Built: 1914-1922 Designed by: Henry Bacon Type: Monument Maximum Height: 99 feet / 30 meters Location: West Potomac Park, at 23rd Street, Northwest, Washington, United States
T his is probably the most recognizable memorial on the National Mall, not because of its grandeur, but because its image is embossed on the back of countless millions of pennies, complete with a tiny figure of the Lincoln statue. The monument is much larger than its monetary representation may project. It is 190 feet long, 119 feet wide, and 99 feet tall. It is one of several neoclassical monuments modeled after the great temples of Greece and Italy. In this case, the homage is paid through the use of Doric columns. There are 36 of them, one for each state in the Union at the time of President Lincoln's death, plus two more flanking the entrance. The names of those states are carved into the frieze above the columns. They are topped by another list of the 48 states in the Union at the time the memorial was constructed.
This is a far cry from the original plans for the Memorial from 1867. They called for a series of 37 statues (31 people, plus six on horseback) and a 12-foot statue of Lincoln at the center. This was never built due to a lack of funds. Another plan, cooked up by congressman James McCleary of Minnesota, was for the memorial to take the form of a freeway from Washington, D.C. to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He thought each state should erect its own monument to the late president along the route. The Commission of Fine Arts wanted to see a portico built with a marble slab engraved with Lincoln's famous Gettysburg Address. It was 44 years before Congress finally came up with the money to honor one of the country's most cherished leaders.
The statue of Abraham Lincoln by Daniel Chester French took four years to carve.
It is 19-feet tall, and weighs 175 tons.
The exterior of the monument is made from Colorado Yule marble.
The columns and interior are Indiana limestone.
The floor is Tennessee Pink marble.
The ceiling is Alabama marble soaked in paraffin to make it translucent.
The Lincoln statue is White Georgia marble.
The statue's base is Tennessee marble.
The walkway is of Massachusetts granite and stones from the nearby Potomac River.
25 July, 2003: The National Parks Service carves an inscription of the memorial steps marking the location where in 1963 Martin Luther King, Junior made his "I Have A Dream" speech.
