Lincoln’s remains were moved and disturbed quite a few times
which may have contributed to his restlessness.

The spirit of Mrs. Lincoln suffered some devastating losses while alive,
and may still mourn as a spirit.

DESCRIPTION

Lincoln’s Tomb is described as being “Immense”, with a one hundred and seventeen ft obelisk that sits proudly on the top of the Mausoleum Tomb. The obelisk stands for leadership. The visitor can’t miss it!

There is about a 1/4 acre of green grass with Oak trees lining the grassy area located just in front of Lincoln Plaza. A bronze bust of Abraham is in front of this plaza, a piece of art work done in honor of his tomb by the same artist, Borglum, who carved the faces of the presidents into the mountain at Mount Rushmore.

Above ground, on top of the mausoleum, there is an elaborate granite area around the Obelisk. There are stairs on both sides of the granite memorial, leading up to a terrace that goes all the way around the obelisk. On each of the four corners the visitor sees a bronze statue on a granite pedestal honoring each branch of the Union forces that fought in the Civil War under Lincoln: The Infantry, The Navy, The Artillery, and The Calvary.

In the center of this granite terrace there is another centered granite shelf above the terrace where the visitor sees a life-sized, bronze statute of Abraham Lincoln; holding a copy of his famous Emancipation Proclamation that set all slaves free.

Going down into the actual mausoleum through the south entrance the visitors are in the rotunda where all corridors lead to the family vault at the north end of the memorial.The corridors go all the way around in a square form. There is beautiful marble everywhere in all the rooms, trimmed in bronze. In fact, there are eleven types of marble from all over the earth. The visitor passes various bronze statues depicting Lincoln’s various contributions.

His days as a ranger in the Indian Wars are depicted by a very young Abe on a horse. Another statue has him riding a horse, depicting a lawyer who went from town to town to represent his clients. Another statue depicts him as a LegislativevRepresentative.. Finally, there is a statue of him as President, sitting in his chair; the same pose that the statue in the Lincoln Memorial has, but created a few years before.

Finally, the visitor arrives at the semi-circular Lincoln family burial chamber. In the middle of this vault, underneath the obelisk sits a gigantic red marble stone sarcophagus with just a simple inscription carved into its face: Abraham Lincoln: 1809-1865. Lincoln’s remains are ten feet below this red stone sarcophagus protected from grave robbers and bad ones.

The appropriate flags are arranged behind it and beside it. One group of flags were from the states where Lincoln’s ancestors lived. A second group of flags are from states where Lincoln himself had lived. The Presidential flag can be found just right of the red stone. Also, on the opposite wall are the crypts of Lincoln’s wife and three of his sons; Eddie, Willie and Tad.

Lincoln’s eldest, Robert was buried at Arlington Cemetery because his wife wanted him to be remembered for his own contributions. Robert’s son, Abraham, died in Europe from Sepsis at the age of 18. He was temporarily laid to rest in the Lincoln Tomb and stayed there until Robert Lincoln died at the age of 82. When Robert was buried at Arlington, his son’s body was moved to Arlington to be with his family plot with his father and later his mother.

HISTORY

President Lincoln and his wife Mary decided to go to Ford Theatre on the night of Good Friday, April 14, 1865. Actor John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln’s body was embalmed. His body laid in state in the East Room of the White House. After a funeral service at there White House, his body went on display in Representative Hall for two days so more People could say their good-byes.

His body along with the caskets of sons Willie and Eddie were loaded onto a funeral train along with family and security guards. They visited 10 cities in a 1,700 mile trip before heading to Springfield for burial in Oak Ridge Cemetery. The caskets were put in a temporary tomb while the Lincoln Memorial Tomb complex was constructed. The tomb section was finished enough in 1871 to receive the family caskets.

However, it wasn’t any of these family caskets to be first to be laid to rest here. The Lincolns’ son Tad was the first one to be laid to rest in this Lincoln Family tomb because he died earlier that year from TB.

Lincoln’s wooden casket was falling apart, so his body was moved into an iron casket which was placed inside a lead box that was placed in the red stone sarcophgus, located in a place of honor, in the middle of this room.

It was all finished and dedicated in 1874 and many people came to pay their respects. Others had other devious plans. Bad characters in a counterfeiting ring hatched a plan to steal Lincoln’s body and hold it for a $200,000 ransom and to demand the release from jail their master engraver. Luckily, a brave Pinkerton detective had infiltrated this group and stopped them J.I.T.

This attempt really upset Robert Lincoln, who gave directions to the Lincoln National Monument Association to move Lincoln’s casket to the passages below the Tomb. Lincoln’s casket stayed hidden under a wood pile for two years. A new secret grave was dug for Abraham Lincoln’s remains and it stayed there until 1899 when the state of Illinois decided the memorial needed a face-lift and repair.

Robert came up with secret plans. In 1901, the iron casket of Abraham Lincoln was put in a sarcophagus placed ten feet below the marble floor of the burial chamber, in an iron barred cage. The hole was filled with cement and covered with marble flooring, never to be disturbed again.

The second renovation of this beautiful Lincoln’s Tomb happened in 1931 which involved a complete redesign of the interior of the tomb, which created “the inside corridors, installation of marble and bronze orientation and the adding of small statues.”

The handsome bronze bust of Lincoln by Borglum was proudly added outside in the front of the Lincoln Tomb. Soldiers during WW2 would rub the bust’s nose for good luck, which started this custom. It is no wonder Lincoln’s nose is so shiny!

HISTORY OF MANIFESTATIONS

People who die before they were able to finish an important, vital task can be restless as a spirit.

Washington D.C. Capitol Building ( John Adams died just before he was to present an important argument before Congress. He is still trying to present it.)

Oregon State Capitol, OR (A state representative is still working on for the people despite being killed in a farm accident.)

Little Rock State Capitol, AR (A politician was murdered by another politician who was a political foe.)

Abraham Lincoln ( He was murdered before he could over-see the reconstruction of the South. He wasn’t able to finish his Presidency, leaving the wrong people in charge who wanted vengeance.)

Sometimes restless spirits try to find peace by staying or visiting in a place where they were happy, successful and had some peace.

Kahler Grand Hotel, MN (Spirit of the murdered Hershey Heiress still loves to be at the Kahler Grand Hotel.)

Buffalo Bill’s Ranch State Park, NE (The spirit of Buffalo Bill likes to visit his favorite place in this world, his ranch with all its memories, reconstructed buildings and all of his mementos of his life on display.)

Brumder Mansion, WI (Several spirits here are working on what happened to them here; leading up to their deaths.)

Lincoln’s Tomb (The manifestations listed below suggest that the spirit of Lincoln finds some comfort in the surroundings of the tomb, because it is a lovely place. Also, he takes comfort in that he was loved and honored for what he did accomplish in office by the grand tomb that was built for him and his family.)

They can seek peace in an area in this world, hoping to work out the issues for their restlessness. Grief is a powerful force that can keep spirits here.

Chapel of the Cross, MS (A spirit of a young woman still grieves the death of her beloved.)

Deerfield Burial Grounds, MA (Spirit of a slaughtered servant still mourns the brutal death of her unborn child and the children in her care.)

Pittsburgh Theatre, PA (A tragedy victim is still in mourning.)

Lincoln’s Tomb, IL (Lincoln died before his son Tad died of TB. He may be mourning his death, wondering if his own death also indirectly caused his son to get sick.)

When the remains of a spirit are moved, it is hard sometimes for a spirit to find peace and can become restless.

Easton Library, PA (After loved ones moved the graves of their family to another cemetery, the graves that remained were either moved to the front area of the new library grounds and reinterred there or the remains of the deceased were buried in a mass grave.)

Colonel Michael Swope Townhouse, VA (After his family was forced to dig up his body to prove to the authorities that he didn’t die of disease, his spirit became active in Alexandria in his beloved townhouse.)

Waverley Plantation House, MS (The body of Private Beverly Daniel Young was buried in Cypress Hill Cemetery, Long Island n August 29th, 1863. His body was retrieved by influential family friends and reburied in the family plot at George Hampton Young Family Cemetery.)

Lincoln’s Tomb (Lincoln’s remains were moved and disturbed quite a few times which may have contributed to his restlessness. Between 1865 and 1901, Lincoln’s coffin was moved 17 times and opened five times.)

MANIFESTATIONS

PARANORMAL FINDINGS

Security cameras may have picked up shadows and sounds of disembodied foot steps.
Witnesses to the wanderings of Lincoln’s spirit could’ve been security guards, members of the public and possibly docents.

No official hard evidence has been presented publicly because the state of Illinois doesn’t want paranormal enthusiasts descending into the tomb, taking away the purpose of honoring Lincoln, his accomplishments and this reverent place that holds the last remains of the Lincoln family.

STILL HAUNTED?

Probably so! Though there isn’t any hard evidence shared with the public, and no employee is allowed to talk about the paranormal activity, the spirit of Abraham Lincoln isn’t ready to rest just yet; he seeks peace that he doesn’t have; still upset about his own death that interrupted his important influence and about Tad’s death from TB.

To try to find some peace, his presence likes to visit the White House when America is in turmoil. He likes to visit the Illinois State Capitol buildings where he achieved a lot for his constituents. So, it makes sense that he would try to reconcile his feelings at his own tomb memorial.

LOCATION

Oak Ridge Cemetery, 1500 Monument Avenue, Springfield, IL 62702

lincolntomb.org

Lincoln’s Tomb can be seen at the Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield when the visitor comes inside the gate because of one of the impressive features placed on top of the tomb.

SOURCES INCLUDE

• Lincoln Tomb WEBSITE
• Ghosthunting Illinois, by John B. Kachuba, Clerisy Press, Cincinnati, OH, fourth printing 2011.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLE45-7jCUU
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVXhWgQTjaU

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