Penn Quarter in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Abraham Lincoln Walked Here
Civil War to Civil Rights
— Downtown Heritage Trail —
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), December 2, 2022
"Tonight,
beautiful women,
perfumes, and the violins' sweetness…
At 10:30 PM on March 4, 1865, a tired and gaunt President Lincoln arrived at this site, his wife Mary in white lace and silk with purple and white flowers in her hair. The ball celebrating his second inaugural was being held in the Grand Hall of the top floor of the Patent Office next to where you stand (today a Smithsonian museum).
It was a bittersweet affair. Union victory was in sight, but the ravages of war weighed heavily on the president and were reflected in his weary, weathered face. Never one for social occasions, he left before the midnight supper. In six weeks he would be gone, felled by an assassin's bullet at Ford's Theatre just two blocks from here.
Lincoln would have come this way often. The Patent Office and the General Post Office Building facing it across F Street, now a hotel, were the two most important federal buildings to be built after the White House and the Capitol. Both buildings were designed in part by Robert Mills, the architect of the Washington Monument and the U.S. Treasury. Both were partially complete by the time Lincoln came to Washington as a one-term congressman from Illinois in 1848. They towered over the little two- and three-story shops and houses around them. In one of these small buildings adjacent to the Post Office, Samuel F.B. Morse ran the nation's first telegraph office.
During the Civil War, this street was the scene of intense activity. The Post Office doubled as a food commissary. The Patent Office, host of Lincoln's second inaugural ball, had been a hospital. The poet Walt Whitman, who tended the wounded there, witnessed it all and recorded the dramatic contrasts.
…[contrast with the war-time]
groan, and the glassy eye
of the dying."
Walt Whitman, March 1865
Erected by Cultural Tourism DC. (Marker Number .5.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Communications • Government & Politics • Science & Medicine • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Downtown Heritage Trail, and the Former U.S. Presidents: #16 Abraham Lincoln series lists. A significant historical date for this entry is March 4, 1865.
Location. 38° 53.84′ N, 77° 1.389′ W. Marker is in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia. It is in the Penn Quarter. Marker is at the intersection of F Street Northwest and 8th Street Northwest, on the right when traveling west on F Street Northwest. Touch for map
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), December 2, 2022
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Patent Office Building (within shouting distance of this marker); Roy Lichtenstein (within shouting distance of this marker); General Post Office (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Roy Lichtenstein (within shouting distance of this marker); The Restoration of 800 F Street (within shouting distance of this marker); The Chinese Hackberry Tree (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Daguerre Monument (about 300 feet away); a different marker also named The Daguerre Monument (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Northwest Washington.
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. This marker has replaced the linked marker.
Additional keywords. LGBT, LGBTQ, 🏳️🌈
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), December 2, 2022
Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 2, 2022, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 93 times since then and 19 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 2, 2022, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.