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UPDATE: Lincoln's Repose Commemorated at the Ohio Statehouse
With a Civil War Encampment, Flag and Artifacts
April 19, 2023
 
Ohio Statehouse Civil War Encampment
(Columbus, OH) –The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board (CSRAB) will commemorate the Repose of President Abraham Lincoln in the Ohio Statehouse on Friday, April 28. The day will include Civil War reenactors, a historic 36-star flag, artifacts and a replica coffin. The event is free and open to the public.

UPDATE: Cannon firings are canceled due to rain. All events will be inside the Ohio Statehouse.

In 1865, the funeral train for Abraham Lincoln traveled more than 1,600 miles in 13 days from Washington, D.C. to Springfield, Illinois. The train stopped in Columbus, and Lincoln lay in repose in the Ohio Statehouse on April 29, 1865. An estimated 50,000 people passed through the Rotunda to pay their respects to the fallen President, the “Savior of the Union.”

Artifacts and a large flag from that time will be displayed at the Ohio Statehouse. The Rotunda exhibit includes educational descriptions and a replica coffin. Items from the 1865 funeral train trip will be on loan from the family of General John Curtis Caldwell, including a mourning badge and a lock of Lincoln’s hair.

A giant 36-Star flag that flew over Capitol Square during President Lincoln's 1865 repose will be displayed. The flag originally was presented to David Nevin Murray of Portsmouth, Ohio for his contributions to the war effort on behalf of the Union Army during the American Civil War. Murray’s descendants, the Van Tilburg family, donated the historic flag to the Ohio History Connection.

In conjunction with the Repose of Lincoln, the 1st Ohio Light Artillery, Battery A will hold the 2023 Civil War Encampment inside the Ohio Statehouse. Historical reenactors will demonstrate Civil War life and provide interactive experiences such as meeting soldiers and helping the Ladies’ Aid Society care for the troops. The festivities will also include music and games, inside the Atrium of the Ohio Statehouse.

The Statehouse Museum Shop offers a special one-day Lincoln Sale on April 28, 2023. Lincoln merchandise will be discounted 20% off on the day of the Civil War Encampment and Repose of Lincoln.

The Ohio Statehouse invites the public to remember Civil War history on April 28 with historical reenactors, cannon firings, artifacts and exhibits.

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