Replica of Lincoln coffin on display at Arlington Cemetery
Apr 10, 2018The public can view it for free 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily Feb. 7 through 16 except for Feb. 8. Groups of 10 or more are asked to make an appointment by calling 610-259-5800.American Historical Theatre actor Christian Johnson in the guise of Lincoln’s physician and close friend, former New Jersey Gov. William A. Newell, will lecture about the president’s assassination and funeral 1 p.m. Feb. 15 in the Williamsburg Chapel. The 16th president of the United States, who was born Feb. 12, 1809, was fatally shot in the head by actor John Wilkes Booth April 14, 1865, at Ford’s Theare in Washington, D.C.“When he died, he had the largest funeral in the world at that time,” said Arlington Cemetery President Gary Buss, who noted that it was surpassed in size in 1963 by President John F. Kennedy’s funeral.AdvertisementThe Lincoln coffin at Arlington is one of five replicas constructed 10 years ago by craftsmen at Batesville Casket Co. in Indiana, said Buss. Four are lent to funeral homes nationwide for display and one is part of the permanent collection of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, Ill.Based on an 1865 photograph of Lincoln lying in state at New York City’s city hall, the diamond-shaped replica coffin is constructed of walnut, covered in black cloth and decorated with sterling silver handles and studs. It does not have a lead lining like the original because it would be too heavy, said Buss.“It is 6 feet, 6 inches long and Lincoln was 6 foot 4. It was a tight squeeze,” he noted.A permanent exhibit about Lincoln’s funeral is currently being assembled in time for the 150th anniversary of his assassination at the Drexel Hill cemetery, where there is already a permanent exhibit about the funerals of John F. and Robert F. Kennedy, also both victims of assassins. Arlington Cemetery, which is on the site of abolitionist Thomas Garrett’s family farm, also has a Museum of Mourning Art that includes artifacts from the funeral of President George Washington who was born Feb. 22, 1732, and died Dec. ... (The Delaware County Daily Times)
