Lincoln MemorialStop on Washington DC National Mall Walking Tour, a free self-guided tour.At the western end of the Mall, the Lincoln Memorial was designed by architect Henry Bacon as a Greek temple. Its 36 columns stand for the 36 states in the Union when Abraham Lincoln died in 1865. Congress authorized it in 1911, construction began in 1914, and it was dedicated on May 30, 1922.The seated statue was designed by Daniel Chester French and carved by the Piccirilli brothers from 28 blocks of Georgia white marble. If Lincoln stood up, he would be about 28 feet tall. On the walls to either side are the full texts of the Gettysburg Address and his Second Inaugural Address.The steps have been a stage for history. In 1939, singer Marian Anderson performed here for 75,000 people after she was barred from a Washington concert hall because she was Black. On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his best-known speech here during the March on Washington; an inscription on the landing marks where he stood.Turn around for the view along the Reflecting Pool to the Washington Monument and the Capitol. Open around the clock.Stops on this tourWashington MonumentNational Museum of African American History and CuNational Museum of American HistorySmithsonian National Museum of Natural HistoryNational Gallery of ArtUnited States CapitolUnited States Botanic GardenNational Museum of the American IndianNational Air and Space MuseumHirshhorn Museum and Sculpture GardenThe Smithsonian Institution Building - The CastleFreer Gallery of ArtJefferson MemorialWorld War II MemorialMartin Luther King Jr. MemorialKorean War MemorialLincoln MemorialVietnam Veterans MemorialWhite House EllipseWhite HouseLafayette Square