Today, visitors by the thousands visit the Lincoln Memorial each year to remember and honor the memory of our sixteenth president.
We begin with breakfast at the Willard Hotel where President-elect and Mrs. Abraham Lincoln spent ten nights prior to his inauguration in 1861. The Hotel has many famous historic associations, which will be pointed out by your guide. You will be provided with a map showing the city at the time of the Civil War, when bus trolleys and canals ran through town and only a single road was paved. We will step outside to get oriented to places where Lincoln spent time during the war, including the Department of Treasury, the site of Matthew Brady’s studio and the site of the War Department. We will picture the Mall lined with hospital tents, the Capitol dome under construction and the unfinished Washington Monument. We will point out the Patent Office where the ball for the Second Inaugural took place. We will also orient you to the location of slave traders who practiced their craft within blocks of the White House.
Next, we will travel up to the Lincoln Cottage and Soldier’s Home. Located 4 miles from the White House, this is where the Lincolns spent their summers and where Lincoln composed the Emancipation Proclamation. The cottage has a fascinating history and the tour offers visitors a thoughtful explanation of Lincoln’s reasoning for the Proclamation and its impact in the War effort.
A few steps away from the Soldier’s Home is the U.S. Soldiers and Airmen’s National Cemetery where Union soldiers are buried and where Lincoln would visit, wandering through the fresh graves as the fallen from Bull Run, Seven Days, and Antietam were laid to rest.
Stopping for a break for lunch (a picnic if the weather is good!), we will next travel to Congressional Cemetery to see the memorial to the Arsenal Fire catastrophe in which 21 women were killed in a munitions factory explosion in 1864. The funeral for the victims was widely covered in the press at the time. Lincoln attended the funeral and accompanied the cortege to the Cemetery. Other notables buried here include Thaddeus Stevens, John Philip Sousa, Matthew Brady, and twentieth century figures like J. Edgar Hoover and Cokie Roberts. Lewis Powell, one of the assassination conspirators, hid in the cemetery before his arrest. David Herold (another conspirator) is buried here.
A ride back into downtown DC will take us to what is now New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. During Lincoln’s presidency, he often attended Bible study and church services here, ultimately purchasing a pew, which is still preserved in the sanctuary. Willie Lincoln’s funeral was held at this church and the Lincolns were ministered to in their grief by the Reverend Phineas Gurley. Three years later, Gurley preached at Lincoln’s funeral and accompanied his body to Springfield. This church has been the host of many 19th and 20th century Presidents as well as an active participant in Civil Rights movement; today it is a model of service to the poor in Washington DC.
We end at the site of Lincoln’s death – Ford’s Theater and Peterson House. The theater is often closed in the afternoons to visitors because of productions. If visitors want to see the inside of the theater, it just requires extra planning to ensure access. Across the street is the house where Lincoln died and where Stanton famously said “Now he belongs to the ages.” There is a fine bookstore here. Should you wish to keep exploring, it is a manageable walk from Petersen House to the Clara Barton Missing Soldier’s Museum, the White House, the Capitol and, yes to the Lincoln Memorial, a sight that never grows old!
Other things to see related to Lincoln: Mount Vernon by boat (as Lincoln saw it); Frederick Douglass’ National Historic Site; Fort McNair (location of assassins’ trial); Clara Barton’s home; Lincoln Park with the Freeman’s Memorial; the Lincoln chapel at the National Cathedral. Your guide can arrange visits for you to any of these sites.
We begin with breakfast at the Willard Hotel where President-elect and Mrs. Abraham Lincoln spent ten nights prior to his inauguration in 1861. The Hotel has many famous historic associations, which will be pointed out by your guide. You will be provided with a map showing the city at the time of the Civil War, when bus trolleys and canals ran through town and only a single road was paved. We will step outside to get oriented to places where Lincoln spent time during the war, including the Department of Treasury, the site of Matthew Brady’s studio and the site of the War Department. We will picture the Mall lined with hospital tents, the Capitol dome under construction and the unfinished Washington Monument. We will point out the Patent Office where the ball for the Second Inaugural took place. We will also orient you to the location of slave traders who practiced their craft within blocks of the White House.
Next, we will travel up to the Lincoln Cottage and Soldier’s Home. Located 4 miles from the White House, this is where the Lincolns spent their summers and where Lincoln composed the Emancipation Proclamation. The cottage has a fascinating history and the tour offers visitors a thoughtful explanation of Lincoln’s reasoning for the Proclamation and its impact in the War effort.
A few steps away from the Soldier’s Home is the U.S. Soldiers and Airmen’s National Cemetery where Union soldiers are buried and where Lincoln would visit, wandering through the fresh graves as the fallen from Bull Run, Seven Days, and Antietam were laid to rest.
Stopping for a break for lunch (a picnic if the weather is good!), we will next travel to Congressional Cemetery to see the memorial to the Arsenal Fire catastrophe in which 21 women were killed in a munitions factory explosion in 1864. The funeral for the victims was widely covered in the press at the time. Lincoln attended the funeral and accompanied the cortege to the Cemetery. Other notables buried here include Thaddeus Stevens, John Philip Sousa, Matthew Brady, and twentieth century figures like J. Edgar Hoover and Cokie Roberts. Lewis Powell, one of the assassination conspirators, hid in the cemetery before his arrest. David Herold (another conspirator) is buried here.
A ride back into downtown DC will take us to what is now New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. During Lincoln’s presidency, he often attended Bible study and church services here, ultimately purchasing a pew, which is still preserved in the sanctuary. Willie Lincoln’s funeral was held at this church and the Lincolns were ministered to in their grief by the Reverend Phineas Gurley. Three years later, Gurley preached at Lincoln’s funeral and accompanied his body to Springfield. This church has been the host of many 19th and 20th century Presidents as well as an active participant in Civil Rights movement; today it is a model of service to the poor in Washington DC.
We end at the site of Lincoln’s death – Ford’s Theater and Peterson House. The theater is often closed in the afternoons to visitors because of productions. If visitors want to see the inside of the theater, it just requires extra planning to ensure access. Across the street is the house where Lincoln died and where Stanton famously said “Now he belongs to the ages.” There is a fine bookstore here. Should you wish to keep exploring, it is a manageable walk from Petersen House to the Clara Barton Missing Soldier’s Museum, the White House, the Capitol and, yes to the Lincoln Memorial, a sight that never grows old!
Other things to see related to Lincoln: Mount Vernon by boat (as Lincoln saw it); Frederick Douglass’ National Historic Site; Fort McNair (location of assassins’ trial); Clara Barton’s home; Lincoln Park with the Freeman’s Memorial; the Lincoln chapel at the National Cathedral. Your guide can arrange visits for you to any of these sites.
