With yesterday being the 4th of July and continuing with our years' exploration of American Historical Sites , we decided to go visit Grant's Tomb. Ulysses S. Grant's tomb to be specific. We packed a picnic lunch consisting of chicken salad, grapes and water and set off on the hour long commute. We got off the subway on the Columbia University stop and got to walk through campus on our way there. The buildings were very posh and formal, you could tell that they belonged to an Ivy League University. When I was looking up Columbia University online, I found out that it is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States and was founded in 1754. I took a couple pictures, but neither of them were worth sharing.
We passed Riverside Cathedral, which is located kitty-corner to Grant's Tomb. We could see its spire from blocks away, and it only got more beautiful the closer we came. It is the tallest church in the U.S.
We wanted to take a peek inside, but all the doors where closed and locked. I loved the detail of the doors. The handle was really heavy. Maybe we'll have to plan another visit so we can see its stained glass windows.
Grant's Tomb is so cool, and big! It's official name is the General Grant National Memorial, but everyone just calls it Grant's Tomb.
The inscription between the two figures above the columns reads "Let there be peace." Apparently those words comprise the last sentence of his inauguration acceptance letter when he was elected for the second time in 1868. Very fitting for a nation healing from a civil war with over 620,000 casualties.
I loved the stone eagles located on each end of the stairs. There are four stars carved into the stone below each eagle to signal Grant's four-star general status. He was actually the first four-star general in the United States.
We walked in the front doors to find ourselves in a large, open, dim room. It was very quite and much cooler than the air outside. We looked up to see the beautiful, detailed domed of the ceiling.
There is a painting on the wall you face as you walk in, located just below the dome. It depicts General Grant shaking hands with General Lee. I really like it. There were two other paintings depicting him in other Civil War scenes, one on each wall to the right and left.
In the center of the room is a circular, stone railing with an open center. This circle lines up perfectly with the perimeter of the dome in the ceiling.
When you walk up to the circular opening and peer down inside of it you can see the sarcophagus' of General Grant and his wife. He died from throat cancer on July 23, 1885 and was temporarily entombed in a site just north of his present location. After construction of this memorial tomb was finished, his body was moved and entombed here 9 years later on the 75th anniversary of his birth, April 27, 1897. His wife, Julia D. Grant, was entombed beside him after her death in 1902.
Back on the main level of the tomb, we visited the two small alcoves located on either side of the room. The wall in each room contained map showing a portion of the eastern United States. The locations and names of the battles of the civil war were marked on the map and a star was present at each location that Grant was personally involved in. We found Gettysburg, which was way up north. In the center of each room was a circular, glass case containing the regimental flags of the various units he was attached to throughout his military career.
We headed to the visitors center next. They had some merchandise on display, of which we picked up a Christmas ornament. Our collection is growing!
They also had some small displays of replica clothing and flags along with pictures of General Grant.
We learned quite a bit at the visitors center. Outside of his military career and the presidency, he never found success doing anything else. His father sent him to United States Military Academy at West Point to get an education and to become a professional soldier. While there he adopted the name Ulysses Simpson Grant, or Ulysses S. Grant. He fought in the Mexican-American War with some of the other key military leaders involved in the Civil War, some who he fought with and others he fought against. He dictated terms of surrender to General Lee at the end of the Civil War. The terms involved the southern soldiers to lay down their weapons and return to their homes where they wouldn't be troubled by the Federal Government as long as they followed the laws of the United States. The Confederate officers were allowed to keep there firearms on condition that they wouldn't use them on any Union men and they were allowed to take their horses with them. After the surrender, the Union troops started cheering, but General Grant stopped them, saying that the Confederates were now there countrymen and their loss wasn't something to gloat over.
While President, he signed an act to create the first national park, Yellowstone, on March 1, 1872. He fought for the rights of African Americans, and pushed through the 15th amendment which gave the right to vote to African American males.
We ate our picnic lunch on some benches outside the Memorial. It was such a great day. Not only did we get to see a new site, but we got to learn about history, enjoy the beautiful weather and spend time with each other.
That night we went up on the roof of our apartment building and watched the various firework shows being put on. We saw fireworks going of in whatever direction we looked. It was great. We also got to watch the Empire State Building, with its new fancy lighting system, put on a fantastic light show. It swirled and flashed red, white and blue stripes like nobody's business. A very cool sight indeed. It was the perfect end to a wonderful day.
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