On the morning of May 30, 1922 a 78 year old man teetered slowly toward the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. His gait uneven and short. He paused for a moment and stared toward the sculpture at the top of the steps. In the years leading up to this moment he had occasionally ordered his driver to pass by the construction site as the memorial was built. Once he had talked his way onto the site to get a peek at the progress.

Now, the day had finally arrived. The memorial was about to be dedicated before a large gathering of onlookers at the site, and because of the magic of a new invention, the radio, the Lincoln Memorial was being broadcast to the nation.

Abraham Lincoln, rather the sculpture of his likeness, sat stoically and steadfastly on what almost appeared to be a throne. The old man shuffled forward, and with the aid of servicemen on either side, he undertook the work of climbing the stairs. He wanted to get a closer look at the completed work.

It had been 57 years since he’d last seen his father. Today, Robert Todd Lincoln would look on the work of sculptor Daniel French, and see the face of his father once more.

On the evening of May 30, 1942, exactly 22 years to the day of the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial, in a post office in Washington D.C. a postcard is postmarked for delivery to Winfield, KS. On the front of that postcard is the Lincoln Memorial.

Earlier, a Lieutenant JG of the of the United States Navy Reserve by the name of Sheldon Smith, sat down at a typewriter and hammered out a short message to a man by the name of Buddy Cooper. Though the United States was embroiled in some of the heaviest fighting of World War II, his message wasn’t about the war. Sheldon instead relayed a personal experience with some fellow servicemen in D.C. concerning the Lincoln Memorial that graced the front of the postcard.

Dear Buddy, We did have a real thrill the night we drove in front of this building and found the statue lighted by spotlight. Very impressive.

He rotated the platen roller of the typewriter to release the postcard, carefully removed it from its grasp, then took out his blue ink pen and signed the bottom of the card.

Sheldon P. Smith Lt (JG) U.S.N.R

Robert Todd Lincoln didn’t speak at the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial, but he listened intently as Supreme Court Justice and former President of the United States William Howard Taft gave a speech. The current president, Warren G. Harding then stood up and roused the crowd as well. The celebration focused on the unity and equality of the nation that Abraham Lincoln had longed for. Among those in attendance were veterans of the Civil War — former Union and Confederate soldiers sat side by side — no longer enemies at war, but fellow countrymen at peace.

Also in attendance were many African Americans, free from slavery because of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, but still not free in the truest sense of the word. Blacks were given a section, separate from whites to watch the dedication. It would be another 41 years before Martin Luther King’s, I Have A Dream speech would be given on those same steps, with Abraham Lincoln’s stoic and steadfast sculpture looking on.

Afterwards, Robert Todd Lincoln shuffled his way down the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, escorted on either side by the servicemen. No doubt he was feeling a surplus of emotions as he left the festivities of the day. In only four years, he would pass away and be buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

On that night in 1944 when our postcard’s author, Sheldon P. Smith and his fellow servicemen within the Navy Reserve drove by the front of the Lincoln Memorial and marveled at the spectacular sight of Abraham Lincoln’s statue illuminated by a spotlight, I can’t help but wonder if they knew Robert Todd Lincoln was buried nearby. Because if they had known, they could have stopped at Robert Todd Lincoln’s grave, looked across the park, and had “a real thrill” — as they looked on at Abraham Lincoln’s memorial, within view of his oldest son’s grave.