Lincoln Memorial

Lore & Background

The first public memorial to Lincoln in Washington, D.C., was a statue erected in 1868. Demands for a national memorial led to a commission in 1867, but early plans failed due to insufficient funds. After several bills were defeated, a sixth bill passed in 1910. The Lincoln Memorial Commission met in 1911, with President William H. Taft as its president. Construction began in 1914 after a groundbreaking ceremony on February 12. The memorial was finished on schedule and dedicated on May 30, 1922, by Taft, who presented it to President Warren G. Harding. Lincoln's only surviving son, Robert Todd Lincoln, attended. African American attendees were assigned a segregated section, with U.S. Marines present to enforce the separation.

Reader's Guide

The Lincoln Memorial has become a symbolically important venue, especially for the Civil Rights Movement. In 1939, after the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow Marian Anderson to perform at Constitution Hall, a performance was arranged on the memorial steps on Easter Sunday, with a live audience of 75,000 and a nationwide radio audience. On June 29, 1947, Harry Truman became the first president to address the NAACP at the memorial, laying out the need to end discrimination. On August 28, 1963, the memorial grounds were the site of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his 'I Have a Dream' speech. The memorial was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. In 1970, President Richard Nixon had an impromptu meeting with protesters at the memorial. The spot where King stood was engraved in 2003. The memorial is open 24 hours a day and receives more than seven million visitors annually.

Did You Know?

• The memorial's statue of Abraham Lincoln was originally designed to be 10 feet tall but was enlarged to 19 feet to prevent it from being overwhelmed by the chamber.
• The 36 Doric columns around the exterior represent the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death.
• Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech was delivered on the memorial's steps on August 28, 1963.
• The memorial was ranked seventh on the American Institute of Architects' 2007 list of America's Favorite Architecture.

Architecture & Design

The Lincoln Memorial takes the form of a classical temple rendered in neoclassical style, its exterior lined with Doric columns. Henry Bacon was the architect behind this design, though his Greek temple concept drew criticism from those who felt it was too grandiose for a man known for his humble character; some even suggested a simple log cabin shrine instead. Inside, the memorial's most striking feature is the massive seated statue of Abraham Lincoln, designed in 1920 by Daniel Chester French and carved in marble by the Piccirilli brothers. Originally planned at just ten feet tall, the sculpture was enlarged to nineteen feet so it would not be dwarfed by the enormous chamber surrounding it. Jules Guérin painted the interior murals, and Royal Cortissoz composed the epitaph inscribed above the statue. The walls bear transcriptions of two of Lincoln's most celebrated addresses: the Gettysburg Address and his second inaugural address. An open portal, a late substitution for a planned bronze and glass grille, guards the entrance.

The Long Road to Construction

The path from Lincoln's assassination to the memorial's dedication spanned more than half a century. Demands for a national monument surfaced immediately after his death, and in 1867 Congress passed the first of several bills creating a commission for the purpose. Sculptor Clark Mills was selected to design a seventy-foot structure crowned by a twelve-foot statue of Lincoln, surrounded by dozens of colossal figures, but insufficient subscriptions killed the project. The matter sat dormant until the early twentieth century, when Senator Shelby M. Cullom of Illinois championed six successive bills. The first five, introduced in 1901, 1902, and 1908, were blocked by Speaker Joe Cannon's opposition. The sixth, Senate Bill 9449, finally passed on December 13, 1910. President William H. Taft was named commission chair, and in 1913 Congress approved both the design and the West Potomac Park site, which many had called too swampy. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on February 12, 1914, with a $300,000 allocation funding the work. Taft, by then Chief Justice, dedicated the finished memorial on May 30, 1922, presenting it to President Warren G. Harding. Lincoln's only surviving son, seventy-eight-year-old Robert Todd Lincoln, was present.

A Stage for Civil Rights

The Lincoln Memorial has served as a powerful symbolic center for the struggle over race relations in America. In 1939, the Daughters of the American Revolution barred the African-American contralto Marian Anderson from performing before an integrated audience at their Constitution Hall. At the suggestion of Eleanor Roosevelt, Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes arranged for Anderson to sing on the memorial's steps on Easter Sunday, drawing a live crowd of seventy-five thousand and a nationwide radio audience. On June 29, 1947, President Harry Truman became the first sitting president to address the NAACP, delivering his remarks at the memorial during the organization's convention, broadcast nationally on radio. Perhaps the most iconic moment came on August 28, 1963, when Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech from the memorial's steps at the conclusion of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. These events cemented the memorial's identity not merely as a monument to a slain president but as a living stage where the unfinished promise of American equality was proclaimed to the world.

Enduring Legacy & Public Life

Today the Lincoln Memorial stands as one of the most visited landmarks in the United States, drawing more than seven million visitors each year and remaining open to the public around the clock. It is administered by the National Park Service under its National Mall and Memorial Parks group, sharing stewardship with neighboring landmarks such as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, and the World War II Memorial. Since October 15, 1966, the memorial has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2007, the American Institute of Architects ranked it seventh on its list of America's Favorite Architecture, a testament to the enduring appeal of Henry Bacon's neoclassical temple. Positioned at the western end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., it sits on the axis connecting the Washington Monument and the Capitol. As one of several memorials erected to honor an American president, it has remained a major tourist attraction since its 1922 dedication, a destination where citizens and visitors alike come to sit before the marble figure of the sixteenth president and reflect on his enduring legacy.