Lincoln Memorial Timeline

The Lincoln Memorial has been depicted on the reverse of the United States five-dollar bill since 1929.

Frank Capra's 1939 film Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is among many films featuring the Memorial; by 2003 it had appeared in over 60 films that take place in Washington, D.C.

From 1959, marking the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's birth, the memorial with its statue visible through the columns was depicted on the reverse of the United States one-cent coin, which since 1909 has depicted a bust of Lincoln on its front.

Image source: Lincoln cent

The Lincoln Memorial was ranked seventh on the American Institute of Architects' 2007 list of America's Favorite Architecture.

Image source: America's Favorite Architecture

In 1939, the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow African-American contralto Marian Anderson to perform before an integrated audience at the organization's Constitution Hall, leading to a famous alternative concert at the Lincoln Memorial.

Image source: Marian Anderson

On June 29, 1947, Harry Truman became the first president to address the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), speaking at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Image source: Harry S. Truman

On August 28, 1963, the memorial grounds were the site of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a high point of the American Civil Rights Movement.

Image source: March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech was delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963, during the rally at the end of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

Image source: I Have a Dream

At the memorial on May 9, 1970, President Richard Nixon held a middle-of-the-night impromptu, brief meeting with protesters who, just days after the Kent State shootings, were preparing to march against the Vietnam War.

Image source: Richard Nixon

On August 28, 1983, crowds gathered again at the memorial to mark the 20th Anniversary Mobilization for Jobs, Peace and Freedom, reflecting on progress in gaining civil rights for African Americans and committing to correcting continuing injustices.

King's speech is such a part of the Lincoln Memorial story that the spot on which he stood, on the landing eighteen steps below Lincoln's statue, was engraved in 2003 in recognition of the 40th anniversary of the event.

The Lincoln Memorial has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since October 15, 1966.

Image source: National Register of Historic Places

Guided tours of the memorial's undercroft stopped abruptly in 1989 after a visitor noticed asbestos in the space beneath the memorial and notified the National Park Service.

As of 2017, according to the National Park Service, filming and photography are prohibited above the white marble steps and the interior chamber of the Lincoln Memorial.

For the memorial's centennial in 2022, the undercroft was planned to be opened to visitors following a rehabilitation project funded by philanthropist David Rubenstein.

Work started in 2023 on the $69 million project to rehabilitate and open the undercroft beneath the Lincoln Memorial, with expected completion by 2026.

As of 2024, the plan calls for six floor-to-ceiling glass walls providing views of the cathedral-like interior of the undercroft, and an immersive theater presentation projecting images of historic events onto screens and the undercroft's pillars.

The Lincoln Memorial Undercroft museum opened to the public on June 25, 2026, giving visitors access to the historic foundation space beneath the memorial.