By the late 1920s, the Lincoln Tomb in Springfield, Illinois was literally crumbling away, threatening the largest collection of Lincolniana in the world contained within. As the reconstruction was getting underway in May 1930, the body of the President’s grandson Abraham “Jack” Lincoln II was removed from the tomb and reunited with his father Robert (who died in 1926) in Arlington Cemetery. The interior of the Lincoln Tomb, as it was originally constructed and used since 1874, was completely gutted during the 1930 reconstruction. Illinois officials wanted to redesign the interior to better accommodate “the ever-growing stream of visitors.” More importantly, they wanted the new interior design to “transform the monument into a hallowed shrine.” Memorial Hall and the relic collection it housed would be eliminated. A rotunda, described as a place of “solemn and imposing dignity, yet not heavy and forbidding,” would take the place of Mr. Fay’s little museum.
The new rotunda featured a door that opened on each side, creating a circular interior passageway through the tomb. The door on the north wall that served as the entrance to the burial chamber was converted to a gated viewing window. The rotunda, halls, and burial chamber were rebuilt, accented with gold and silver-leaf ceilings, marble wall panels and pilasters, bronze shields, and forty-eight gold stars — one for each state. Bronze grille work throughout the tomb was designed using a cornstalk motif to symbolize Illinois. Resting discretely in each corner of the passageway were placed famous Lincoln bronze sculptures, depicting the stages of his life. Bronze tablets containing a Lincoln biography, his Farewell Address to Springfield, the Gettysburg Address, and his Second Inaugural Address were prepared and mounted in the passageway. A bust of Lincoln designed by Mount Rushmore artist Gutzon Borglum was mounted atop a granite slab near the tomb’s entrance.
Lincoln’s original white marble sarcophagus, with its inscription “With Malice Toward None, With Charity For All,” was not part of the redesigned burial chamber. It was removed during the reconstruction and placed outside, behind the tomb. Later that year it was smashed by vandals, who carried away some of the broken fragments. In place of the old sarcophagus, a large new polished stone cenotaph made of “red Arkansas fossil” was put in place. Its inscription is simply, “Abraham Lincoln, 1809–1865.”
The governors of the states associated with Abraham Lincoln and his ancestors (Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois) were invited to contribute their state flags for the burial chamber. The American flag and the presidential flag, donated by President Herbert Hoover, completed the semi-circle of colors surrounding the burial chamber. President Hoover rededicated the tomb in 1931 and Herbert Wells Fay was on the platform right beside him during the ceremony.
The inscription “Now he belongs to the ages,” spoken by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton at the time of Lincoln’s death 150 years ago, is inscribed in the wall above the U.S. flag. Along the south wall of the burial room are four crypts containing the remains of Mrs. Lincoln and three of Lincoln’s four sons, Edward, Willie, and Tad. The tomb was built with additional crypts for members of Lincoln’s family; however, since the succeeding Lincoln family members are buried elsewhere, they remain empty.
The non-structural changes made during the Lincoln Tomb reconstruction were related to the ease of access of visitors. These changes were “designed” to enable visitors to more easily pay their respects to Lincoln in a solemn, dignified setting. The relic collection was removed, and Herbert Wells Fay was instructed to cease his folktales and humorous anecdotes. The popular observation tower was closed and requests for picnic tables on the grounds were denied. Thus the original Lincoln Tomb was consciously transformed from a typical tourist attraction to a place “worthy of Lincoln.”
After the grand reopening of the Lincoln Tomb on June 17, 1931, one reporter noted, “All is right. All is meaningful. The spirit of the place is the spirit of dignity, reticence, solemn beauty and eloquent symbolism.” Another was glad that “all those dismal old show cases of trophies and souvenirs” were gone. “I was completely overawed and most deeply impressed with the sublimity of the whole conception,” wrote one citizen.
Just before the re-dedication ceremonies, Illinois State officials instructed Mr. Fay that there were to be no more lectures, “no loud talk,” and nothing to disturb the “quiet dignity and solemnity” of the tomb. “We also especially caution you not to bring into the Tomb any Lincoln memorials or mementos of any kind or character. We want nothing in the Tomb that is not permanently placed there.”
Apparently, the indefatigable tomb custodian never got the memo and by the fall of 1931, Mr. Fay’s relics had reappeared. The marble walls were once again lined with documents, photos and mementos. An “inner utility corridor,” intended for repairmen’s access, had now become a little museum. Fay’s lectures had also resumed, despite repeated requests that they stop, along with the addition of a local schoolchild, retained on staff, who would recite the Gettysburg Address for a quarter. Securing the cooperation of Fay, who had devoted so much of his life to his Lincoln collection and lectures, was going to be a long struggle.
For the next 15 years, the State would order Mr. Fay to remove his Lincolniana display under threat of sanction. The items would disappear for a short time only to reappear later. Fay’s lectures continued and as his age advanced, although he remained very slender and spry throughout his lifetime, his hearing was slowly going, causing Mr. Fay to talk even louder. During these latter years, Mr. Fay also began creating special miniature dioramas of Lincoln relics which he presented to favored visitors and dignitaries to the tomb.
Fay’s dioramas usually consisted of a piece of wood from the Lincoln family homestead, located a short drive from the tomb, and a dried oak leaf plucked from one of the trees surrounding the tomb. The Lincoln home had undergone several extensive renovations in the early part of the 20th century and it seems that Mr. Fay must have secured all of the scraps and construction debris for posterity’s sake. Mr. Fay most often attached the scrap of wood alongside the leaf to a piece of Lincoln Tomb letterhead accompanied with a handwritten note describing each item’s significance and always signed as “H.W. Fay Custodian Lincoln Tomb”. No doubt these Lincoln reliquaries were just as cherished then as they are now. Try as he might, Mr. Fay just couldn’t stop preserving, protecting and promoting his favorite subject; Abraham Lincoln.
In September 1946, Fay was given a final notice to remove every item of his relic collection from the Lincoln Tomb. His “lab” in the back room of the tomb was now a maze of paper, wood and boxes. To use a term made popular by a radio show of the same era, Mr. Fay’s “lab” was looking like “Fibber McGee’s Closet” (Google it if you need to). Citing the collection as a fire hazard, state officials finally put an official end to the relic era at the Lincoln Tomb. Or would it?
Next week: Part IV- Herbert W. Fay and why he matters.
Al Hunter is the author of the “Haunted Indianapolis” and co-author of the “Haunted Irvington” and “Indiana National Road” book series. His newest book is “Bumps in the Night. Stories from the Weekly View.” Contact Al directly at Huntvault@aol.com or become a friend on Facebook.
