160 Years Since Lincoln Assassination

Above, Lincoln's Tomb in 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Next month will mark 160 years since the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.

In 1982, I visited Ford's Theater and the Peterson House in Washington, D.C. I visited Lincoln's Tomb, Home, Presidential Library & Museum in Springfield, Illinois in 2016.

Above, the Presidential box at Ford's Theater in 1982. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Last night, I was viewing some YouTube videos of Lincoln's tomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield. 

Most of them were informative and they mainly covered the same ground, but one in particular made the biggest impression on me.

 

It was,  "The Secrets of Lincoln's Tomb - A Memorial for the Ages" by Grave Explorations (above). It was an hour-long documentary on Lincoln's final years, funeral and tomb along with many other historical tidbits. 

Above, the burial chamber of the Lincoln Tomb. He is not directly
 under the red marble cenotaph, he is ten feet under the floor and six
 feet from the north wall. His head faces the west. Photo by Armand Vaquer..

After a foiled attempt to steal Lincoln's body in 1876, Lincoln's coffin was encased ten feet in concrete under the floor by the orders of son Robert Lincoln. This followed the second of two renovations of the tomb. 

Above, Lincoln's Tomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery in 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

During my 2016 visit to Lincoln's Tomb, I was the only visitor there. I was able to get a personalized tour with a cemetery docent. He provided me with interesting details on the tomb.

Above, yours truly in front of Lincoln's Tomb in 2016.

Visitors to Oak Ridge Cemetery can also see the receiving vault that housed Lincoln's and one son's remains after arrival from Washington. 

A photo of Lincoln in his coffin was discovered in 1952 by a 14 year old Lincoln enthusiast,  Ronald Rietveld, among the Nicolay-Hay Collection of Lincoln papers. The photograph was originally kept by Edwin M. Stanton, Lincoln's Secretary of War. It was the sole surviving photo of Lincoln in his coffin after others were ordered destroyed by Stanton. 

Above, the discovered photo of Lincoln in his coffin in New York City on April 24, 1865.

For more information on Lincoln's Tomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery, go here.