template:Convert high.<ref>U. S. Office of Public Buildings and Public Parks. Lincoln Memorial Building Statistics</ref> The north and south chambers display carved inscriptions of Lincoln's second inaugural address and his Gettysburg Address.Template:Efn Bordering these inscriptions are pilasters ornamented with fasces, eagles, and wreaths. The inscriptions and adjoining ornamentation are by Evelyn Beatrice Longman.<ref name=nrhp2/>
The Memorial is replete with symbolic elements. The 36 columns represent the states of the Union at the time of Lincoln's death; the 48 stone festoons above the columns represent the 48 states in 1922. Inside, each inscription is surmounted by a Template:Convert mural by Jules Guerin portraying principles seen as evident in Lincoln's life: Freedom, Liberty, Morality, Justice, and the Law on the south wall; Unity, Fraternity, and Charity on the north. Cypress trees, representing Eternity, are in the murals' backgrounds. The murals' paint incorporated kerosene and wax to protect the exposed artwork from fluctuations in temperature and moisture.<ref name=nrhp3>NRHP Nomination, p. 3</ref>
The ceiling consists of bronze girders ornamented with laurel and oak leaves. Between these are panels of Alabama marble, saturated with paraffin to increase translucency. But feeling that the statue required even more light, Bacon and French designed metal slats for the ceiling to conceal floodlights, which could be modulated to supplement the natural light; this modification was installed in 1929. The one major alteration since was the addition of an elevator for the disabled in the 1970s.<ref name=nrhp3/>
StatueEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Lying between the north and south chambers of the open-air Memorial is the central hall, which contains the large solitary figure of Abraham Lincoln sitting in contemplation. Its sculptor, Daniel Chester French, supervised the six Piccirilli brothers (Ferruccio, Attilio, Furio, Masaniello, Orazio, and Getulio) in its construction, and it took four years to complete.
The Template:Convert statue, carved from Georgia white marble, was shipped in 28 pieces.<ref name=nrhp3/> Originally intended to be only Template:Convert tall, the sculpture was enlarged to Template:Convert from head to foot considering it would look small within the extensive interior space.<ref name="dupre">Template:Cite book</ref> If Lincoln were depicted standing, he would be Template:Convert tall.
The widest span of the statue corresponds to its height, and it rests upon an oblong pedestal of Tennessee marble Template:Convert high, Template:Convert wide, and Template:Convert deep. Directly beneath this lies a platform of Tennessee marble about Template:Convert long, Template:Convert wide, and Template:Convert high. Lincoln's arms rest on representations of Roman fasces, a subtle touch that associates the statue with the Augustan (and imperial) theme (obelisk and funerary monuments) of the Washington Mall.<ref>See Buchner, Edmund (1976). "Solarium Augusti und Ara Pacis", Römische Mitteilungen 83: 319–375; (1988). Die Sonnenuhr des Augustus: Kaiser Augustus und die verlorene Republik (Berlin); P. Zanker The Augustan Program of Cultural Renewal Template:Webarchive for a full discussion of the Augustan solarium and its architectural features.</ref> The statue is discretely bordered by two pilasters, one on each side. Between these pilasters, and above Lincoln's head, is engraved an epitaph of Lincoln<ref name=nrhp3/> by Royal Cortissoz.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is important to note that regardless of the aforementioned design intent of the "Roman" fasces, the fasces are features of Etruscan political institutions that were adopted by the Romans, and according to Silius Italicus, these fasce originate from the city of Vetulonia, Italy.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
|
IN THIS TEMPLE |
| —Epitaph by Royal Cortissoz |
Sculptural featuresEdit
An urban legend holds that the face of General Robert E. Lee is carved onto the back of Lincoln's head,<ref name=npsfaq /> and looks back across the Potomac toward his former home, Arlington House (now within the bounds of Arlington National Cemetery). Another popular legend is that Lincoln's hands are shown using sign language to represent his initials, his left hand signing an A and his right signing an L. The National Park Service denies both legends.<ref name=npsfaq>"Lincoln Memorial: Frequently Asked Questions" on the National Park Service website</ref>
However, historian Gerald Prokopowicz writes that, while it is not clear that sculptor Daniel Chester French intended Lincoln's hands to be formed into sign language versions of his initials, it is possible that French did intend it. French was familiar with American Sign Language, and he would have had a reason to do so, to pay tribute to Lincoln for having signed the federal legislation giving Gallaudet University, a university for the deaf, the authority to grant college degrees.<ref>Prokopowicz, Gerald J. (2008) Did Lincoln Own Slaves? And Other Frequently Asked Questions About Abraham Lincoln. Pantheon. Template:ISBN</ref> The National Geographic Society's publication "Pinpointing the Past in Washington, D.C." states that Daniel Chester French had a son who was deaf and that the sculptor was familiar with sign language.<ref>Evelyn, Douglas E. and Dickson, Paul A. (1999) On this Spot: Pinpointing the Past in Washington, D.C. National Geographic Society. Template:ISBN</ref><ref>Library.gallaudet.edu Template:Webarchive</ref> Historian James A. Percoco has observed that, although there are no extant documents showing that French had Lincoln's hands carved to represent the letters "A" and "L" in American Sign Language, "I think you can conclude that it's reasonable to have that kind of summation about the hands."<ref>Percoco, James A., speech given on April 17, 2008, in the Jefferson Room of the National Archives and Records Administration as part of the National Archive's "Noontime Programs" lecture series. Broadcast on the C-Span cable television network on April 4 and April 5, 2009. Template:Webarchive c-spanvideo.org</ref>
UndercroftEdit
Below the memorial is an undercroft. During construction, graffiti was scrawled on it by workers,<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> which is considered historical by the National Park Service.<ref name=":0" /> During the 1970s and 1980s, there were regular tours of the undercroft.<ref>Hodge, Paul (October 27, 1977) "What's Afoot Under Abe Lincoln's Feet?" The Washington Post</ref> The tours stopped abruptly in 1989 after a visitor noticed asbestos and notified the Service.<ref>Twoomey, Steve (April 9, 1990) "Monuments Losing Battle with Erosion" The Washington Post</ref> Due to water seeping through the calcium carbonate within the marble, over time stalactites and stalagmites have formed within it.<ref>United Press (August 28, 1957) "Lincoln Memorial has some stalactites" Lodi News-Sentinel</ref>
For the memorial's centennial in 2022, the undercroft is planned to be open to visitors following a rehabilitation project funded by David Rubenstein.<ref>Staff (ndg) "Lincoln Center Rehabilitation" National Park Service website</ref><ref>Reid, Chip (November 23, 2016) "Lincoln Memorial to get long-awaited makeover, underground visitor's center" CBS News</ref> Work started on the $69 million project in 2023 with expected completion by 2026.<ref name=":1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Through the renovation, the undercroft will become a visitor area with a museum, theater, store and exhibit section. It is expected to only take up 15,000 square feet of the 50,000 square-foot undercroft. The plan, as of 2024, is for the space to include six floor-to-ceiling glass walls that will provide views of the cathedral-like interior of the undercroft, and an immersive theater presentation that will project images of historic events onto screens and the undercroft’s pillars.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In popular cultureEdit
As one of the most prominent American monuments, the Lincoln Memorial is often featured in books, films, videogames, and television shows that take place in Washington; by 2003 it had appeared in over 60 films,<ref>Rosales, Jean K. and Jose, Michael R. (2003) DC Goes to the Movies: A Unique Guide to Reel Washington iUniverse. p.149 Template:ISBN</ref> and in 2009, Mark S. Reinhart compiled some short sketches of dozens of uses of the Memorial in film and television.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Some examples of films include Frank Capra's 1939 film Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, where in a key scene the statue and the Memorial's inscription provide inspiration to freshman Senator Jefferson Smith, played by James Stewart.<ref name="wp">Template:Cite news</ref> The Park Service did not want Capra to film at the Memorial, so he sent a large crew elsewhere as a distraction while a smaller crew filmed Stewart and Jean Arthur inside the Memorial.<ref>Rosales, Jean K. and Jose, Michael R. (2003) DC Goes to the Movies: A Unique Guide to Reel Washington iUniverse. p.245 Template:ISBN</ref>
Many of the appearances of the Lincoln Memorial are actually digital visual effects, due to restrictive filming rules.<ref name="Sacher2014">Template:Cite book</ref> As of 2017, according to the National Park Service, "Filming/photography is prohibited above the white marble steps and the interior chamber of the Lincoln Memorial."<ref>"Permit FAQS" National Park Service</ref>
Mitchell Newton-Matza said in 2016 that "Reflecting its cherished place in the hearts of Americans, the Lincoln Memorial has often been featured prominently in popular culture, especially motion pictures."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> According to Tracey Gold Bennett, "The majesty of the Lincoln Memorial is a big draw for film location scouts, producers, and directors because this landmark has appeared in a considerable number of films."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Jay Sacher writes:
From high to low, the memorial is cultural shorthand for both American ideals and 1960s radicalism. From Forrest Gump's Zelig-like insertion into anti-war rallies on the steps of the memorial, to the villainous Decepticon robots discarding the Lincoln statue and claiming it as a throne. ... The memorial's place in the culture is assured even as it is parodied.<ref name=Sacher2014 />
Depictions on U.S. currencyEdit
From 1959 (the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's birth) to 2008, the memorial, with statue visible through the columns, was depicted on the reverse of the United States one-cent coin, which since 1909 has depicted a bust of Lincoln on its front.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The memorial has appeared on the back of the U.S. five-dollar bill since 1929.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The front of the bill bears Lincoln's portrait.
See alsoEdit
- Cultural depictions of Abraham Lincoln
- Architecture of Washington, D.C.
- List of areas in the United States National Park System
- List of national memorials of the United States
- National Register of Historic Places listings in the District of Columbia
- Presidential memorials in the United States
ReferencesEdit
Informational notesEdit
CitationsEdit
Further readingEdit
- Dupré, Judith (2007). Monuments: America's History in Art and Memory. Random House. Template:ISBN.
- Hufbauer, Benjamin (2006). Presidential Temples: How Memorials and Libraries Shape Public Memory. University Press of Kansas. Template:ISBN.
- {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}
- Sandage, Scott A. (June 1993). "A Marble House Divided: The Lincoln Memorial, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Politics of Memory, 1939–1963". Journal of American History Vol. 80, No. 1, pp. 135–167. Template:JSTOR.
External linksEdit
Template:Sister project Template:External media
- Lincoln Memorial homepage (NPS)
- Lincoln Memorial Panoramic Tour
- {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}
- {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}
- {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}
- Other Proposed Designs for the Lincoln Memorial
- Template:Cite episode How the Lincoln Memorial became an American icon.
Template:Abraham Lincoln Template:Washington DC landmarks Template:Daniel Chester French Template:Streets in Washington, DC Template:Protected Areas of the District of Columbia Template:Authority control