Lincoln Memorial
No trip to Washington, D.C. would be complete without a stop at the Lincoln Memorial. Walking up the steps to stand near this seated Lincoln is as awe-inspiring the first time as it is every time, and from these steps, overlooking the National Mall, you get one of the greatest views in the city.
The memorial itself was born from a long national desire to honor Abraham Lincoln after his assassination in 1896. Congress formally created a commission in 1911 to oversee the project, and President Willian Howard Taft played a central role in guiding it forward.
Architect Henry Bacon was selected to design the temple-like structure in a neoclassical style evocative of ancient Greek democracy, and American sculptor Daniel Chester French was commissioned to create the colossal, seated statue of Lincoln within.
Construction of the memorial spanned eight years, from 1914 to 1922, and the 19-foot marble statue of Lincoln took about four years to complete. The Lincoln Memorial was officially dedicated on May 30, 1922, in a ceremony attended by thousands.
Today, the Lincoln Memorial stands not only as an architectural and artistic tribute but as a symbol of unity, freedom and enduring legacy of one of America’s most consequential presidents.
Read More From Nancy
Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site
At the Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site in Washington, history is held within this very small space. Across the street is the Petersen House, where President Abraham Lincolnd was carried after being shot at Ford’s Theatre on the evening of April 14, 1865. In this modest room surrounded by members of his family and cabinet, […]
Theodore Roosevelt Island
Tucked away in the Potomac River, just a short distance from the monuments and memorials of Washington, D.C., Theodore Roosevelt Island offers a very different kind of presidential memorial. Rather than honoring Theodore Roosevelt with grand buildings or elaborate architecture, this 88-acre island preserves the kind of natural landscape that reflected his lifelong passion for […]
World War II Memorial
I visited the National World War II Memorial with Erin shortly after it opened in 2004. I had been looking forward to seeing it because World War II was the war that both my father and my father-in-law served in. For years, I had wondered why there were national memorials honoring the Vietnam and Korean […]
