Lincoln Buried, but Finds Rest Elusive

By John A. O'Brien

Denver, Colorado

Sunday, May 4, 2025

Abraham Lincoln was laid to rest in Springfield, Illinois, 160 years ago on May 4, 1865. This was the culmination of a wrenching nationwide grieving process that began on the night of April 14.

The funeral train that carried Lincoln’s body back to Springfield, Illinois, for burial left Washington the morning of April 21. Lincoln’s pastor in Washington, Rev. Dr. Phineas Gurley of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, rode in the car with the body. The burial service was conducted by Methodist Bishop Matthew Simpson. Gurley assisted and gave the final prayer before the body was committed to a temporary grave. A final hymn was sung that Gurley had written, “Rest Noble Martyr!”

Lincoln's first burial site, in a recent photo

Lincoln’s body was then moved into the receiving crypt of the Oak Ridge Cemetery until a permanent memorial could be built. But rest was elusive for the Noble Martyr. His body was moved 17 times between 1865 and 1901. The primary reasons were for several construction projects and revisions to the tomb. But there were also concerns about the safety of his remains, including a reported theft attempt. The final move (so far) in 1901 resolved fears of grave robbing by encasing the coffin in concrete.

The Lincoln Tomb was formally dedicated on October 15, 1874. Lincoln and three of his sons, Eddy, Willie, and Tad, were interred in the site in 1871 when the crypt portion was readied. Mary joined them after her death in 1882. Substantial completion of the current structure with its distinctive obelisk took another three years after the president had been moved. At the dedication ceremony, Ulysses S. Grant gave his most definitive assessment of his former commander in chief:

“To know him personally was to love and respect him for his great qualities of heart and head, and for his patience and patriotism. With all his disappointments from failures on the part of those to whom he had entrusted command, and treachery on the part of those who had gained his confidence but to betray it, I never heard him utter a complaint, nor cast a censure for bad conduct or bad faith. It was his nature to find excuses for his adversaries. In his death the nation lost its greatest hero. In his death the South lost its most just friend.”

The Lincoln Tomb, Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois (Photos:courtesy of Illinois Department of Natural Resources).

The Lincoln Tomb is a National Historic Landmark that is maintained and operated by the State of Illinois. It is open every day, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. However, it is closed on New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. Admission is free. Be sure to include it on your next visit to Springfield. For information, use this website:  https://dnrhistoric.illinois.gov/experience/sites/central/lincoln-tomb.html

You will not find son Robert Lincoln here. His wife insisted that he should finally be out from under his father’s shadow. Seek him at Arlington National Cemetery.