Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-10-23

. solid piece OF block stone masonry,
the blocks composing it in many in
stances weighing several tons each.
The foundations for all the outer
walls and piers are six feet in depth,
and arc made Of concrete and stone.
There are four round piers, fifteen
feet in diameter at the bottom, one at
each of the four corners of the cen
trail shaft. They are twenty-eight
feet and four inches in height, and
tapered to form a pedestal Of eleven
feet diameter at the top. Upon these
rest the statuary groups representing
infantry, cavalry, artillery, and marine
power, works of art valued at $780,
600. There are three straight walls
on each side of the central shaft,
PARALLEL with its sides and at equal
distances from each other, all joined
to the round piers The central
shaft, pedestals, and walls touching
the same form a square Of fifty-four
feet, with rounded corners. There is
another wall outside Of these, about
ten feet distant, embracing q square
Of seventy-two feet and half. T. Pro
jecting from the south side there is
an oval room which extends inward
nearly to the base of the monument,
the whole room being thirty-two and
halt long by twenty-four feet wide.
This is called Memorial Hall, and is
designed for articles used by or in
any way associated with the memory
of Abraham Lincoln. 1t is finished
inside with plain stone, and is entered
by door in the south end. On the
north side there is a projection simi-
lar to that of Memorial Hall. 1t is
twenty-four feet wide by twelve feet
deep in the interior, and is called the
Vestibnlc to Catacomb. The walls
are Of stone and the floor of black
and white marble, and it is entered
by door at the north end. The
ground plan is one hundred and nine
teen and half feet from north to
south, and seventy-two and half
feet from east to west. On top of
the walls spoken of is a covering of
immense slabs of Illinois stone, which
brings the whole area of sevcnty-two
and half feet square and the circu-
lar projections over Memorial Hall
and the Catacombs up to fifteen feet
ten inches in height from the ground.
forming the terrace. Four flights of
granite steps reach the terrace-one
at each corner. The two on the
south side land over Memorial Hall,
and the two on the north side over
the Catacombs. The terrace stones
form roof for everything below. A
heavy granite balustrade extends up
the outside of each stairway and
forms a parapet around the large ter
race and over the Catacomb and
Memorial Hall. The central shaft at
the top of the terrace is twelve feet
square, and tapers to eight feet square
at the apex, nincty-eight feet four and
half inches from the ground. 1t is
hollow from the terrace to the top,
the outside being dressed granite
lined with hard-burned brick. En-
trance to the obelisk is made from
the terrace. On the south side of the
shaft, nineteen and half feet above
the terrace and seven feet above the
four pcdestals sustaining the statuary
groups, is the pedestal for the statue,
with the United States coat of arms
SINK in bronze in its front. Upon
the pedestal is the crowning work of
the monument-the statue OF Lincoln.
1t rises in heroic proportions, fig
ure holding in the left hand scroll,
upon which is written "Emancipa-
tion," and in the right the pen with
which Lincoln blotted from American
history the stain of slavery. AS a
symbol of the Union to which he de-
voted his life, the banner of the Re.
public is thrown in bass-relief upon
the fasces near the statue, at the foot
of which is crown of laurels. The
statue seems to reflect the grandeur
of the hero whose figure art has here
modelled.