Abraham Lincoln Funeral

              Lincoln's train left Washington on April 21,1865. It would follow the 1,654 mile route that Abraham Lincoln had traveled as President-elect in 1861. The Lincoln Special, which had a photograph of Lincoln over the cowcatcher, carried about 300 mourners. Willie Lincoln's coffin was also on board. Willie, who was Lincoln’s son had died in the White House in 1862 at age 11, he was to be buried with his father in Springfield. Lincoln's remains were accompanied on the Lincoln Special by a Guard of Honor. Robert Lincoln also rode on the train.

                    Friday, April 21

              The train departed Washington's depot at 8:00 A.M. It arrived in Baltimore, 38 miles away, at 10:00 A.M. where Lincoln's coffin was to be put out in the Merchant's Exchange Building and opened to the view of approximately 10,000 people. The train then left in the afternoon for Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, arriving shortly after 8:00 P.M. The coffin was then carried by hearse to the state House of Representatives, placed in a catafalque, and opened for public viewing at 9:30 P.M.

                    Saturday, April 22

              At 10:00 A.M. 40,000 people lined up in the streets of Harrisburg's to watch the hearse which carried the coffin back to the depot. At 11:15 A.M. the train departed Harrisburg for the long journey to Philadelphia where it arrived at the Broad Street Station at 4:30 P.M. A hearse took Lincoln's coffin through Philadelphia's streets to Independence Hall where the coffin was placed in the East Wing where the Declaration of Independence had been signed. Evening viewing  was by invitation only.

 

                    Sunday, April 23

              Long lines of the general public began forming by 5:00 A.M. at one point the double line was 3 miles long and wound from the Delaware to the Schuylkill. Philadelphia officials estimated 300,000 people passed by Lincoln's open coffin. The wait was about 5 hours. So many people wanted to view Mr. Lincoln's body that police had difficulty maintaining order in the lines; some people had their clothing ripped, others fainted, one broke her arm.		                     Monday, April 24

              The Lincoln Special departed from Philadelphia at 4:00 A.M. It arrived in an immense train station at Jersey City at 10:00 A.M. The clock inside the station had been frozen at 7:20, the
time of Lincoln's death. Lincoln's coffin was taken from the train car and across the Hudson River by ferry. It was then brought to City Hall where it was carried up the circular staircase under the rotunda.
The coffin was then placed in a black velvet dais. The public was admitted after 1:00 P.M. At one point more than 500,000 people waited in line to view Lincoln. On this day a photograph of Lincoln in death was taken.

 

                                                Tuesday, April 25

              At about 2:00 P.M. Lincoln's coffin was placed on a magnificent 14 foot long funeral car. It was drawn by 16 horses wearing long blankets. The funeral procession went up Broadway to Fourteenth Street, over to Fifth Avenue, up Fifth to Thirty-fourth Street, and across Thirty-fourth to Ninth Avenue to the Hudson River Railway Depot. 75,000 ordinary citizens marched in the huge procession through New York's jam-packed streets. Windows along the route rented for up to $100 a person. When the procession neared Union Square, it passed Theodore Roosevelt's grandfather's home where the 6 1/2 year old future president was viewing the procession from a 2nd story window.  A little after 4:00 P.M. the funeral train was on its way again it headed for Albany. Large crowds of spectators gathered as the train passed through Manhattanville, Yonkers, Dobbs Ferry, Irvington, Tarrytown, Sing-Sing, Peekskill, Garrison's Landing, Cold Spring, Fishkill, North Hamburg, Poughkeepsie, Hyde Park, Staatsburg, Rhinebeck, Barrytown, Tivoli, Germantown, Catskill, Hudson, Stockport, Coxsackie, Stuyvesant, Schodack, and Castleton. The train arrived in Albany at 11:00 P.M., and the coffin was moved to the State House for public viewing. Throughout the night the local citizenry passed by to pay their last respects to the President.

 

             Wednesday, April 26

              At noon at special grand procession started in the streets of Albany with Lincoln's coffin resting in a specially built catafalque. On this day Lincoln was drawn by 6 white horses. At 4:00 P.M. in the afternoon the funeral train departed for Buffalo. Great crowds gathered as the Lincoln Special passed through Schenectady, Canajoharie, St. Johnsville, Little Falls, Herkimer, Utica, Rome, Oneida, Syracuse, Rochester, and others.		                Thursday, April 27

              The train arrived in Buffalo at 7:00 A.M., and the coffin was transported to St. James Hall in a magnificent catafalque drawn by 6 white horses dressed in black. In an orderly manner, 100,000 people passed by the coffin during the day. The mourners included ex-President Millard Fillmore and future President Grover Cleveland. There was no formal funeral procession in Buffalo as that city had staged a complete mock funeral on April 19 not knowing at that time it was to be a stop on the train's itinerary. At 10:00 P.M. the train left Buffalo for Cleveland.

 

                 Friday, April 28

              At 1:00 A.M. the train made a quick stop in Westfield, New York, where 5 young women brought a cross of flowers to Lincoln's coffin. At 7:00 A.M. the train arrived at Union Station in Cleveland. The coffin was transported by hearse to Cleveland's Public Park and placed in a pagoda in Monument Square; only in Cleveland was the public viewing done outdoors. Thus the others cities' problems of cramped quarters and thousands left in line were avoided in Cleveland. In 15 hours, 150,000 were able to pass by the coffin. At midnight the Lincoln Special departed Cleveland destined for Columbus via the Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati Railway

                Saturday, April 29

              The train arrived in Columbus at 7:30 A.M. The coffin was carried in a 17 foot long hearse to the State Capitol building. Upon arrival, 8 members of the Veteran Guard carried the coffin into the rotunda on their shoulders. The catafalque in Columbus was different from all the rest on the trip in that it was without columns and canopies; it was just a low moss and flower covered dais. Again, thousands and thousands of people viewed the fallen President. At 8:00 P.M. the train departed Columbus and headed for Indianapolis. The train passed through Urbana, Piqua.

 

                 Sunday, April 30

              In Indiana the train went through Richmond, Centreville, Germantown, Cambridge, Knightstown, Charlotteville, and others. It arrived in Indianapolis at 7:00 A.M. The coffin was carried to the Indiana State House by hearse. Although rain had been almost an everyday occurrence on the journey, it was so heavy in Indianapolis that the giant procession was canceled and the entire day devoted to viewing. Because of the rain, Governor Oliver P. Morton failed to give his oration. Late in the evening the Lincoln Special departed Indianapolis destined for Chicago.		                  Monday, May 1

              During the night the train passed through Whitestown, Lebanon, Thorntown, Colfax, Clarksville, Lafayette, and others. On the way to Chicago the train stopped at Michigan City, Indiana, where an impromptu funeral was held during the morning. The train arrived in Chicago at 11:00 A.M. and did not go the full distance to the Union Depot. It stopped on a trestle that carried the tracks out into Lake Michigan for some distance. Chicago's procession for Lincoln rivaled New York's in size and grandeur. The route went down Michigan Avenue, then Lake Street, then Clark to Court House Square. The coffin was opened for public viewing at the Cook County Court House at 6:00 P.M. and lasted through the night and all the next day.

 

                  Tuesday, May 2

              Throughout the day, 7,000 people per hour, passed by Lincoln's coffin. The body's
discoloration, noticeable in New York, had reached the extent of distressing the viewers. At 8:00 P.M. the hearse carried the coffin to the depot of the St. Louis and Alton Railroad. The Lincoln Special was now destined for its final stop: Springfield. During the trip the train passed through Summit, Willow Springs, Lemont, Lockport, Joliet, Elwood, Wilmington, Gardner, Dwight, Odell, Pontiac, Chenoa, Towanda, Bloomington, Funk's minute, Atlanta, Lincoln, Elkhart, Williamsville, and others.		                Wednesday, May 3

              Mr. Lincoln's home town was reached the next morning, and the train pulled into the Chicago and Alton depot on Jefferson Street. Lincoln would lie in state in the State House's Hall of Representatives (the same room in which he
gave his famous "House Divided" speech). Lincoln's face had become further discolored, and Thomas Lynch, an undertaker, using rouge chalk and amber restored the face to near normal color. Shortly after 10:00 A.M. the doors were
opened to the long line of mourners. Additionally, hundreds of people gathered around Lincoln's home where his horse, Old Bob, now 16 years old, and his dog, Fido, had been brought back for the day.

 

                                                Thursday, May 4

              The day of Lincoln's Springfield funeral was a scorcher. At 10:00 A.M. the doors to the State House were closed, and Lincoln's body was prepared for burial by the undertaker and embalmer. The coffin was carried to an elegant hearse (finished in gold, silver, and crystal) lent to Springfield by the city of St. Louis. The procession was led by Major-General Joseph Hooker and followed a zigzag route from the State House, past Mr. Lincoln's home, past the Governor's Mansion, and onto the country road leading to Oak Ridge Cemetery. The hearse was followed immediately by Old Bob wearing a mourning blanket. Lincoln's only two blood relatives in attendance that day were his son, Robert, and his cousin, John Hanks. Mrs. Lincoln was still in mourning in the White House. The procession was the largest spectacle the Midwest had ever seen. Upon arrival at the cemetery, the coffin was laid upon the marble slab inside the tomb. Willie's little coffin was also placed inside the tomb. The funeral oration was given by Bishop Matthew Simpson who had been chosen over every other minister in the United States for this sad occasion. Simpson gave an extremely eloquent address. When Simpson was finished, Dr. Phineas Densmore Gurley read the benediction. The crowd then watched as the gates of iron and the heavy wooden doors of the tomb were closed and locked. It was over at last.

CLICK HERE for pictures of Lincoln's funeral

back to top

Home

Source: Roger Norton's Abraham Lincoln Research Site
            http://members.aol.com/RVSNorton/Lincoln2.html