Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1913-01-03
in L|NC0LN's HONOR
Memorial Building Costing Sc,
COO,OO tc Be Erected.
Congress Expected to Approve Plans
for Construction OF Gigantic Hall
Scheme to Build National
Road Rejected.

Washington.-As result OF meet
Ing of the Lincoln memorial commits
sion held at the White House the
other day a memorial hall costing 81.
100000 is to be erected here In honor
of Abraham Lincoln.
A number of suggestions as to the
form OF the memorial were consider
ed. They included a roadway from
Washington to Gettysburg. a roadway
from Mount Vernon, the home OF
Washington, to Gettysburg, and a
roadway from Richmond to Gettys'
burg. The commission decided. how
ever, in favor OF the plan presented
ty Henry Bacon. a New York archi'
tect. and urged by Senator Cullom.
The commission is composed OF
President Taft, Senators Cullom, Wet
more, and Martin, Speaker Clark. for
mer Speaker Cannon, and Congress
man Mccall. In the act creating the
commission these men upon retire
ment from public life will continue to
supervise the erection of what Is ex'
pected to be the handsomest memo
rial in the United States.
A technical description Of the de-
sign is as follows:
The memorial to the memory OF
Abraham Lincoln is to be erected in
Potomac park and on the axis of the
capitol and the Washington monu-
ment. This axis was planned more
than century ago.
1.-THE Lincoln memorial is to be
placed in the center of terrace
eleven feet high and 1000 feet in
diameter and will rest upon rectan-
gular stone wall fourteen feet high.
256 feet long. and 1856 feet wide. On
this rectangular wall will rise the me-
mortal hall. which is eighty-four feet
wide and 1856 feet long. This memo
rial hall will be surrounded by col
onnade composed of thirty-six col
umns forty-four feet high and seven
feet five inches in diameter at their
base, thus increasing the dimensions
of the memorial to 1873 feet long and
11S feet wide. The total height Of
the structure above the present grade
will be 1872 feet. Entrance to the me-
mortal will be by colonnaded en-
trance forty.five feet wide and forty.
four feet high.
1.-THE four features OF the memorial
will be the central hall. sixty feet
wide, seventy feet long and sixty feet
high, in which will stand the Lincoln
statue: two halls separated from the
central hall by columns of the Ionic
order, thirty-seven feet wide, fifty
seven feet long and sixty feet high. In
which will be placed memorials OF
Lincoln's Gettysburg speech and his
second inaugural address, and sur
rounding the walls inclosing these me-
MORALS will be colonnade forming a
symbol Of the union, each column rep
resenting a state-thirty-six in all
which existed at the time OF Lincoln's
death
. above this colonnade and support
ed at intervals by eagles will be forty
eight memorial festoons, one for each
state existing at the present time"
The proposition for the construction
OF a roadway was rejected because
such a memorial would lose much Of
the simplicity necessary to recall the
nobility of the railsplitter Moreover.
few travelling over it would associate
1t with the life and deeds of Lincoln,
and the lesson which a monument to
his memory should teach, and for
which it will be primarily erected,
would be destroyed.
1t is expected the memorial will be
constructed within three years.