Tomorrow is President’s Day in the United States — a Federal Holiday for most. Always held the 3rd Monday of February, President’s Day is intended to honor the first President, George Washington’s, birthday. February (12th to be precise) is also the birthday of the President Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President.
Both men were great leaders who are remembered on their nation’s currency and through monuments in the nation’s capital. Today’s Pic features my personal favorite, the Lincoln Memorial. Built at the western end of the Washington Mall and styled after a Greek Doric Temple (which like Lincoln is featured on the $5 bill), there’s a H-U-G-E sculpture of Lincoln is inside. If the Lincoln statue could stand up, it would be 29 ft (8.5 m) tall. It’s carved of Georgia white marble and weighs 175 tons. The sculptor, Daniel Chester French, required four years to complete this imposing work.
Visiting the Lincoln Memorial is one of those “must do” things when in D.C. If for no other reason, some of the most important moments in the Civil Rights movement were held on its steps, including Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
