Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-02-12
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
MEMORIAL BEGUN
Ground Broken for 1000, 900
Monument in Potomac Park,
Washington.

w Il CD. l1.-OIDuAlu
/. >was broken today, the anniversary of
the birth of Abraham Lincoln, for
the Lincoln Memorial, a $20oo,o001
structure. the purpose of whose de-
signers is that 1t shall stand through
time as an example of the best in
architecture and sculpture that this
age could produce.
The site for the memorial is in Po-
tomac Park on an ''axis,' planned
4 more than a century ago, at one,end
of which is Ahe Capitol, the monu-
ment of the government; and at the
other, more than a mile to the west,
the Washington Monument.
Still farther to the west will be the
Lincoln Memorial, where 1t will have
3. relation with the Capitol and the
Washington Monument that would be
impossible on any other site, and
[ will be closely related also with Ar
1ington Cemetery, where those who
fought for the Union are buried. 1t
is planned to have, some day. me-
mortal bridge ILL., ling the Lincoln Me-
mortal with Arlington.
Henry Bacon the Designer.
The design of the memorial is the
work Of Henry Bacon. a New York
architect, approved by the Memorial
Commission. His idea was that the
memorial to Lincoln should be COM
posed of four fearures--a statue of
the man, a memorial of his Gettys-
burg speech, a. memorial of his Sec
ond inaugural address, and a symbol
of the United States which he pre-
Served. Each feature will be related
TO the others by means of design
and position, and each will be so ar
ranged that it will become an in
tegral part of the whole in order to-
attain unity and simplicity in the
monument Each feature is meant
to impress the beholder with it's
greatest force, and this it is sought
to accomplish by means of isolation,
though not to the extent of impair
ing the relation of each feature to
the others.
The most important single object
will be the statue of Lincoln, the
plan being for a seated figure placed
well in the background of the largest
chamber. The sculptor has not yet
been selected. This chamber will be
unoccupied by any other object that
might detract from the effectiveness
of the statue, and the visitor will be
alone with it.
lie smaller nails at edcn size OIL
A the central chamber each will con-
tain memorial, one of the Gettys-.
burg address and the other of the
inaugural address, in bronze letters
, on monumental tablets, while ada
cent low reliefs will relate in ale
CORY Lincoln s>aualities as evidenced
by those speeches.
While these memorials will be seen
from any part of the hall they are
~ he ov-fI he
trail chamber by means of row of
Ionic columns.
Column for Each state.
Surrounding the walls inclosing
these memorials to the man, is
planned colonnade forming a SYM
Dol of the Union. each column rep
resenting a State-thirty-six in all
one for each existing at the time of
Lincoln's death. On the walls above
the colonnade supported at intervals
by eagles will be forty-eight memo
rial festoons, one for each State now
existing.
BY means of terraces the ground
on which the memorial will stand
will be raised until the building itself
will be forty-f1ve feet higher than
the present grade. First circular
terrace 1000 feet in diameter will be
raised eleven feet above the present
grade and on its outer edge will be
planted four concentric rows of trees.
leaving in the centre plateau 755
feet in diameter-greater than the
length Of the Capitol. In the centre
of this plateau, surrounded by wide
roadway and walks, will rise an emf
hence supporting a stone terrace wall
fourteen feet high, 256 feet long and
1856 feet wide. On this terrace will
stand the memorial building of white
marble, ITS lines of pure Greek beauty
, reflected in the waters of the lagoon
at the foot of the broad steps.
Cullom Started Movement.
The movement for this Lincoln Me-
mortal was started In 1902 by the
late Senator Cullom, of Illinois, Lin
coins friend, who died only a few
weeks ago, Just too soon to enable
him to see the fruition of his pur-
pose From 1902 until last year the
plan was in progress, final action
having been taken under another bill
introduced by Senator Cullom in 1910.
Various suggestions as to the form
the memorial should take were sub
mitted and considered, among them
AM arch on Meridian Hill, a memo
rial at Fort Stevens, a memorial
bridge to connect Potomac Park with
Arlington Cemetery, and govern
ment road to Gettysburg. At times
there was considerable feeling dis
played in the controversy
The members of the Lincoln Memo
rial Commission are: William H.
Taft. chairman; Joseph c. S. Black
burn, recently appointed to fill the
vacancy left by the death of Shelby
: M. Cullom; Joseph G. Cannon, George
Peabody Wetmore, Samuel Walker
Mccall, Champ Clark and Thomas S.
Martin