Lincoln, Lincoln, and more Lincoln

The theme for today was Lincoln (and chocolate and keeping warm, but those are lesser themes). I made reservations to visit Ford’s Theatre and Petersen house in honor of President’s Day this weekend. Ford’s Theatre, the site of Lincoln’s assassination, is located in the heart of DC on 511 10th St NW (http://www.fordstheatre.org/). The theatre is actually through a partnership with the National Park Service so at the appointed ticket time, I got in line behind my ranger and was led into the basement of the theatre.

 I really just wanted to see the theatre itself, but, as it turns out, the museum displays in the basement are actually much more interesting. The NPS has packed an enormous amount of historical information about the Civil War, the Lincoln presidency, and timeline of the leading to the President’s assassination into the museum at the Theatre. By contrast, the tour of theatre seems somewhat anticlimactic. I went up to the balcony and sat in a front row seat of the refurbished theatre then headed over to Petersen house, the next stop on my agenda that day.

Petersen house sits directly across the street from Ford’s theatre. This was the house where Lincoln was taken after his being shot on April 14 and where his family sat by his bedside until his death on the morning of April 15, 1865. The façade of the house has recently been restored and the interior is decorated in period style. There are only a few rooms to see, the most interesting of which is the preserved bedroom in the back of the house, where the mortally wounded president lay until his death.

Not having had my fill of Mr. Lincoln, I started to walk to the Lincoln Memorial (http://www.nps.gov/linc/planyourvisit/index.htm). Like the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial was something that I had driven past and seen pictures of, but had never taken the time to visit. In retrospect, I might have picked a day when the mall and the steps of the monument weren’t cocooned in a thick blanket of ice and snow. This thought occurred to me as I tried to avoid a series of very painful face plants on the walk over. Rubber boots…not so good for the traction. Despite the snow, ice and cold, I was awed by the beauty of the monument. The monument was designed by Henry Bacon and the sculpture inside created by Daniel Chester French. Composed of marble and granite, groundbreaking began in 1914 and the monument was dedicated in 1922. Although a secular structure, I had a feeling of reverence, like going into one of the old cathedrals of Europe for the first time, when I walked through the columns into the inner chamber where Lincoln’s Statue is housed. The statue is striking….Lincoln looks imposing, but most of all, kind. The pressures of the presidency come through in his posture and expression; as if he’s carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. The memorial also has Lincoln’s Inaugural Addresses carved into the walls on either side of the main room.

I’m the first to admit that I’m a bit of a zealot about proper museum decorum. Loud inane conversations, cell phones, stupid people (no judgment)…make me crazy. I don’t know if it was the cold or the churchy feel of the space, but the LM crowd was reverent. I’d like to go back this summer, but maybe the quiet of the February ice and snow complement the memorial more so than bright sunshine and throngs of tourists ever could.