Lincoln At Rest

In late March 1865, Lincoln, joined by Mary, visited City Point and Hopewell, Virginia; part of their trip included a meeting with Lt. Gen. Ulysses Grant to discuss military matters. As the presidential couple passed through the countryside, they came upon a bucolic cemetery nestled along the banks of the James River. Lincoln, impressed with the cemetery, told Mary, “you are younger than I. You will survive me. When I am gone, lay my remains in some quiet place like this.” Tragically, the end for Lincoln came much too soon, his life came to an end a few weeks later. The day after Lincoln’s death, plans for interring his remains were put into action. Mary informed her son, Robert, she wanted Lincoln’s remains interred in Chicago or Washington. Illinois Governor Richard Ogelsby and state politicians, staying at the nearby National Hotel, were busy drawing up their own plan to have Lincoln interred in Springfield, the Illinois state capital. Ogelsby spoke to Robert about their plan who in turn relayed the plan to Mary. Robert was able to convince Mary to go along with the plan so long as her third son, Willie (he died from (most likely) typhoid fever on February 20, 1862), would also rest alongside his father (he was temporarily interred in Georgetown’s Oak Hill Cemetery and was disinterred to join Lincoln's remains on the funeral train trek to Springfield). On Monday, April 17, the plan was solidified, and Lincoln was bound for internment in Springfield. A new question arose, though, and that was where to inter Lincoln. There were two possible locations: Mather Place, located on the Capitol grounds, or, in a bucolic cemetery situated north of the capital. In criticism that would repeat when Riverside Park, New York City was decided for Ulysses Grant’s mausoleum, Oak Ridge Cemetery was criticized as being too far from the town and travel would be difficult. And why make it difficult for Americans to pay homage and their respects to a beloved president? Mather Place was the logical choice as it was easy to get to, it was in a familiar location, and it made sense to inter the former president on the Capitol grounds. Monday afternoon, back in Springfield, the Committee on the Selection of Grounds for the Tomb (CSGT) was formed, and its members toured the two proposed sites. In the meantime, as the funeral train made its way west, Mary indicated her choice of Oak Ridge Cemetery and on April 24, Oak Ridge Cemetery was notified, and preparations began to receive Lincoln’s remains. The CSGT had other ideas, though, and on April 25, construction began on a temporary vault (took 10 days to complete) at Mather Place and preparation plans at Oak Ridge Cemetery were stopped. Four days later, on Friday, April 28, Mary affirmed her wish for Lincoln to be interred in Oak Ridge Cemetery. Mary then notified War Secretary Edwin Stanton who in turned notified the CSGT who in turn consented to her decision. But the CSGT had other ideas and construction on the temporary vault at Mather Place continued. May 1, Robert, aware of the CSGT’s continued work on the temporary vault, informed Gov. Ogelsby of Mary’s wishes for Lincoln to be interred at Oak Ridge Cemetery and staff at the cemetery was notified to continue preparations to receive Lincoln. On May 4, the day of Lincoln’s Springfield funeral, the CSGT approached Robert and asked him to ask his mom to reconsider her desire for Oak Ridge Cemetery. Robert followed course and received her telegram from Washington reaffirming her decision and if her wishes were not followed, she’d have Lincoln’s remains interred in Washington in the Capitol crypt, originally intended for Washington. May 5, Robert, joined by Supreme Court Justice David Davis, toured Oak Ridge Cemetery, and chose a gravesite not too distant from the cemetery’s Public Vault. By the start of the following week, Mary consented to the proposed site and with it, the matter was settled, or so they thought. On, May 11, the CSGT formed into the National Lincoln Monument Association (NLMA) with the sole purpose of constructing a gravesite for Lincoln in Springfield. The NMLA, led by Gov. Oglesby, moved forward with plans to build a gravesite at Mather Place and by the end of May, construction funds were solicited. Their plans were moving ahead until Mary got wind and notified them in a letter written June 5 that unless she received an official assurance within 10 days from the NLMA that Lincoln would be interred under a memorial in Oak Ridge Cemetery she’d have his remains interred under the U.S. Capitol. Five days later, June 10, she wrote Gov. Oglesby again requesting a written agreement that a memroial would be erected over his remains at Oak Ridge Cemetery and receive a written promise by June 15 that only members of the immediate family would rest next to Lincoln and if her requests were not followed, she’d have his remains placed under the U.S. Capitol. Finally, the NLMA consented to her demands and Lincoln’s final resting site was secured in Oak Ridge Cemetery. But this is not where the story ends. On May 4, the day of the Springfield funeral, Lincoln’s remains (keep in mind he was joined by Willie’s remains, too) were placed in Oak Ridge Cemetery’s Public Vault. In the coming months, a temporary vault was constructed on the future site of his current gravesite. Seven months later, on December 21, Lincoln was transferred to the temporary vault, along with his sons Willie and Edward (he died from tuberculosis on February 1, 1850), who was disinterred from nearby Hutchinson Cemetery. For the next three years, there was little if any activity to construct Lincoln a permanent gravesite. But this changed with the 1868 November elections when office seekers saw an opportunity to gain public support by voicing their support for a Lincoln gravesite. The NLMA jumped on this newfound interest, called for design submissions, and selected the design (the current memorial we see today) of Vermont native Larkin Mead. The interest seized upon by the NLMA culminated into the groundbreaking on September 9, 1869. Although the gravesite was being built for Lincoln, he was not the first to occupy it. On August 15, 1871, Tad Lincoln died from tuberculosis and was placed inside the crypt of the memorial. On October 9, 1874, just over five years later from the day of the groundbreaking, the gravesite was dedicated by President Grant. Attempted theft of Lincoln’s remains and the many renovation and repairs notwithstanding, Lincoln’s final resting site took nearly 62 years to give us the memorial we have today, starting with the groundbreaking and culminating with the 1930 renovation and rededication on June 17, 1931.

The awesome Lincoln Memorial in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, IL.

The temporary vault built for Lincoln, used from 1869-1874. Had Mary consented to the plans of the NLMA, this would have been the tomb on the Capitol Grounds. Uninspiring to say the least. Library of Congress.

Marker identifying the location of the temporary vault.

Public vault occupied by Lincoln's remains. Note the armed guards. Library of Congress.