Grant's Tomb
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Grant's Tomb, officially the General Grant National Memorial, is the final resting place of Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the United States, and of his wife Julia. It is a classical domed mausoleum in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The structure is in the median of Riverside Drive at 122nd Street, just east of to Riverside Park. In addition to being a national memorial since 1958, Grant's Tomb is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and its facade and interior are New York City designated landmarks.
Upon Grant's death in July 1885, his widow indicated his wish to be interred in New York. Within days, a site in Riverside Park was selected, and the Grant Monument Association (GMA) was established to appeal for funds. Although the GMA raised $100,000 in its first three months, the group only raised an additional $55,000 in the next five years. After two architectural competitions in 1889 and 1890, the GMA selected a proposal by John Hemenway Duncan for a tomb modeled after the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. Following a renewed fundraising campaign, the cornerstone was laid in 1892, and the tomb was completed on April 27, 1897, Grant's 75th birthday.
Initially, the GMA managed the tomb with a $7,000 annual appropriation from the city. The tomb was extensively renovated in the late 1930s with help from Works Progress Administration workers, who added murals and restored the interior. The National Park Service took over the operation of Grant's Tomb in 1959. After a period of neglect and vandalism, the tomb was restored in the 1990s following a campaign led by college student Frank Scaturro. Despite various modifications over the years, some portions of the monument were never completed, including a planned equestrian statue outside the tomb.
The mausoleum's base is shaped like a rectangle with colonnades on three sides and a portico in front, on the south side. The upper section consists of a cylindrical shaft with a colonnade, as well as a stepped dome. Inside, the main level of the memorial is shaped like a Greek cross, with four barrel-vaulted exhibition spaces extending off a domed central area. The Grants' bodies are placed in red-granite sarcophagi above ground in a lower-level crypt. Over the years, the design of Grant's Tomb has received mixed commentary, and the tomb has been depicted in several films.
Context and planning
Ulysses S. Grant was born in 1822<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and led the Union Army to victory during the American Civil War,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="NYCL p. 1">Template:Harvnb</ref> then served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Grant was bankrupt at the end of his life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Days after Grant published his memoirs to raise money, he died of throat cancer at age 63 in Wilton, New York, on July 23, 1885.<ref name="nyt-2004-07-11">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 5">Template:Harvnb</ref> The American public still held Grant in high regard when he died:<ref name="Kahn p. 212">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone pp. 45–46">Template:Harvnb</ref> his empty casket drew 15,000 mourners on July 26,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and Americans and foreigners alike wrote thousands of letters expressing their condolences.<ref name="Picone pp. 45–46" />
In his will, Grant had indicated that he wished to be interred in St. Louis, Missouri, or Galena, Illinois, where his family owned plots in local cemeteries, or in New York City, where he had lived in his final years.<ref name="Kahn p. 212" /> His friend, publisher George William Childs, said the president had previously expressed a desire to be buried at the Old Soldier's Home in Washington, D.C., or at West Point.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Ulysses wanted his wife Julia to eventually be interred next to him; this eliminated military cemeteries and installations such as West Point, as they did not permit women to be interred.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 5" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Grant family decided against burying him at Galena because that site was not easily accessible,<ref name="NYCL p. 1" /> and other sites in Springfield, Illinois, and Troy, New York, were also rejected.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
Creation of Grant Monument Association
After Grant died, there were many calls for a monument honoring him.<ref name="Picone p. 79">Template:Harvnb</ref> On the same day as Ulysses's death, William Russell Grace, the mayor of New York City, sent a telegram to Julia offering New York City as the burial ground for both Grants.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 5" /><ref name="Picone p. 49">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Grace gave Julia a list of city parks where her husband could be buried,<ref name="nyt-2004-07-11" /><ref name="Kahn p. 212" /> and she agreed to have Ulysses's remains interred in New York City.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 28">Template:Harvnb</ref> Grace wrote a letter to prominent New Yorkers on July 24, 1885, to gather support for a national monument in Grant's honor:<ref name="Picone p. 79" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 28" />
The preliminary meeting was attended by 85 New Yorkers who established the Committee on Organization.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 29">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 80">Template:Harvnb</ref> Twenty of the attendees created an executive committee, which was to make decisions on the group's behalf.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> On July 29, the Committee on Organization was incorporated as the Grant Monument Association (GMA).<ref name="The New York Times 1885">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Its chairman was Chester A. Arthur, the 21st U.S. president, and its secretary was Richard Theodore Greener, the first black alumnus of Harvard College. In addition, mayor Grace and former U.S. secretary of state Hamilton Fish were named as vice chairmen, as was financier J. P. Morgan of Drexel, Morgan & Co.<ref name="Kahn p. 212" /><ref name="The New York Times 1885" /><ref name="Picone p. 81">Template:Harvnb</ref> The association had "between 100 and 150" members in total, including numerous sitting and retired politicians.<ref name="Picone p. 81" /> The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York allowed the GMA to use an office in one of its buildings.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 30; Picone p. 83">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn
Site selection and temporary tomb
City officials initially planned to bury Ulysses in Central Park,<ref name="Picone p. 49" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Grant family examined three sites in the park.<ref name="Picone p. 50">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn The general public greatly opposed the plans,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the Grant family believed the sites in Central Park were too small to fit both Ulysses and Julia.<ref name="Picone p. 50" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The family then considered another site in Riverside Park on Manhattan's Upper West Side; though the site was undeveloped, many local businessmen and politicians endorsed the park as the Grants' burial site.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> On July 28, city officials decided to bury Ulysses in Riverside Park after his family agreed to the change.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Riverside Park site was perched atop a bluff.<ref name="NYCL p. 1" />
The day after the Grant family decided on the site, Jacob Wrey Mould designed a temporary tomb.<ref name="The New York Times 1885a">Template:Cite news</ref> The structure was rectangular in plan, with a door and a Christian cross facing the Hudson River.<ref name="The Sun 1885">Template:Cite news</ref> It was enclosed by brick walls and a barrel-vaulted roof.<ref name="The New York Times 1885a" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Grant's coffin was to be placed slightly below ground level, and a semicircular driveway was built around the tomb.<ref name="The Sun 1885" /> Work on the temporary tomb began on July 29<ref name="The New York Times 1885a" /><ref name="The Sun 1885" /> and took nine days to complete.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Grant was interred on August 8,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> following a funeral that attracted up to 1.5 million mourners.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The temporary tomb briefly became one of the city's most popular sites, with an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 visitors on August 16 alone.<ref name="Picone p. 87">Template:Harvnb</ref> Benches were installed in the area, and guidebooks were sold to visitors.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Thirty soldiers were stationed outside the tomb, which was nicknamed "Camp Grant".<ref name="Picone p. 90">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Many passersby tried to obtain pieces of the tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 90" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The public continued to visit and leave mementos during late 1885.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The site of the permanent tomb had yet to be finalized when Grant was interred.<ref name="The Post-Star 1885">Template:Cite news</ref> The city's park commissioners had tentatively decided to place the tomb in Riverside Park between 122nd and 127th Streets, but Frederick Law Olmsted, who had co-designed Riverside Park with Calvert Vaux, was unenthusiastic about this plan.<ref name="The Post-Star 1885" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> By mid-August, the city's park commissioners had asked Vaux and engineer William Barclay Parsons to determine the boundaries of a permanent memorial site for Grant's tomb.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Officials also planned to construct a road north of the tomb to separate it from the rest of Riverside Park.<ref name="The Post-Star 1885" /> The park commissioners set aside a Template:Convert site on Riverside Drive, between 121st and 124th Streets, for the monument in October 1885.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The tomb had spurred real estate development in the area,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the Manhattan Railway Company had proposed constructing an elevated line to the tomb by the end of 1886.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Some members of the public claimed the relatively remote site had been selected only to attract tourists and encourage real estate development,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> although the surrounding area was built up in the 1890s.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
Fundraising
Initial efforts and opposition
The Grant Monument Association did not originally announce the function or structure of the monument, but the idea drew public support nonetheless.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 29" /> The New-York Tribune had suggested the idea of a permanent monument on July 26, three days after he died.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 43">Template:Harvnb</ref> On July 29, the day the GMA was established, Western Union donated $5,000 to the association's fund.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 29" /><ref name="The New York Times 1885" /><ref name="Picone p. 81" /> The GMA continued to receive large and small donations,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 31">Template:Harvnb</ref> and the fund surpassed $50,000 in less than a month.<ref name="Picone p. 87" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At a membership meeting on August 20, the committee set a fundraising goal of $1 million (equivalent to $Template:Inflation million in Template:Inflation/year),<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> spurred by a suggestion from former governor Alonzo B. Cornell.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 31" /> Funding came from such sources as private companies<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and benefit concerts.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Fundraising had slowed down by the end of August 1885,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> in part because of the GMA members' lackadaisical attitude, as well as the existence of a competing association with the same name in Illinois.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
Although there was great enthusiasm for a monument to Grant, early fundraising efforts were stifled by growing negative public opinion expressed by out-of-state press.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 33; Picone p. 96">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The opposition was vocal in the view that the monument should be in Washington, D.C.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 33; Picone p. 96" /> Grace tried to calm the controversy by publicly releasing Julia's justification for the Riverside Park site as the resting place for her husband in October 1885.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1885">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Picone p. 98">Template:Harvnb</ref> Even though many major newspapers published Julia's statement, this failed to boost fundraising.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
There was also discontent with the management of the GMA, whose members were among the city's wealthiest but made comparatively small donations.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 35" /> The New York Times characterized the members as "sitting quietly in an office and signing receipts for money voluntarily tendered".<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 35">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Furthermore, the GMA still had no definite plan for the monument, which frustrated and discouraged donors.<ref name="Picone p. 101">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Joan Waugh wrote in her book, U.S. Grant: American Hero, American Myth: "Why should citizens give money to build a monument whose shape was still a mystery?"<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Many of the GMA's members also had responsibilities of their own and could not devote their full attention to the project. Ten of the GMA's executive meetings were canceled in four months because there were not enough members to form a quorum.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The GMA had raised $100,000 by November,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Picone p. 101" /> and the fund totaled $111,000 by the end of the year,<ref name="Picone p. 101" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 38">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> following lackluster fundraising efforts that netted as little as $1.50 on some days.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
Slowdown in fundraising
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A bill was proposed in the United States Congress in January 1886, which would have provided $500,000 for the project<ref name="Picone p. 103">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 39">Template:Harvnb</ref> (later reduced to $250,000).<ref name="The New York Times 1886" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1886" /> This allocation would have been provided after the GMA had independently raised $250,000, but the bill failed because it did not receive unanimous consent.<ref name="Picone p. 103" /> By February 1886, the fund had raised $115,000, much less than the $500,000 that the association had expected by that time.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A new Grant Monument Association was legally incorporated that month,<ref name="Picone p. 102">Template:Harvnb</ref> with 29 trustees and four politicians who were ex officio members.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 38" /> The reorganized GMA held its first meeting in March, superseding the old association,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and had raised either $123,000<ref name="The New York Times 1886">Template:Cite news</ref> or $129,000 by the first anniversary of Grant's death.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1886">Template:Cite news</ref> Despite uncertainty over the permanent tomb's fate, the temporary tomb hosted events such as a Memorial Day ceremony in May 1886.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 103" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
U.S. troops continued to patrol Grant's tomb until June 1886, when city park police began patrolling the tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 102" /> Although the presence of Grant's temporary tomb had attracted visitors to Riverside Park,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the number of visitors to the tomb had tapered off by the middle of that year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The fund continued to receive small donations from such sources as a benefit concert at the Metropolitan Opera House and the Nickel Fund Association of Montclair, New Jersey.<ref name="Picone pp. 104–105">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 40–41">Template:Harvnb</ref> Julia donated $987.50,<ref name="Picone pp. 104–105" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 40–41" /> while a puzzle contest at the end of 1886 raised another $1,000.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 40–41" /><ref name="Picone p. 107">Template:Harvnb</ref> The fund had raised only $10,000 during the entire 1886–1887 fiscal year,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 39" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and it raised the same amount during the following fiscal year.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 39" /><ref name="Picone p. 107" /> By the late 1880s, some trustees had resigned because of frustration over the fund,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 39" /> and the Grant family was considering interring the former president somewhere else.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
Design and construction
Unsolicited plans
As fundraising slowed down, people began to lose confidence in the Grant Monument Association,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and members of the public offered their own proposals for the memorial.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 43" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> American Architect and Building News hosted a design competition in late 1885,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> although some members of the public erroneously thought the competition was an official one.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Although the American Institute of Architects (AIA) recommended that the GMA host a formal architectural design competition, the association ignored this advice<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 47–48">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 115">Template:Harvnb</ref> and did not contact other groups that had built similar monuments.<ref name="Picone p. 115" /> Instead, in October 1885, the GMA started requesting proposals from "artists, architects, and all others".<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 47–48" /> Richard Greener had drafted plans for a design competition with a $400,000 budget, but the invitations never went out. Although the GMA promised in January 1886 to select a design "at once", this did not happen.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 116">Template:Harvnb</ref>
The association continued to receive proposals through 1886.<ref name="Picone p. 116" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 48–49">Template:Harvnb</ref> According to historian David Kahn, one plan by Calvert Vaux was "so complicated that written descriptions give little idea of what it was actually intended to look like", while The New York Times said another plan would "frighten people ... completely away from the fund".<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 48–49" /> By November 1886, the GMA was planning to erect a permanent memorial.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Within a few months, the GMA had received "a number of designs, sketches and suggestions" from across America and Europe,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1887">Template:Cite news</ref> with 14 plans being submitted by February 1887.<ref name="Scientific American Building Edition 1887">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Among the plans the association received were those by American sculptor William Wetmore Story,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1887" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 49">Template:Harvnb</ref> German sculptor Joseph Echteler,<ref name="Scientific American Building Edition 1887" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 49" /> and architect George Matthias.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 49" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Greener began writing to other groups, such as the Garfield National Monument Association, for advice in early 1887, and he hired Napoleon LeBrun as consulting architect.<ref name="Picone p. 116" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 49" />
Design competitions
First design competition
In June 1887, the GMA formally announced a design competition for the memorial,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 49–50; Picone pp. 116–117">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> with a deadline of October 31.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 49–50; Picone pp. 116–117" /><ref name="The Voice 1887" /> Under the terms of the competition, the memorial was to be made in bronze, marble, granite, or "other appropriate material".<ref name="The Voice 1887">Template:Cite news</ref> The GMA did not respond to several requests for clarification,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 50">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 117">Template:Harvnb</ref> and some days after the deadline, Greener claimed that "no time line had ever been fixed".<ref name="Picone p. 117" /> The editorial team of The New York Times contrasted the GMA's inefficiency against the rapid development of the nearby Cathedral of St. John the Divine.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 50" />
On February 4, 1888, after a year's delay, the GMA publicly announced a design competition with a budget of $500,000, although the budget could be increased if necessary.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 51; Picone pp. 117–118">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The Sun 1888">Template:Cite news</ref> As was common practice at the time,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> architects were requested to submit their proposals anonymously; the five best plans would receive cash prizes.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 51; Picone pp. 117–118" /><ref name="The Sun 1888" /> The AIA objected to the rules of the competition;<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 52; Picone p. 118">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> the GMA ignored both the AIA's complaints and those of other architectural associations, though it changed the rules slightly.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 52; Picone p. 118" /> After many of the competitors requested extra time for their designs,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 53–54; Picone p. 119">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> the original deadline of November 1, 1888,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> was rescheduled twice to January 10, 1889.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 53–54; Picone p. 119" /> The GMA had raised $130,000 at the time of the competition.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="St. Louis Post – Dispatch 1889">Template:Cite news</ref>
The first competition received 65 entries, of which 42 came from outside the United States.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 54">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 124">Template:Harvnb</ref> Some of the plans had been submitted to the American Architect and Building News three years earlier,<ref name="Picone p. 124" /> and about one-third of these entries had intact drawings or illustrations by the late 20th century.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 54" /> A panel of six judges selected five winners in April 1889.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 55">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The winning plan, by Cluss & Schulze of Washington, D.C.,<ref name="The Sun 1890">Template:Cite news</ref> called for a mausoleum measuring about Template:Convert across at its base, with a pinnacle measuring Template:Convert high.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 56–57">Template:Harvnb</ref> An equestrian statue of Grant was to be placed in front of the shaft.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 56–57" /> Though the judges gave out five awards, they did not recommend any of these entries,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 55" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and many major newspapers, including the Times, derided the plans.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 60; Picone p. 127">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The Weekly Mail and Express donated $10,000 at the end of 1889, increasing the fund to $140,000,<ref name="St. Louis Post – Dispatch 1889" /> and the GMA distributed awards for the competition in February 1890.<ref name="The Sun 1890" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 60; Picone p. 127" />
Second design competition
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The failure of the first competition damaged the GMA's reputation further.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 63; Picone p. 127">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The Grand Army of the Republic had proposed a competing plan for a temple on the site,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and many out-of-state supported the idea of moving Grant's remains to Arlington National Cemetery.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The judges for the first competition had recommended in December 1889 that qualified architects be invited to compete in a second competition with more specific rules,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and Adolph L. Sanger of the GMA announced at the end of March 1890 that the association would launch a second competition.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 63; Picone p. 127" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At the beginning of April, the GMA formally sent out letters to potential competitors.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 65; Picone pp. 128–129" /> John H. Duncan, Carrère & Hastings, Charles W. Clinton, John Ord, and Napoleon LeBrun were selected to participate.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 65; Picone pp. 128–129">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="NY1900">Template:Cite NY1900</ref> Each contestant was required to design a tall monument with space for a memorial hall and for Ulysses and Julia Grant's coffins.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 65; Picone pp. 128–129" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In addition, the plans could not cost more than $500,000.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
A bill was introduced in Congress in May 1890, which would provide $250,000 for the monument if the GMA raised $200,000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The same month, the GMA opened a gift shop next to the temporary tomb.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Though few details of the second competition were publicly announced, numerous architects attempted to compete anyway.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The five competitors wanted the deadline to be extended from July to October,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> but the GMA only gave each competitor until September 1,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 66; Picone p. 131">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> as the United States Senate had passed a resolution in August to move Grant's remains to Arlington.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 66; Picone p. 131" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Each architect was invited to explain his plan in front of the GMA's executive committee;<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> the designs varied in complexity.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> On September 9, 1890, the GMA awarded the commission to Duncan,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The World 1890">Template:Cite news</ref> who estimated his design would cost between $496,000 and $900,000.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Duncan wrote that he wanted "to produce a monumental structure that should be unmistakably a tomb of military character" and that he wanted to avoid "resemblance of a habitable dwelling".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Duncan's plans called for a square base, a cylindrical shaft, and a pyramidal dome, with a portico in the front and an apse in the rear.<ref name="The New York Times 2023 v586">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="The Standard Union 1890">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn The runners-up each received $500 checks.<ref name="The World 1890" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
That October, the GMA signed a contract with Duncan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Although there were continued efforts to relocate Grant's remains to Arlington,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> the House of Representatives voted down the Senate's resolution in December 1890.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 92–93; Picone pp. 139–140">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> While representatives from other states favored relocating the president's remains, New York representatives, including Roswell P. Flower and John Raines, were opposed.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 92–93; Picone pp. 139–140" /> The GMA had raised only about $150,000 by the start of 1891; the previous four years had netted just $40,000.<ref name="Picone pp. 140–141">Template:Harvnb</ref> All "nonessential" design elements, including a $54,000 approach from the Hudson River, were removed from the plans to save money.<ref name="Picone pp. 140–141" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 96">Template:Harvnb</ref> Although the GMA's members had assumed that the permanent tomb would be built on the same site as the temporary tomb, the city's park commissioners favored a site slightly to the east, within Claremont Park.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 96" />
Construction
Foundation and fundraising
A groundbreaking ceremony was hosted on April 27, 1891, on what would have been Grant's 69th birthday,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> despite confusion over the site.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The next week, the GMA awarded a $18,875 contract to John T. Brady for the foundation's construction,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 96–97; Picone p. 144">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The Evening World 1891">Template:Cite news</ref> and Cornelius Vanderbilt II established a second fund for the Grant Monument.<ref name="The Evening World 1891" /> Brady signed a contract for the northern half of the foundation on June 10,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 96–97; Picone p. 144" /> and excavations for the foundation began shortly thereafter.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 98">Template:Harvnb</ref> The park commissioners and GMA also agreed to build the permanent tomb on the temporary site.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Duncan continued to refine and simplify his design through July.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> After preliminary excavations were completed in August 1891, Brady started constructing the foundation.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 99" /> That October, Brady received a contract for the southern half of the foundation,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 99" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the vault holding Grant's coffin was relocated.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 99">Template:Harvnb</ref> Over the next month, Brady carefully lifted the vault onto the new concrete foundation.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 99" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Meanwhile, the GMA was embroiled in internal disputes over leadership, prompting the resignation of its fourth president William H. GraceTemplate:Efn<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and several trustees in late 1891.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 103">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone pp. 147–148">Template:Harvnb</ref> Grant's friend Horace Porter took over the organization in early 1892<ref name="The Evening World 1892" /> and served in that position for 27 years.<ref name="Picone p. 163">Template:Harvnb</ref> Porter soon moved the organization's headquarters,Template:Efn tripled the number of trustees to 100, and discontinued trustees' salaries.<ref name="Picone pp. 147–148" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 104">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The Evening World 1892">Template:Cite news</ref> The New York State Legislature did not approve a proposal to rename the organization to the Grant Tomb and Monument Association due to a clerical error.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 104" /> The foundations were completed in March.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The same month, Brady received a contract to erect the lowest part of the facade<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 101" /><ref name="The Buffalo Commercial 1892">Template:Cite news</ref> with granite from the Union Granite Company's quarries.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 101">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The GMA's new leadership asked Duncan to downsize the monument to save money.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Porter also tried to convince the state legislature to give $500,000 for the monument,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 105; Picone p. 151">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> but the bill was withdrawn after legislators requested a 10% kickback.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 105; Picone p. 151" />
The GMA's funds had stalled at $155,000,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1892" /> so Porter enlisted businessman Edward F. Cragin to raise money<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 107–108; Picone pp. 154–1552">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and announced plans on March 22 to raise another $350,000 in four weeks.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1892">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The group reached out to various businesses and trades across the city.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1897">Template:Cite news</ref> The campaign began nine days later,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 107–108; Picone pp. 154–1552" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> raising funds through newspaper advertisements and public donation boxes, as well as from 185 committees.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 107–108; Picone pp. 154–1552" /> Mayor Hugh J. Grant (who was unrelated to the Grants) encouraged everyone to give to the fund on April 8.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> U.S. president Benjamin Harrison laid the permanent cornerstone on April 27, 1892,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> at which point the campaign had raised $202,800.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Another attempt to obtain $250,000 from Congress failed in late May 1892.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 112; Picone p. 161">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The total fund exceeded $500,000 by the end of May, more than enough for the entire project; the GMA had raised $350,000 in these two months.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 112; Picone p. 161" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The vast majority of the money came from New Yorkers,<ref name="Picone p. 161" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the fundraiser had incurred less than $18,000 in expenses.<ref name="Picone p. 161">Template:Harvnb</ref> Fundraising continued through early 1893, at which point $600,000 had been raised from over 90,000 individual donors, making it the world's largest fundraiser ever at the time.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>
Progress and completion
The temporary tomb was relocated Template:Convert north in May 1892, allowing visitors to see the tomb without disrupting work.<ref name="Picone p. 1622">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A stonecutters' strike in New England delayed construction for much of that year,<ref name="Picone p. 1622" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 120">Template:Harvnb</ref> lasting six months.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Duncan and Porter began acquiring Template:Convert of granite from New England,<ref name="Picone p. 1622" /> and Brady was awarded a $104,482 contract to construct the rest of the structure in early 1893.<ref name="Picone p. 163" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 120" /> At their annual meeting that February, the GMA's trustees awarded a granite contract to the Maine and New Hampshire Granite Company, with a completion date of late 1895.<ref name="Picone p. 163" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The company was ready to deliver granite for the superstructure by June 1893.<ref name="Picone p. 164">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 120–121">Template:Harvnb</ref> However, Brady could not accept the granite because the monument's water table needed to be fixed.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 120–121" /> In response to a media inquiry that October, Duncan blamed the contractors for the delays.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By the end of 1893, the water table was the only completed above-ground portion of the tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 164" /><ref name="The World 1894">Template:Cite news</ref>
At the GMA's 1894 annual meeting, the trustees changed the completion date to early 1896.<ref name="The World 1894" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 121; Picone pp. 164–165">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Trains began delivering granite to the site in May 1894.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 121; Picone pp. 164–165" /> After finding that some of the stone had coal-dust stains, Duncan threatened to reject any granite that was stained,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 121; Picone pp. 164–165" /> and he returned any stones with stains greater than Template:Cvt in diameter.<ref name="The Buffalo Enquirer 1895">Template:Cite news</ref> The monument had been built to a height of Template:Convert by December 1894, when work was paused due to cold weather.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 121; Picone pp. 164–165" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Further slowdowns occurred in early 1895 due to delays in delivering granite and disputes over smoke from a construction hoist.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The base had topped out by that May, and the monument had reached Template:Cvt when work was paused at the end of the year.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Duncan had also begun soliciting estimates for interior work.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 123–124; Picone pp. 169–170">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>
The GMA reported at its 1896 meeting that the completion date had been changed to early 1897.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Although a dedication was supposed to occur on April 25, before the tomb was even complete,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> one newspaper reported that "not a flower was to be seen" on Grant's birthday two days later.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Work on the steel frame of the monument's roof had resumed in early 1896, and the roof was completed by the middle of that year,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 122; Picone pp. 168–169">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> with the scaffolding being removed in July.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Department of Parks announced plans that August to spend $120,000 on terraces and paths around the monument,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 131–132" /> although the department did not approve several other proposals for the area, which included a system of boulevards leading to the monument.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 131–132">Template:Harvnb</ref> The stonework on the facade was completed the next month.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 122; Picone pp. 168–169" /> Brady received the contract for the interior work. Although there was originally supposed to be one sarcophagus for both Grants, this was changed to two sarcophagi before the monument was finished.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 123–124; Picone pp. 169–170" /> The red granite for Grant's sarcophagus was delivered in March 1897.<ref name="Picone p. 171">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The front doors were installed on April 12, marking the completion of all work.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>
Use as monument
Opening
The New York City Board of Estimate budgeted $50,000 in 1896 just for the monument's opening ceremony.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Grant's remains were transferred to the sarcophagus on April 17, 1897, and placed in the mausoleum.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Brady was awarded a $20,250 contract to build a temporary triumphal arch and a grandstand for the ceremony.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> On April 25, two days before the dedication, the tomb had an estimated 200,000 visitors.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The state legislature had declared the day of the dedication, April 27, 1897, as a state holiday in four New York City-area counties.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The dedication marked what would have been Grant's 75th birthday.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Austin Daily Statesman 1897">Template:Cite news</ref> Despite inclement weather,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 140">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> the dedication drew an estimated one million spectators,<ref name="New York Amsterdam News 1997">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 140" /> as well as more than 50,000 marchers who paraded to the tomb from Madison Square Park Template:Convert to the south.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 140" /><ref name="Austin Daily Statesman 1897" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
The grandstand was disassembled after the ceremony, although the temporary arch remained for another month.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 141–142">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Picone p. 188">Template:Harvnb</ref> Bricks from the temporary tomb were sent to Grand Army posts across the U.S.;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> other members of the public also requested the temporary tomb's bricks but were denied.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> To avoid stampedes, the tomb was closed to the public until the day after the dedication, when between ten and fifteen thousand people entered the monument.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 141–142" /> Policemen were stationed outside the monument to direct crowds,<ref name="Picone p. 188" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> although a 24-hour patrol of Grant's Tomb was withdrawn shortly after the monument opened.<ref name="Picone p. 190" /> Chinese diplomat Yang Yü planted a ginkgo biloba tree next to the tomb in May 1897, honoring Grant on behalf of Li Hongzhang.<ref name="Picone p. 188" /><ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A memorial tablet was placed near the tree that September.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
GMA operation
The New York City government initially did not provide any appropriation for the tomb's maintenance.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In November 1897, the Department of Parks agreed to pay the GMA $7,000 annually to maintain the monument for 11 years.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 145; Picone p. 190">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> George D. Burnside, who had been a foreman during the monument's construction,<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1844">Template:Cite news</ref> was hired as the first curator,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> serving for nearly five decades.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1844" /> Julia's sarcophagus was placed in the tomb in January 1898.<ref name="The Buffalo News 1898">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The monument's policies included a loud-talking ban and a requirement that men take off their hats. Grant's Tomb attracted 560,000 visitors in its first eight months, and it consistently recorded at least 500,000 annual visitors over the next few years. Most visitors arrived to the site by either elevated railway, carriage, bicycle, or boat, although some traveled there on foot.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The Grand Army of the Republic hosted annual ceremonies at the tomb on Grant's birthday and on Memorial Day until 1929.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>
1900s to mid-1920s
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Most visitors in the early 20th century generally adhered to the monument's strict rules. Some visitors talked loudly, loitered, vandalized, or roller-skated on the steps, and there were also "relic hunters" who took pieces of the monument.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The New York City Board of Estimate provided $300,000 in early 1901 for "general improvements" to the area around Grant's Tomb.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Julia died on December 14, 1902,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 192">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and she was placed in her sarcophagus the week afterward.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 192" /> The Grant family also donated to the GMA several thousand letters that Ulysses had written,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 192" /> and battle flags were placed in the reliquary rooms at the tomb's northwest and northeast corners in 1903.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150">Template:Harvnb</ref> The GMA requested in early 1904 that the state fund a heating plant in the tomb.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The monument had also started to leak, causing the plaster to flake off.<ref name="Picone p. 190">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="New-York Tribune 1904" /> As such, in late 1904, workers coated the interior with paraffin wax to reduce leaks;<ref name="New-York Tribune 1904">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the work was completed the next year.<ref name="Picone p. 190" />
In its early years, Grant's Tomb attracted more visitors than the Statue of Liberty did,<ref name="McShane 1993">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Frankel 1994">Template:Cite news</ref> with around 600,000 visitors in 1906.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The monument also attracted many foreign delegations, as well as ceremonies and demonstrations.<ref name="Picone p. 196">Template:Harvnb</ref> The city renewed its contract with the GMA in 1908 for 21 years, continuing to pay the association $7,000 annually.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 145; Picone p. 190" /> The next year, three policemen were temporarily stationed outside the tomb to deter vandals.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A pavilion with restrooms was erected to the west of Grant's Tomb in 1910 at a cost of $45,000, replacing a temporary wooden structure there.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 197">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> A set of Japanese cherry trees were planted behind the tomb in 1912.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The same year, Duncan recommended "urgent" repairs to the tomb and surrounding pavement, as he believed the foundations had been undermined due to improper drainage.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The GMA paid Louis Comfort Tiffany $975 for nine purple stained-glass windows on the monument,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> which were installed in March 1913.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="New-York Tribune 1913">Template:Cite news</ref> The Parks Department also planned to repair the pavement, and there were plans to install statuary once sufficient funds had been raised.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1913" /> A wooden booth for the staff was installed next to the entrance in 1915.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 151">Template:Harvnb</ref>
The number of visitors was in decline by the 1910s, in part since many Civil War veterans were dying, and many younger Americans were unaware of Grant's importance to previous generations.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> World War I and the growing popularity of amusement parks, theaters, and sports also negatively impacted visitor numbers; by the end of the 1910s, the tomb had only 300,000 annual visitors.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The tomb was originally illuminated by gas jets at night, but these were replaced by electric lamps in 1923.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 151" /> Additionally, the tomb continued to have drainage problems: by 1925, one corner was sagging by Template:Convert. This prompted the city to rebuild the plaza outside the tomb in a project which was completed in 1927.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 150–151; Picone p. 202">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> During the 1920s, there were several plans to complete the statuary on the tomb, but this had been complicated by Duncan's indecision over the designs.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 150–151; Picone p. 202" /> A grove of trees outside the tomb was dedicated in 1928.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1920s and 1930s renovation
Multiple modifications, including a statue of Grant on horseback outside Grant's Tomb, were announced in February 1929.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> This was part of a larger plan designed by John Russell Pope, which included a pediment above the main entrance and an expanded entrance plaza.<ref name="NYCL p. 3">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The Christian Science Monitor 1929">Template:Cite news</ref> The GMA began raising funds that month,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> with plans to obtain $400,000,<ref name="The Christian Science Monitor 1929" /> and the city's Municipal Art Commission approved Pope's plans that March.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Pope signed a contract to design the renovation in June 1929,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 163–164; Picone p. 204">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and the GMA had raised $121,000 by September.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With the Wall Street Crash of 1929 later the same year, fundraising slowed significantly, but the project was not officially canceled until 1933.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 163–164; Picone p. 204" /> Grant's Tomb recorded fewer than 100,000 annual visitors for the first time in its history in 1933,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and visitor counts had decreased to fewer than 500 a day.<ref name="The New York Times 1938 f187" /> The annual ceremonies at Grant's Tomb were drawing fewer and fewer people,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and vandalism was becoming more common.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The facade had also become dirty over time.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 1934, the city again renewed its contract with the GMA for 21 years; the $7,000 annual payment was not changed to adjust for inflation.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 145; Picone p. 190" /> Some of Pope's plans were carried out later in the decade.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 164">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The New York Times 1939 c548">Template:Cite web</ref> There were plans to clean the monument by July 1935,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Works Progress Administration (WPA) laborers installed new marble flooring that December.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> According to Joan Waugh, WPA funding and the sale of souvenirs helped keep the tomb solvent.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Exposed cables were relocated inside the walls during 1936,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 164" /><ref name="Picone p. 206">Template:Harvnb</ref> and workers completed a 14-month renovation of the roof and part of the interior in May 1937<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> at a cost of $22,500.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 165">Template:Harvnb</ref> In June, the GMA hired Dean Fausett to design two murals of battle maps,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 167; Picone pp. 206–207">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> which were completed the next year.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 167; Picone pp. 206–207" /><ref name="The New York Times 1938 f187">Template:Cite web</ref> Swinging racks, bronze markers, a lamp, and a brass lectern were also added for visitors' benefit.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The GMA announced in late 1937 that it would complete the renovation before the 1939 New York World's Fair started.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Numerous modifications were made to Grant's Tomb in 1938, including the installation of a heating plant<ref name="Picone p. 206" /> and an air-conditioning system.<ref name="The New York Times 1938 f187" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1938" /> Workers also installed anti-bird screens,<ref name="Picone p. 206" /> built a plaza around the monument,<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1938">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 171; Picone p. 207">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> cleaned the interior of the dome, and relocated the curator's office to the southeast corner.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 165" /> Two eagle statues from the New York City Post Office were relocated to the tomb,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Kahn_167" /> and the purple stained-glass panels in nine windows were replaced with amber panels.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 166">Template:Harvnb</ref> Artists William Mues and Jeno Juszko designed five busts of Union Army generals around the crypt as part of the Federal Art Project.<ref name="Kahn_167">Template:Harvnb</ref> Four hundred and fifty WPA workers ultimately completed the project by January 1939.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 174">Template:Harvnb</ref> Workers installed two flagpoles and exterior floodlights in early April 1939,<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1939a">Template:Cite news</ref> and the GMA rededicated the tomb on Grant's 117th birthday.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The renovation cost either $300,000<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 174" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1939">Template:Cite news</ref> or $450,000,<ref name="The New York Times 1939 c548" /> of which the GMA paid around $90,000.<ref name="The New York Times 1939 c548" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1939" />
1940s and 1950s
During the 1930s renovation, the GMA had attempted to add an equestrian statue outside the tomb,<ref name="The New York Times 1938 f187" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1938" /> which never occurred.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 174; Picone pp. 208–209">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The GMA first proposed relocating an existing statue in Brooklyn in 1938; although parks commissioner Robert Moses supported this plan,<ref name="Picone pp. 208–209" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> residents of the borough heavily opposed it.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 174; Picone pp. 208–209" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> GMA president Herbert L. Satterlee and Grant's grandson Ulysses S. Grant III rejected a model of the statue created by a sculptor named Flinta, as well as another design from William Mues.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> George D. Burnside's son George G. Burnside took over as the monument's curator in 1940.<ref name="Picone p. 206" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1844" /> After the American entry into World War II, the GMA considered closing the monument.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The monument ultimately remained open, but the sarcophagi were covered by tarpaulin sheets at night between 1942 and 1945 to protect them from air raid damage.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 175; Picone p. 209">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> In addition, a silk sheet donated by Japanese citizens was removed in 1944.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 175; Picone p. 209" /> Vandalism continued to occur, as in 1942 when the cork tree next to the tomb was damaged,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the tomb also saw fewer visitors over the years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
By the end of World War II, the tomb was only guarded by New York City Police Department officers when they patrolled the neighborhood.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Although annual attendance increased to about 125,000 by the late 1940s, the tomb was becoming dilapidated.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> There were continued efforts to fund an equestrian statue outside the tomb after the war.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The city finally increased its annual appropriation to the GMA in the early 1950s,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 145; Picone p. 190" /><ref name="The New York Times 1952 s202">Template:Cite web</ref> but even with the increased appropriation, the GMA recorded a net profit of only $230 in 1952.<ref name="The New York Times 1952 s202" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Much of the organization's funding still came from the city,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and annual maintenance costs had reached $11,635 by the mid-1950s.<ref name="The New York Times 1952 s202" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1959">Template:Cite news</ref>
At its 1953 and 1954 meetings, GMA trustees discussed the possibility of transferring the monument to the federal government, but no action was taken in either case.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 175–176; Picone p. 210">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The GMA also wrote a letter to U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower, whose secretary rejected the plan,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 175–176; Picone p. 210" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> though Eisenhower sent a team to look at the site in late 1955.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 175–176; Picone p. 210" /> State lawmakers introduced two bills to transfer the land and the tomb's operation to the federal government in January 1956,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the governor signed the land-transfer bill that March.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> U.S. representative Herbert Zelenko introduced a bill in early 1957 to transfer the tomb's operation to the United States Department of the Interior,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 178; Picone p. 211">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and Eisenhower signed the bill in August 1958 after Congress approved it.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 178; Picone p. 211" /> The move was expected to save the city $13,000 per year and would cost the federal government $19,000 annually.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Board of Estimate voted to give the site to the federal government in November;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the tomb had recorded over 18.6 million all-time visitors at the time.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1959" /><ref name="Picone p. 211">Template:Harvnb</ref>
NPS operation
The National Park Service (NPS) took over the operations of Grant's Tomb on May 1, 1959,<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1959" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> without any ceremony.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The structure was officially renamed the General Grant National Memorial.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1959" /><ref name="Picone p. 211" /> Thomas Pitkin, the tomb's newly appointed historian, wanted to renovate Grant's Tomb to emphasize its role as a memorial rather than as a tomb.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Ulysses S. Grant III requested that the NPS keep his grandparents' bodies there.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
1960s and 1970s renovations
After taking over Grant's Tomb, the NPS wanted to add an equestrian statue, install a pediment, modify the roof,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 182">Template:Harvnb</ref> and improve pedestrian flow around the memorial.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 1961, the NPS announced plans to spend $200,000 on an equestrian statue and repairs to the tomb.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The NPS dropped plans for the pediment that year, but it did make some minor changes, such as the addition of new labels and a telephone,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 182" /> as well as replacement of display panels.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 182; Picone p. 216">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Paul Manship, who had designed a model of a statue for the GMA three decades earlier, was hired to design the statue;<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185; Picone pp. 216–217">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sugrue 1961">Template:Cite news</ref> amid strong opposition,<ref name="Sugrue 1961" /> the statue was canceled in 1962.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185; Picone pp. 216–217" /> Pitkin proposed installing colorful lunette murals within the memorial in 1962,<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 182; Picone p. 216" /> and the NPS also installed floodlights to deter loitering.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The memorial was documented in the Historic American Buildings Survey in 1963.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Grant's Tomb continued to record 300,000 annual visitors during the mid-1960s,<ref name="Picone p. 220">Template:Harvnb</ref> even as it was being vandalized frequently.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The GMA transferred $20,000 to the NPS in 1964 to help pay for the installation of two mosaic murals; the NPS also spent $10,000 on a third mural.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185; Picone p. 217">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The NPS hired Allyn Cox to design the murals.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185; Picone p. 217" /><ref name="The New York Times 1966 y853" /> The GMA officially dissolved itself in April 1965, using its last $9,095.50 to buy a model of an equestrian statue by Manship, which was then displayed in the tomb.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Cox's murals were dedicated in May 1966,<ref name="The New York Times 1966 y853">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Daily News 1966">Template:Cite news</ref> and additional modifications took place throughout the decade.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The tomb was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966, at which point annual patronage dropped to 120,000.<ref name="Picone p. 220" /> The NPS also loosened restrictions within the memorial, allowing visitors to see the crypt and take pictures for the first time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the late 1960s, the NPS painted over two of the WPA-era murals and replaced them with portraits;<ref name="Aig 1995">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 189; Picone p. 219">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> two other murals were revised to include portraits of African Americans.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 189; Picone p. 219" /> By the end of the decade, annual patronage had declined to 95,300.<ref name="Picone p. 220" />
In 1970, NPS workers demolished bronze cases that had displayed battle flags.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 190; Picone p. 219">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The flags themselves, as well as some letters and other documents, were placed into storage;<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 189–190">Template:Harvnb</ref> the documents were stored under a water heater, where they were damaged significantly.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 190; Picone p. 219" /> That year, more floodlights were added to the memorial.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 189–190" /> Beginning in 1972, the granite benches around the memorial were replaced with mosaic-tile benches designed by Pedro Silva.<ref name="The New York Times 1972 q401">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 190–191; Picone pp. 221–223">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The benches were intended to discourage graffiti on the tomb, which by then cost $11,000 a year to remove.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The New York Times 1973 b327">Template:Cite web</ref> Initially budgeted at $20,000,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 190–191; Picone pp. 221–223" /><ref name="The New York Times 1973 b327" /> the benches ended up costing $50,000 and took two years to complete.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 190–191; Picone pp. 221–223" /> The NPS added fans and reinforced the steel frame of the roof from 1973 to early 1974. This was followed later the same year by a repainting of the dome and barrel vaults inside the monument,<ref name="Kahn 1980"/> which required a two-month closure of Grant's Tomb in late 1974.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Both the facade and interior of the tomb were designated as city landmarks in 1975.<ref name="Picone p. 225">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Late 1970s to early 1990s
By the 1970s, the tomb was vandalized and graffitied on a regular basis, and homeless persons, drug users, and muggers frequented the memorial.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Picone p. 228">Template:Harvnb</ref> Local residents reported that the sculptures around the tomb were generally spared from graffiti,<ref name="Gupta 1979">Template:Cite news</ref> though there were calls to remove the sculptures,<ref name="Picone p. 227">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which had decreased by the 1980s.<ref name="Collins 1986">Template:Cite news</ref> The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the mausoleum as a city landmark in 1975;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1975-11-26">Template:Cite news</ref> the designation applied to both the facade and the interior.<ref name="nycland">Template:Cite nycland</ref> The visitor pavilion west of Grant's Tomb closed in the 1970s,<ref name="Feeney 2000">Template:Cite web</ref> and annual patronage bottomed out at just over 35,000 in 1979.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Meanwhile, the NPS was largely unsuccessful in its attempts to prevent graffiti and other damage.<ref name="Picone p. 227" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Even when the tomb was repaired, it was often damaged again; for example, the eagle statues were damaged so frequently that the NPS procured several replacement beaks for these sculptures.<ref name="Picone p. 228" /> The NPS spent $50,000 to renovate the tomb from 1982 to 1984,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> at which point the tomb averaged 75,000 visitors per year.<ref name="Colford 1995">Template:Cite news</ref> The NPS hired security guards to patrol the tomb,<ref name="Colford 1995" /><ref name="The New York Times 1984 i012">Template:Cite web</ref> but vandals simply waited until the guards' shifts ended.<ref name="The New York Times 1984 i012" /> The tomb's entire staff consisted of two janitors and one person handing out pamphlets, and there were no longer guided tours.<ref name="Picone p. 230">Template:Harvnb</ref> The upper level was closed because of staff shortages.<ref name="McShane 1991">Template:Cite news</ref>
Newspapers regularly reported on crimes at the tomb in the late 1980s and early 1990s,<ref name="Picone p. 230" /> describing the monument as a frequent site for public urination and defecation, drug use, and muggings.<ref name="wp-1997-04-05">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="McShane 1993" /> Funding cuts forced the NPS to close the memorial on Sundays starting in 1986.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> There was no nighttime security in the early 1990s,<ref name="Morning Edition 1992">Template:Cite news</ref> and the memorial was open for only eight hours on Wednesdays through Sundays.<ref name="McShane 1993" /> The exhibits had become neglected, and the public had largely forgotten about the tomb itself:<ref name="Collins 1986" /> according to The Washington Post, many tourists did not know whose tomb it was.<ref name="wp-1997-04-05" /> One rare photo of Grant was not replaced after being stolen, while another photo depicted the wrong person.<ref name="Picone p. 230" /><ref name="McShane 1993" /> Preservationists estimated in 1993 that the monument only had 40,000 annual visitors, even though the NPS claimed the memorial had 100,000 visitors per year.<ref name="McShane 1993" />
The federal government gave the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation $300,000 for a restoration of the tomb's long-closed visitor pavilion in 1989.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Meanwhile, the monument itself continued to fall into disrepair.<ref name="West 1992" /> NPS superintendent Georgette Nelms said the graffiti on the facade was deterring visitors and prompting concerned letters from around the world.<ref name="West 1992">Template:Cite news</ref> The memorial also had leaks in its roof and cracks on its pillars.<ref name="Frankel 1994" /><ref name="West 1992" /> The interior had peeling paint,<ref name="colimore">Template:Cite news</ref> and the facade was being damaged by the chemical solution that was used to wipe away the graffiti.<ref name="Morning Edition 1992" /> By contrast, Robert E. Lee's burial site at University Chapel was well-maintained and open seven days a week.<ref name="Picone p. 230" /><ref name="McShane 1993" /> The dilapidated conditions at Grant's Tomb also contrasted with the well-kept nature of Columbia University's campus a few blocks away, as well as nearby churches such as Riverside Church.<ref name="The New York Times 1984 i012" /><ref name="Picone p. 231">Template:Harvnb</ref>
1990s restoration
Frank Scaturro, a Columbia University student, launched an effort to restore the tomb<ref name="Morning Edition 1992" /><ref name="colimore" /> after he became a volunteer park ranger in 1991.<ref name="Picone pp. 232–233">Template:Harvnb</ref> Scaturro recalled that homeless people and drug users still congregated around the tomb and that it was common to smell human waste and drugs there.<ref name="Picone pp. 232–233" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Early the next year, the NPS proposed several options for improving the exhibits in Grant's Tomb.<ref name="West 1992" /> Scaturro sent weekly memos to the NPS for over two years, to no avail.<ref name="Picone pp. 232–233" /><ref name="nyt-1997-04-28">Template:Cite news</ref> He published a 325-page whistleblower report in 1993<ref name="colimore" /><ref name="Picone p. 234">Template:Harvnb</ref> and sent it to news media, as well as government officials including U.S. president Bill Clinton and members of Congress.<ref name="Picone p. 234" /><ref name="nyt-1993-12-19">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> After WNBC aired a report on the tomb's condition in November 1993, the NPS fired Scaturro,<ref name="Picone p. 234" /><ref name="nyt-1993-12-19" /> who said "whistle-blowing was the last resort".<ref name="colimore" /> Grant's descendants called Scaturro a hero for his advocacy.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The same year, George M. Craig formed a group known as the Friends of Grant's Tomb to advocate for the memorial's restoration;<ref name="McShane 1993" /><ref name="Picone p. 231" /> the group could not raise the $11.5 million that the NPS said was required for the tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 231" />
By the end of 1993, the NPS's Manhattan office was considering numerous options to restore the monument.<ref name="nyt-1993-12-19" /> The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported in March 1994 that Scaturro had spent $2,000 of his own money to improve the tomb's condition.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also reestablished the Grant Monument Association, although the newly reconstituted GMA was not involved in the tomb's operation.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The bad condition of the tomb had prompted several proposals to relocate the Grants' remains.<ref name="Picone pp. 236–237">Template:Harvnb</ref> The Illinois General Assembly approved a resolution by lawmaker Judy Baar Topinka in March 1994, asking the NPS to either restore Grant's Tomb or move the remains to Illinois.<ref name="Howell">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Scaturro and one of Grant's descendants, Ulysses Grant Deitz, sued the NPS the next month,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> claiming the agency had left the structure to rot.<ref name="wp-1997-04-05" /> A bill to relocate the Grants' remains was also introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Politicians from Grant's birth state of Ohio wanted the remains to be relocated there instead.<ref name="Picone pp. 236–237" />
Following the lawsuit and relocation proposals, the NPS requested $850,000 in federal funds to renovate the tomb over the next two years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Picone p. 239">Template:Harvnb</ref> The agency was also working on a long-term plan for Grant's Tomb<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and needed $250,000 per year for extra security around the monument.<ref name="Howell" /> The same year, the U.S. House of Representatives introduced legislation to restore the tomb before its centennial.<ref>Grant's Tomb National Memorial Act of 1994, H.R. 4393, 103d Cong., 2nd session (May 11, 1994).</ref> This plan provided up to $375,000 for the memorial's renovation,<ref name="The Los Angeles Times 1994">Template:Cite news</ref> a move that Scaturro and Deitz criticized as insufficient.<ref name="Picone p. 239" /> Deitz still threatened to move Ulysses and Julia Grant's remains elsewhere unless the memorial was fully restored before 1997.<ref name="The Los Angeles Times 1994" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Ultimately, $1.8 million was provided for the tomb's renovation.<ref name="nyt-1997-04-28" /><ref name="Picone p. 239" />
The exterior was renovated first, followed by the interior.<ref name="Picone p. 239" /> The NPS used an abrasive and chemicals to clean the facade, and it replaced the leaking roof.<ref name="Goldman 1997">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nyt-1995-04-30">Template:Cite news</ref> In addition, new displays and mechanical systems were added,<ref name="New York Amsterdam News 1997" /> and the NPS spent $80,000 to restore one of Fausett's two murals.<ref name="Aig 1995" /> Bronze trophy cases were placed in the memorial to replace older cases that had been destroyed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During the restoration, the NPS attempted to disassemble The Rolling Bench;<ref name="nyt-1997-03-30">Template:Cite news</ref> this prompted protests,<ref name="wp-1997-04-05" /> so the NPS ultimately kept the benches.<ref name="Goldman 1997" /><ref name="MW p. 132">Template:Harvnb</ref> The facade and roof modifications had been completed by 1995, and the NPS had hired additional guards to patrol the memorial 24 hours a day.<ref name="nyt-1995-04-30" /> The tomb was rededicated on April 27, 1997, its 100th anniversary and Grant's 175th birthday,<ref name="Goldman 1997" /><ref name="Picone p. 242">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> with a parade and a two-day-long celebration attended by 1,300 people.<ref name="Picone p. 242" />
Post-renovation and 21st century
The renovated Grant's Tomb recorded 126,432 visitors in 1997, a 32-year high, and the memorial also recorded over 100,000 annual visitors during the next two years.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Although the Grants' descendants were satisfied with the renovation,<ref name="Goldman 1997" /> Topinka continued to advocate for the relocation of the Grants' remains.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During the early 21st century, the memorial continued to record about 100,000 annual visitors, or fewer than 300 daily visitors.<ref name="Page 2010">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="wsj-2015-02-24">Template:Cite news</ref> Many of the visitors were American Civil War enthusiasts.<ref name="wsj-2015-02-24" /> The visitor center on the western side of Riverside Drive remained abandoned through the early 2000s.<ref name="Albrecht 2011 t975">Template:Cite web</ref> The New York City government gave the NPS an easement in 2004, allowing the NPS to begin restoring the pavilion.<ref name="National Parks of New York Harbor (U.S. National Park Service) 2011 z918">Template:Cite web</ref> The visitor center reopened on April 27, 2011.<ref name="Feeney 2000" /><ref name="Albrecht 2011 t975" /> By then, the tomb recorded 120,000 annual visitors.<ref name="Feeney 2000" />
Parts of the memorial had again begun to fall into disrepair by the late 2010s,<ref name="McShane 2019 p824">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Alvarez 2018 j525">Template:Cite web</ref> with such issues as peeling paint, cracks, rusted flagpoles, and water damage.<ref name="Picone p. 247">Template:Harvnb</ref> AM New York Metro reported in 2018 that the memorial needed $777,355 for repainting and for repairs to the stairs and pathways.<ref name="Alvarez 2018 j525" /> Although U.S. senator Chuck Schumer had pledged money to restore the memorial in 2019, it still saw occasional vandalism, such as during the early 2019 federal government shutdown when the memorial was vandalized.<ref name="McShane 2019 p824" /><ref name="Picone p. 247" /> Scaturro, who by then was the president of the Grant Monument Association, advocated for federal and city officials to add security and refurbish the memorial. Due to staffing shortages, the memorial had to close on Mondays and Tuesdays; even on days when Grant's Tomb was open, visitors were only allowed into the memorial on alternating hours.<ref name="McShane 2019 p824" /> Scaturro also wanted the city and federal governments to help fund the addition of a finial atop the tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 248">Template:Harvnb</ref>
Description
The design of Grant's Tomb was inspired by ancient Greek and Roman structures, in particular the Pantheon, Rome.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Duncan may have taken some elements of his design, such as dimensions, from his onetime classmate Henry O. Avery, who created a drawing for the monument in 1885. This has not been substantiated, as Avery died in 1890 before construction started.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The Ionic colonnade of the upper section may have been inspired by a design created by an architect named Bernier, although Bernier's blueprints were not published until 1892 at the earliest.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 87–88">Template:Harvnb</ref>
Site
Grant's Tomb is in the median of Riverside Drive at 122nd Street in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City.<ref name="aia5">Template:Cite aia5</ref> It occupies a high bluff,<ref name="NYCL p. 1" /> standing Template:Cvt above mean high water.<ref name="Kahn p. 212" /><ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="Picone p. 134">Template:Harvnb</ref> The northbound lanes of Riverside Drive abut the memorial to the east, while the southbound lanes are to the west.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Page 2010" /> The area near the memorial is served by the M5, M4, and M104 routes of MTA Regional Bus Operations, while the Template:NYCS trains of the New York City Subway stops at 125th Street and Broadway.<ref>Template:Cite NYC bus map</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The mausoleum is not wheelchair-accessible.<ref name="Page 2010" /><ref name="General Grant National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service) 2013" /> It is generally open Wednesday through Sunday, year-round,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> although the tomb is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.<ref name="Page 2010" />
A granite plaza, dating from the late 1930s, surrounds the tomb.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1938" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 171; Picone p. 207" /> Two flagpoles with brass plaques were erected within the plaza during the 1930s. The western flagpole commemorates Frederick Dent Grant—the first son of Ulysses and Julia Grant—and contains an American flag. The eastern flagpole commemorates Horace Porter and contains Grant's four-star general's flag.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> There is also a grove of trees, which was not part of the original design for the memorial's grounds.<ref name="MW p. 132" /> The area north of Grant's Tomb has several ginkgo trees,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> as well as a Chinese cork, which date from Li Hongzhang's visit to the United States in 1897.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> There is also a commemorative tablet from Li's visit.<ref name="CHC1909">Template:Cite book</ref>
A visitor center or pavilion is located across Riverside Drive to the west of the mausoleum and contains a bookstore, a community space, and restrooms.<ref name="Feeney 2000" /><ref name="General Grant National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service) 2013">Template:Cite web</ref> This pavilion displays memorabilia and a movie about Grant's life.<ref name="General Grant National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service) 2013" /> The visitor center, dating from 1910,<ref name="National Parks of New York Harbor (U.S. National Park Service) 2011 z918" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 197" /> is a classical-style pavilion designed by Theodore E. Videto.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150" /> The structure is made of granite and supported by Doric columns, with restrooms on a lower level.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 150; Picone p. 197" /> The visitor center is wheelchair-accessible.<ref name="General Grant National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service) 2013" />
Art and other memorials
According to NYC Parks, "some popular local folk art in Riverside Park contrasts strikingly with the Tomb's severity".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Among these is The Rolling Bench, a sculpture consisting of 17 concrete benches bearing colorful mosaics.<ref name="nyt-1997-03-30" /> Completed in 1972, it was designed by artist Pedro Silva<ref name="The New York Times 1972 q401" /><ref name="Gupta 1979" /> and built with help from local residents.<ref name="MW p. 132" /><ref name="nyt-1997-03-30" /> The benches depict various scenes, animals, people, objects, and fictional characters in addition to Grant himself.<ref name="The New York Times 1973 b327" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The project was sponsored by the nonprofit organization CITYarts.<ref name="MW p. 132" /><ref name="Akasie 2008">Template:Cite news</ref> The sculpture was restored during mid-2008 under Silva's supervision.<ref name="Akasie 2008" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
There are two other memorials in the vicinity of Grant's Tomb. The General Horace Porter memorial, at 122nd Street, is a flagpole on a pedestal dedicated in 1939.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Another flagpole on a pedestal, Major General Frederick D. Grant, was also dedicated at 122nd Street in 1939.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Form and facade
The structure is Template:Convert tall.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="King1903" /><ref name="Kahn p. 230" /> It uses as little glass as possible to give the impression that the monument "would last through the ages".<ref name="Picone p. 134" /> The total height was downsized from Template:Convert to save money.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 116" /> Until Riverside Church to the east was completed in 1930, Grant's Tomb was the tallest structure in the area.<ref name="Page 2010" />
The exterior is made of North Jay, Maine, granite.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /><ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Park and Cemetery 1897">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The facade is modeled after the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus,<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 87–88" /><ref name="Picone p. 138" /> with some differences, including the design of the roofline.<ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 87–88" /> The base of the tomb is shaped almost like a cube (actually a rectangular prism),<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> measuring Template:Convert high.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /><ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="NPS p. 2">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="NYCL-0901" /> The base measures Template:Convert;<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="King1903">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kahn p. 230">Template:Harvnb</ref> it was originally intended to be Template:Convert but was downsized to save money.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 116">Template:Harvnb</ref> Although the upper section of Grant's Tomb is cylindrical,<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /><ref name="Kahn p. 228">Template:Harvnb</ref> in contrast to the square Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, both structures had a similarly proportioned base and peristyle.<ref name="Kahn p. 228" /> Due to the tomb's design, early visitors mistook it for a bank, house of worship, library, post office, or mansion,<ref name="Picone p. 196" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while later visitors confused it with the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument to the south.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Base
The main entrance is through a Template:Convert-wide<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> set of stairs facing a plaza to the south,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /><ref name="NPS p. 2" /> which leads to a hexastyle portico with fluted columns in the Doric order.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /><ref name="Kahn p. 226">Template:Harvnb</ref> The portico is supported by ten columns,<ref name="NPS p. 2" /> which are grouped into two rows.<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> There are six columns at the front of the portico.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> Atop the columns is a Doric entablature with wreaths and circular bosses, as well as stone blocks above each column on the portico's cornice. Early plans for Grant's Tomb called for the installation of equestrian statues, depicting generals who led the Union Army, on each stone block.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> The wooden entrance doors, made by Borkelt & Debevoise, measure Template:Convert wide by Template:Convert tall and weigh Template:Convert in total. The doors are covered with 296 rosettes, which conceal parchment papers with dozens of New Yorkers' signatures.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>
Behind the portico is the memorial's rectangular base. There is a cornice and a sloped parapet running around the perimeter of the rectangular base.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> At the center of the base's southern elevation, above the portico, is a plaque with the inscription "Let us have peace", referring to Grant's acceptance statement after the Republican Party nominated him as its candidate for the 1868 United States presidential election.<ref name="nyt-1997-04-28" /><ref name="International Peace Forum Worlds Court League 1915 p. 172">Template:Cite book</ref> On either side of the plaque are female figures, which may have been derived from those on the Medici Tomb;<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> these were designed by J. Massey Rhind and represent peace and victory.<ref name="King1903" /><ref name="Picone p. 171" /> The western, northern, and eastern elevations have colonnades of Doric columns supporting an entablature,<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> with six columns on each elevation.<ref name="Kahn p. 226" /> In contrast to the southern elevation, the other three elevations have small square openings between each column, and the parapet above each colonnade is flat.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> There is a fret molding below the northern elevation's colonnade.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 126">Template:Harvnb</ref> A similar fret molding on the western and eastern elevations was scrapped for lack of money.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 126" />
Upper section
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The memorial's upper section contains a cylindrical drum with an Ionic colonnade,<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> which measures about Template:Convert across.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="Scientific American 1897">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Behind the colonnade is an inner wall that rises to the monument's roof. The columns support an entablature, as well as a cornice with palmettes and bosses. Above the cornice, there are pilasters and panels on the inner wall of the colonnade.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> There is a stepped cone above the inner wall, with a capstone weighing Template:Convert.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /> When Duncan designed Grant's Tomb, he had intended for the cone's shape to evoke that of the Egyptian pyramids, where Egyptian monarchs were buried. Early plans for the monument called for a statue of Grant to be placed atop the cone, although it was not built.<ref name="NYCL p. 3" /> There is also an observation deck about Template:Convert above ground.<ref name="Park and Cemetery 1897" /><ref name="Kahn p. 228" />
Interior
The interior has a cruciform layout, with arms extending off all four sides of a rectangular space.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="NYCL-0901">Template:Cite report</ref> It is clad with white marble from Lee, Massachusetts. The maximum distance from arm to arm is Template:Convert.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /><ref name="Scientific American 1897" /> The design was strongly inspired by the interior of Napoleon's tomb at Les Invalides, Paris.<ref name="Picone p. 134" /><ref name="NYCL-0901" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Rhind was responsible for the original interior decorations.<ref name="CHC1909" /><ref name="Picone p. 171" /> The entire tomb rests on a foundation measuring Template:Convert deep.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 98" />
Main level
The center of the memorial's main room is topped by a circular dome with coffers.<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> The dome measures Template:Convert across and is surrounded by a balcony or gallery.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /><ref name="Scientific American 1897" /> The gallery contains 12 openings, separated by pilasters with eagle sculptures at their capitals. Each opening contains a pair of Ionic columns, topped by pairs of panels with wreaths and shields.<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> There were originally supposed to be 13 openings to represent the Thirteen Colonies, with seals in each opening.<ref name="The New York Times 2023 v586" /><ref name="The Standard Union 1890" /> At each corner of the room, the dome is supported by piers measuring Template:Convert high.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /> Above these piers are pendentives depicting various eras of Grant's life, which include allegorical figures sculpted by Rhind.<ref name="NYCL-0901" /><ref name="International Peace Forum Worlds Court League 1915 p. 172" /><ref name="Picone p. 171" /> The southeast pendentive represents Grant's birth; the southwest pendentive depicts his time in the military; the northwest pendentive symbolizes his time as a politician and statesman; and the northeast pendentive signifies his death.<ref name="NYCL-0901" />
There are barrel vaults with coffered panels above each of the arms;<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> these vaults measure Template:Convert high.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /><ref name="Scientific American 1897" /> The western, northern, and eastern arms each have three square windows with amber-colored glass,<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> which date to a 1930s renovation.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 166" /><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1939a" /> The southern arm contains a pair of bronze doors.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="NYCL-0901" /> The lunettes above the windows, and below the barrel vaults, feature mosaics designed in 1966 by Allyn Cox.<ref name="The New York Times 1966 y853" /><ref name="NYCL-0901" /> These mosaic murals measure Template:Convert high by Template:Convert across.<ref name="The New York Times 1966 y853" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185">Template:Harvnb</ref> The battles of Chattanooga, Appomattox, and Vicksburg are depicted in the murals on the western, northern, and eastern walls respectively.<ref name="Daily News 1966" /><ref name="Kahn (1980) pp. 184–185" />
At the southwestern and southeastern corners of the main room are spiral staircases under quarter-domed skylights, which lead to the gallery. Before the tomb opened, Duncan decided not to open the gallery to the public.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> There are circular reliquary rooms with false domes to the northwest and northeast of the main room.<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> The reliquary rooms contained murals by Dean Fausett, which each measured Template:Convert and depicted maps of Civil War battle sites. The northwestern room's mural depicted battles between Pennsylvania and North Carolina, while the northeastern room's mural depicted battles between North Carolina and Florida.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The murals were painted over in the 1960s, but one mural was restored in the 1990s.<ref name="Aig 1995" /> By the 1990s, there were exhibits about the monument's construction, the Black community of Upper Manhattan, and the lifetime of Ulysses S. Grant.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Crypt
The northern arm contains a double staircase descending to the crypt,<ref name="NYCL-0901" /> which is at ground level.<ref name="wsj-2015-02-24" /> Ulysses and Julia Grant are placed in identical separate Template:Convert red-granite sarcophagi placed side by side<ref name="McShane 1991" /> beneath the center of the dome.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="New-York Tribune 1897" /> The granite was quarried by the Berlin and Montello Granite Company of Wisconsin and was selected for its visual similarity to the material used in Napoleon's tomb.<ref name="Picone p. 171" /> Each sarcophagus measures Template:Convert across.<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 123">Template:Harvnb</ref> Under both sarcophagi is a single gray-blue granite pedestal<ref name="Picone p. 171" /><ref name="NYCL-0901" /> measuring Template:Convert high and Template:Convert across.<ref name="The Buffalo News 1898" /><ref name="Park and Cemetery 1897" /> A plaque with the name of each Grant is placed on either sarcophagus.<ref name="The Buffalo News 1898" />Template:Efn A balustrade separates the sarcophagi from a corridor that wraps around the crypt.<ref name="NYCL-0901" />
The outer wall of the crypt is divided by square piers, which support an entablature and a ceiling with paneling.<ref name="Rider Cooper 1923 p. 347" /> On the wall are five niches with busts depicting Union generals in the Civil War.<ref name="Kahn p. 228" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The busts depict William T. Sherman, Phillip H. Sheridan, George H. Thomas, James B. McPherson, and Edward Ord.<ref name="Kahn_167" /> William Mues designed the busts of Sheridan and Sherman, while Jens Juszko designed the other three.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="NYCL-0901" />
Activities
Jazz concerts have been hosted outside the tomb since at least 1975.<ref name="Picone pp. 223–224" /> Since then, concerts have regularly been held at or just outside Grant's Tomb. Examples include Jazzmobile, Inc.'s annual Free Outdoor Summer Mobile Concerts at Grant's Tomb.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The annual Grant's Tomb Summer Concert also featured West Point's United States Military Academy Band in 2009.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A ceremony is held at the memorial every year on April 27, Grant's birthday.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Starting in the late 20th century, "Harlem Week" events took place outside Grant's Tomb.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to About...Time magazine, "While many African Americans may never have visited the lesser-known sites, everybody in the New York City area knows Grant's Tomb" because of Harlem Week.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> During the late 20th and 21st centuries, television station WNBC-TV also hosted Independence Day television specials featuring Grant's Tomb in the background.<ref name="Siegel 2003">Template:Cite news</ref> These specials have showcased performers such as Bon Jovi and Beyoncé.<ref name="Picone p. 248" /><ref name="Siegel 2003" /> Other events at the tomb have included a spring picnic hosted by Bette Midler's New York Restoration Project.<ref name="wsj-2014-05-31">Template:Cite news</ref>
Impact
Critical reception
Contemporary commentary
When the design for Grant's Tomb was announced in 1890, The New York Times wrote that "disinterested and competent observers must agree that the choice was well made",<ref name="Picone p. 138">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while the Brooklyn Citizen called the design "worthy of the man and a credit to the great metropolis".<ref name="Picone p. 138" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Architectural critic Montgomery Schuyler described the design as "by far the best" of the five submitted in the second design competition.<ref name="Picone p. 138" /> Duncan received several architectural awards in the years after he received the commission.<ref name="Picone pp. 137–138" /> The New York Herald wrote in 1895: "It is a comparatively easy task to construct a mere tomb or monument, but a very great difficulty is presented in a monumental tomb, and the task has been successfully accomplished."<ref name="The Buffalo Enquirer 1895" />
David Kahn wrote that, after Grant's Tomb opened, the site "was praised as being superior to that of Napoleon's, Hadrian's or Theoderic's mausoleums".<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 142">Template:Harvnb</ref> One newspaper called the structure "our one great memorial of the struggle for union",<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> while another described it as "remarkably white and marble-like in appearance".<ref name="Kahn (1980) p. 142" /> Park and Cemetery magazine wrote in May 1897 that Grant's Tomb was "an appropriate memorial to a man worthy of a nation's tribute".<ref name="Park and Cemetery 1897" /> During the 1900s, the design of Grant's Tomb inspired that of the McKinley National Memorial in Ohio.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Not all reception was positive: local newspapers variously referred to the design as "cheap", "flimsy", "squat", "ugly", "clumsy", "heavy", and "awkward".<ref name="Picone pp. 137–138">Template:Harvnb</ref> A critic for the Cincinnati Enquirer wrote in 1896 that the monument "is hardly harmonious height. A cenotaph stands rather irrelevantly upon a temple ... The profile lines are stiff, and the feeling is not flowing ..."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After the tomb opened, one magazine praised the interior and called the facade "imposing, well proportioned and dignified", but it labeled the western and eastern elevations as "lacking in interest" and described the tomb's two sections as being out of scale with each other.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The Builder magazine similarly took issue with the scale of the exterior, and it described the "motif of the interior" as plainer than that of Les Invalides, but still wrote that "it is entitled to rank among the most notable monuments in America".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> One editorial in the Times in 1910 dubbed the structure a "mausoleum monstrosity".<ref name="Picone p. 196" />
Later commentary
After the benches around Grant's Tomb were added in 1974, they were controversial.<ref name="Picone pp. 223–224">Template:Harvnb</ref> Ulysses Grant's great-granddaughter Edith Grant Griffiths, who said "they certainly clash with that severe and dignified building", while the Ulysses S. Grant Association's president compared the benches to having a roller coaster outside the Lincoln Memorial.<ref name="Picone pp. 223–224" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Conversely, architecture critic Paul Goldberger praised the benches as "perhaps Manhattan's finest piece of folk art of our time",<ref name="Picone p. 225" /><ref name="Gupta 1979" /> and the AIA compared the benches to the buildings designed by Antoni Gaudí in Barcelona.<ref name="Gupta 1979" />
Of the monument itself, the WPA Guide to New York City wrote in 1939: "The high conical roof slopes downward to a circular colonnade atop the cube of the main hall; the difficult problem of uniting the three forms harmoniously remains unsolved."<ref>Template:Cite fednyc</ref> Former city parks commissioner August Heckscher II wrote in 1977 that the tomb was "among the comparatively few structures in the city that are absolutely safe" and that "one feels that the city is better for these evocations of a patriotic spirit so at odds with modernity".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1980, Goldberger called the monument "more pompous than graceful, but it is imposing, particularly from within..."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Robert A. M. Stern and the co-authors of his 1983 book New York 1900 said Duncan's design "embodied not so much the character of Grant, a character who outlived his reputation, but to create an American Valhalla, a shrine to American power".<ref name="NY1900" />
The 2010 edition of the AIA Guide to New York City described the tomb as a "pompous sepulcher" and the benches "a populist huzzah for the solemn Grants".<ref name="aia5" /> The same year, an author for The Record of New Jersey wrote that "chances are you can't think of anyone—not even your rich Uncle Midas—who has a final resting place grander than Ulysses S. Grant's".<ref name="Page 2010" /> Ralph Gardner Jr. of The Wall Street Journal wrote in 2015: "The tomb, designed by John Duncan and based on an ancient Greek mausoleum, is relatively stark without being uninviting."<ref name="wsj-2015-02-24" />
Media
The author Louis Picone wrote that, after Grant's Tomb was completed, it was "one of the most recognizable structures in America".<ref name="Picone p. 195">Template:Harvnb</ref> In its early years, the memorial was featured in many commemorative postcards,<ref name="Picone p. 195" /> as well as the short films Personal (1904) and How a French Nobleman Got a Wife Through the New York Herald Personal Columns (1904).<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In the mid-20th century, Grant's Tomb continued to be mentioned in such media works as Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936).<ref name="Picone pp. 208–209">Template:Harvnb</ref> As Grant's Tomb declined physically at the end of the century, it was also shown in movies such as the 1991 crime thriller New Jack City.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> During the 21st century, Grant's Tomb was also featured in shows such as Pan Am, where it stood in for a location in Paris.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
When the comedian Groucho Marx's quiz show You Bet Your Life aired from 1950 to 1959,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> he often asked contestants, "Who was buried in Grant's Tomb?"<ref name="Goldman 1997" /><ref name="wsj-2015-02-24" /> The correct answer is "no one";<ref name="nyt-2023-04-27">Template:Cite news</ref> since neither of the Grants' sarcophagi is underground, nobody is buried in Grant's Tomb.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Marx accepted the answer "Grant" and awarded a consolation prize to those who gave it.<ref>Marx, Arthur (1960). Life with Groucho. New York: Popular Library Edition, 1960</ref> The riddle dates to at least the 1930s.<ref name="The New York Times 1938 f187" />
See also
- Bibliography of Ulysses S. Grant
- List of national memorials of the United States
- List of burial places of presidents and vice presidents of the United States
- List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan above 110th Street
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan above 110th Street
- Presidential memorials in the United States
References
Notes
Citations
Sources
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External links
- Official NPS website: General Grant National Memorial
- Grant Monument Association
Template:Subject barTemplate:Navboxes Template:Authority control
- Pages with broken file links
- 1897 establishments in New York City
- 1897 sculptures
- Biographical museums in New York City
- Presidential memorials in the United States
- Buildings and structures completed in 1897
- Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan
- History museums in New York City
- Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
- Mausoleums on the National Register of Historic Places
- Monuments and memorials in Manhattan
- Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in New York City
- Morningside Heights, Manhattan
- Museums in Manhattan
- Museums on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan
- National memorials of the United States
- National Park Service national monuments in New York City
- Neoclassical architecture in New York City
- New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan
- New York City interior landmarks
- Presidential museums in New York (state)
- Riverside Park (Manhattan)
- Tombs of presidents of the United States
- Tourist attractions in Manhattan
- Ulysses S. Grant
- New York State Register of Historic Places in New York County
- Domes
- Burial monuments and structures in New York (state)
- 1890s architecture in the United States
- Cemeteries established in the 1890s