Courtesy of History.com
A funeral train carrying the body of Abraham Lincoln departed Washington, D.C. on April 21, 1865, beginning a long journey to Springfield, Illinois, where the slain president would be buried May 4.
The train traveled through 180 cities across seven states on its 1,654-mile route to Lincoln’s home state. Stops for the procession were announced in advance in newspapers, and at each location, Lincoln’s coffin was removed from the train and placed on a decorated horse-drawn hearse. Funeral processions then carried the casket to public buildings, where thousands gathered to pay their respects.
Large crowds turned out in cities including Columbus, Ohio and Philadelphia, as well as in smaller communities such as Herkimer, New York. In Philadelphia, Lincoln lay in state at Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was signed. Newspaper accounts reported mourners waiting for hours—sometimes more than five—to view the casket.
Known as “The Lincoln Special,” the train bore a portrait of the president mounted on the front of the engine. About 300 people accompanied the procession, including Lincoln’s eldest son, Robert Todd Lincoln.
Also aboard was the coffin of Lincoln’s son, William Wallace Lincoln, who died in 1862 at age 11 from typhoid fever. His remains were exhumed in Washington so he could be buried alongside his father in Springfield.
The train car that carried Lincoln’s body was destroyed in 1911 by a prairie fire near Minneapolis, Minnesota.
