STATEHOUSE NEWS

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On a cool, damp morning the body of slain President Abraham Lincoln was laid in repose at the Ohio Statehouse April 29, 1865; from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. An estimated 50,000 Ohioans paid their respect to the “Savior of the Union.”

It is difficult to articulate in words how the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln affected the nation. To put it simply, the murder of President Lincoln less than three weeks after the end of the American Civil War and less than two months into his second term was a cataclysmic event. The “Lincoln Funeral Train” traveled more than 1,600 miles and during the 13 day trip one third of the population of the United States witnessed the train pass through their community. With the 150thanniversary of this historic event upon us, this is your opportunity to pay your respects to President Abraham Lincoln at the Ohio Statehouse from Wednesday, April 29, to Monday, May 4, 2015.

The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board (CSRAB) will recreate the memorial decoration that the State of Ohio installed in 1865. Under the director of Governor John Brough, the Ohio Statehouse welcomed more than 50,000 Ohioans to Columbus on that April day in 1865. CSRAB would like to extend an invitation to all 11.5 million Ohioans to pay their respect to the 16th President of the United States. The public is invited to leave fresh flowers in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda in honor of President Abraham Lincoln to commemorate this historic event.

The Ohio Statehouse will be decorated as it was in 1865 for the President’s memorial held at the Ohio Capitol. “I hope we have visitors from all 88 Ohio counties participate in this historic event. The 150thanniversary celebration of the repose of President Lincoln will go down in the annals of this, magnificent, building as a once in a lifetime experience,” said William Carleton, executive director of CSRAB.


“Over the last four years, the National Park Service has commemorated the 150th anniversary of this country’s greatest national crisis, while exploring its enduring relevance in the 21st century using the guiding theme of Civil War to Civil Rights,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “As the sesquicentennial events come to a close, our commemorations of Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train highlight the major cities, including two in Ohio, that held funeral ceremonies along that route to Springfield, Ill. These events in Columbus and Cleveland recognize the Buckeye State's significant role in the Union war effort, both on the battlefields and on the home front."

Further repose details are available at: http://www.ohiostatehouse.org/announcements

Images of the Repose of Lincoln are available at: http://www.ohiostatehouse.org/galleries/lincolns-repose-april-29

“Abraham Lincoln's Journey Home” NPS website:
http://www.nps.gov/liho/learn/historyculture/JourneyHome.htm.

REPOSE SCHEDULE AND DETAILS
April 29, 2015

Civil War Encampment, West Plaza; 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,

Learn what camp life was like during the Civil War. Walk among soldiers’ tents, see how to fire the cannon every half hour and help the Ladies Aid Society deliver comfort to the troops. Historical re-enactors from 1st Ohio Light Artillery, Battery A and other groups will demonstrate Civil War life, cooking and medical practices. Cannon firings will occur every half hour on the West Plaza of the Ohio Statehouse. This program is supported by the 1stOhio Light Artillery, Battery A.

Repose of President Abraham Lincoln at the Ohio Statehouse, Rotunda; 10 a.m.

The song Taps was written during Civil War. Echo taps will be played by Bugles Across America in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda.

Replica Casket and Honor Guard; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The public is invited to leave fresh flowers in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda in honor of President Abraham Lincoln to commemorate this historic event.

Batesville Casket Company created the 1865 casket for Lincoln, and has generously provided an accurate replica for this event. The 1st Ohio Light Artillery, Battery A, a group of Civil War re-enactors, will provide an honor guard for a replica of Lincoln’s casket from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. This will take place on the site where the slain President lay in repose in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda on April 29, 1865. Again, visitors are encouraged to lay flowers in remembrance of President Abraham Lincoln throughout the event.

Lincoln Presentation in partnership with the National Park Service with Fritz Klein, Chamber of the Ohio House of Representatives; 6 p.m.

Four years ago, the National Park Service (NPS) commemorated the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's inaugural journey to Washington, DC with first person interpretive programs of Lincoln in all of the major cities that Lincoln visited on the day that he made his visit. This year, the NPS will be commemorating the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's Funeral with programs in each of the major cities that held a funeral for Lincoln from Washington, DC to Springfield, Illinois on the day the funerals were held. The program consists of an introduction by a NPS ranger, followed by a one hour presentation of Lincoln by accomplished Lincoln actor, Fritz Klein. The presentation will focus on Lincoln's vision for America as he expressed it during his life, his vision of moving the nation from civil war to civil rights. This program is free and open to the public—no ticket is needed as this is an open seating event.

“Abraham Lincoln's Journey Home” NPS website:
http://www.nps.gov/liho/learn/historyculture/JourneyHome.htm.

Thursday, April 30, 2015

12 p.m., Atrium; The Lincoln Funeral; presented by Scott Trostel author of THE LINCOLN FUNERAL TRAIN: The Final Journey and National Funeral for Abraham Lincoln.

Scott's program about The Lincoln Funeral Train recounts the sad journey from Washington, D. C. to Springfield, Illinois in 1865. One-third of the population of the United States witnessed passage of the train between April 21 and May 2, 1865. The program recounts state stops at the cities of Baltimore, Harrisburg, Philadelphia, including the near-riot, New York City, Albany, Buffalo, Cleveland, Columbus, Indianapolis, Chicago with burial in Springfield, Illinois Incidents along the route are recounted, such as meal stops by the funeral train and reactions of the crowds at trackside as the train passed by. Specific to Ohio, the train made State funeral stops at Cleveland and Columbus en route to Springfield, IL. The funeral train changed locomotives at Piqua. The graphics for this program were recently presented at the Lincoln Assassination Conference by the Surratt Society in Washington, D. C. The program will be presented at 12 noon in the Statehouse Atrium. Free and open to the public.

Friday, May 1, 2015

12 p.m., Atrium; Lincoln on Screen: Black and White Lincoln in the 1950’s; presented by Mark Reinhart author of ABRAHAM LINCOLN ON SCREEN.

President Lincoln is the most frequently portrayed American historical figure in history of the film and television arts, having been featured in more than 300 productions since the birth of the motion picture medium. Lincoln historian, author and film producer, Mark Reinhart, will present a public program on the subject of Lincoln-related film and television. The program will be presented at 12 noon in the Statehouse Atrium. Free and open to the public.

Friday, May 1 to Monday, May 4, 2015

Pay Your Respects to President Lincoln!

The State of Ohio recognized the significance of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, and they understood the pain felt by the people of Columbus, Ohio. In honor of the slain President, the catafalque was to remain on display in the Rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse until the President was laid to rest in the tomb at Springfield, IL on May 4. Floral tributes were placed on the catafalque where the President’s coffin had rested on April 29 and thousands of citizens, young and old, visited the Ohio Statehouse through May 4, 1865.

The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board will recreate this event in the Rotunda of the Ohio Statehouse. This is your opportunity to pay your respects to President Abraham Lincoln. Connect with the year 1865 and relive the events that shaped the history of the United States 150 years ago at the Ohio Statehouse.

Additionally, special exhibits have been scheduled and designed by the Ohio Statehouse Museum Education Center (OSMEC) to run in conjunction with observance of the repose. The special exhibits will be on display through the end of the school year to allow the thousands of students that tour the Ohio Statehouse each spring to experience this historical event. The public is invited to leave fresh flowers in the Ohio Statehouse Rotunda in honor of President Abraham Lincoln to commemorate this historic event.

EXHIBITS AT THE OHIO STATEHOUSE

The Assassination of President Abraham Lincoln Exhibit
April 29, 2015
Ohio Statehouse Rotunda, 1 Capitol Square; downtown Columbus
614/752-9777
Free!

A special exhibit of reproduction images from the Library of Congress tells the story of President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination and the men and woman named as conspirators along with their fate. This exhibit is for mature audiences.

The Lincoln Funeral Train in Pictures and Photos
March 31 – June 2, 2015
Ohio Statehouse North Hallway, 1 Capitol Square; downtown Columbus
614/752-9777
Free!

This exhibit begins with the assassination of our nation’s 16thpresident, Abraham Lincoln. It follows his funeral train route from Washington D.C. to Springfield, Illinois, and focuses on photographs of how he was honored at each stop. This exhibit will bring to life one of those stops in our own Ohio Statehouse, where 50,000 Ohioans paid their respects. Reproduction images are courtesy of the Library of Congress and others.

General John C. Caldwell and the Lincoln Funeral Train
March 31 – June 2, 2015
Ohio Statehouse North Hallway, 1 Capitol Square; downtown Columbus
614/752-9777
Free!

General John Curtis Caldwell had answered the call of duty at the outbreak of the American Civil War. As a brigade commander and eventual corps commander of the Army of the Potomac, he participated in some of the most ferocious fighting between North and South. Travelling with the army from one battlefront to the next, Caldwell was wounded twice.

On April 20, 1865, General Caldwell received a letter from the War Department advising him that he had been appointed to the "Guard of Honor" that was to accompany President Lincoln’s remains "from the city of Washington to Springfield, Illinois, and continue with them until they are consigned to their final resting-place."

A partial list of objects in the exhibit are: a War Department pass for the Lincoln funeral train, a silver tassel from the catafalque, a mourning badge and ribbon, a silk from the Cleveland service and funeral time table from the slain president’s Columbus repose.

To view this press release and others, visit www.ohiostatehouse.org.

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