Heatwave forces removal of rare documents from Lincoln Memorial undercroft

After being hidden from the public for more than a century, the massive vault beneath the Lincoln Memorial officially opened this summer, revealing the 122 concrete pillars holding up the iconic memorial.

Unveiled within a 15,000-square-foot interactive museum, the space, also known as an undercroft, showcased original copies of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment. 

However, visitors heading to the memorial this month might notice that the multimillion-dollar artifacts are temporarily missing as the National Park Service recently removed them due to preservation concerns amid D.C.'s extreme summer heatwave.

The original documents bear the original signature of President Abraham Lincoln and are worth millions. They were initially original documents given on loan from hedge fund billionaire and philanthropist Kenneth C. Griffin for June 2027, who purchased the documents at an auction last year for $18 million, according to the Washington Post.  

But as of July 15, the original documents have been removed due to concerns that the heat could damage them, with temperatures rising over 80 degrees, which is above the limit to properly preserve archival documents. The removal follows reports from three anonymous National Park Service officials and internal communications reviewed by City Cast DC.

In a statement provided to Just the News and other outlets, the National Park Service confirmed the move, citing environmental conditions from the D.C. heatwave. 

“As the National Park Service continues to manage operations in the newly opened Lincoln Memorial Undercroft and out of an abundance of caution, we have collaborated with the Griffin Catalyst team and the National Park Foundation to temporarily relocate these documents while environmental concerns associated with the heatwave affecting Washington D.C. are addressed,” the NPS said. “Once this work is complete, the documents will be returned.” 

The agency did not give a timeline for when the documents would be returned to the museum.

The copy of the Emancipation Proclamation is one of 27 of the known remaining copies that were printed in 1864 for the Philadelphia fundraising fair, which declares that all enslaved people in Confederate states “are, and henceforward shall be free.” Lincoln signed 48 copies of the document to raise money for wounded Union soldiers and families who lost loved ones during the war. 

The 13th Amendment copy is also rare, being one of only 15 copies like it, and it is signed by 37 senators and 114 members of the House.

Apart from the documents, visitors have said that the best part about going to the Lincoln Undercroft is learning about the structure underneath the memorial. The massive pillars are drilled 50 feet deep into the ground onto solid bedrock to prevent the marble monument from sinking into the soft mud of the Potomac River flats.

Also etched onto the pillars underground are also sketches by workers during construction which took place from 1914 to 1922, including a profile with a woman with curly hair and dark makeup who could be silent-film star Theda Bara, according to the Washington Post. Visitors can view a replica of the sketch during their visit.

Visitors can also learn from interactive experiences of how the Memorial was constructed with stone and marble from across the nation, including how the site served as the backdrop for Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech during the 1963 March on Washington. 

The opening of the $69 million museum ahead of America’s 250th birthday comes with National Parks Services’ focus on preserving America’s landmarks, and efforts to make the city “safe, beautiful and welcoming for visitors from across the country and around the world,” according to the Interior Department’s press release at its opening.

The undercroft reveal has been planned for a decade since 2016, the year that Congress established America250, as a bipartisan nonprofit led by a bipartisan group of lawmakers and citizens. 

Tickets are free with a $1 online service fee for advance reservations, while guests can get same-day tickets in person at the nearby Korean War Veterans Memorial kiosk.