Existing comment:
Simplicity and Symbolism:
The story of the cabin: The cabin inside the memorial has a history of its own. A New Yorker who purchased Sinking Spring Farm in 1894 moved the cabin here, believing it was the original Lincoln home that had been relocated in the area by a former landholder.
A traveling exhibit: In the late 1800s, the owner took the cabin apart to show it in various cities. He later stored the logs in a basement in New York. The Lincoln Farm Association bought the cabin in 1906 and brought it back to Kentucky to become part of the memorial. The cabin was scaled down in size to fit inside the memorial building.
A life memorialized: In all likelihood, the cabin is not the original. However, it inspires with its dramatic contrast of the simple place where Lincoln started and the powerful position in which he finished. Like the cabin, the memorial building is rich with symbolism that includes 56 steps for Lincoln's age at his death and 16 ceiling rosettes for this election as 16th President of the United States. |