Who's Buried in Grant's Tomb?

It started about 25-30 years ago when we purchased this book.

This book was our Bible back then as we made the goal to visit every presidential grave site.  This was back in the days before the internet so without this book, it would have been difficult to find the sites.  But over the years we made it to all of them, most recently Teddy Roosevelt the day before, but we had ONE more.  

You guessed it.  It seemed only fitting that the book that started our quest ended up being our last presidential grave site visit. 

So we got in an Uber and our competent driver drove us there and even offered to wait for us.  But being unsure how long our visit would be, we sent him on his way.  We were feeling pretty adventurous by this point in the day.

Grant's Tomb, officially the General Grant National Memorial, is the final resting place of Ulysses S. Grant and his wife, Julia.  It is a classical domed mausoleum in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan.

Ulysses S. Grant was born in 1822 and led the Union Army to victory during the Civil War and then served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877.  Grant was bankrupt at the end of his life and days after he published his memoirs to raise money, he died of throat cancer at age 63 on July 23, 1885.  

In his will Grant had indicated that he wished to be interred in St. Louis, Missouri, or Galena, Illinois, (we were there in 2022) where his family owned plots in local cemeteries, or in New York City, where he had lived in his final years.  A friend said he had previously expressed a desire to be buried at the Old Soldier's Home in Washington, D.C. or at West Point, but because he wanted his wife interred next to him, and military cemeteries did not permit women to be interred, he decided against that.  The Grant family decided against burying him at Galena because that site was not easily accessible.  

After Grant died, there were many calls for a monument honoring him.  On the day of his death, the mayor of New York City, William Russell Grave, sent a telegram to Julia offering New York City as the burial ground for both Grants.  He gave Julia a list of city parks where her husband could be buried and she agreed to have her husband's remains interred in New York City.

City officials initially planned to bury Grant in Central Park, and the Grant family examined three sites in the park.  However, general public greatly opposed the plans and the Grant family believed the sites in Central Park were too small to fit both Ulysses and Julia.  The family then considered another site in Riverside Park on the Upper West Side. Though the site was undeveloped, many local businessmen and politicians endorsed the park as the Grants' burial site.

The National Park Service took over the operations of Grant's Tomb in 1959 and the structure was officially renamed the General Grant National Memorial.  Thomas Pitkin, the tomb's newly appointed historian, wanted to renovate Grant's Tomb to emphasize its role as a memorial rather than a tomb.  

There was some sort of dance exhibition outside during our visit but there was virtually no one inside.

Main Room

The main room is topped by a circular dome with coffers.  The dome measures 40 feet across and is surrounded by a balcony or gallery.

There is a double staircase that descends to the crypt, which is at ground level.  Ulysses and Julia Grant are placed in identical separate red-granite sarcophagi placed side by side beneath the center of the dome.  

Sarcophagi from main room

Sarcophagi from ground level

The outer wall of the crypt is divided into square piers.  On the wall are five niches with busts depicting Union generals in the Civil War.

James B. McPherson

Edward Ord

Phillip H. Sheridan

William T. Sherman

George H. Thomas

Another interesting item on display.

This is the original regimental battleflag of the 11th Indiana Infantry and dates to 1863 or 1864.  It has thirty-five stars representing the newly formed state of West Virginia.  It was used in the dedication ceremony of Grant's Tomb on April 27, 1897.

So with all that, I'm sure you're wondering the answer to the question "Who's Buried in Grant's Tomb?"  Seems obvious, doesn't it?  Ulysses S. Grant and his wife, Julia.

But the answer is really......NO ONE.  As the sarcophagi are situated above-ground, there is no body "buried" in Grant's tomb.

And that completed our day...and our quest to see every presidential gravesite.  

New York City - Part 2

We made the short walk from Trinity Church to one of the most visited memorials in the country, the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.

Known as the Freedom Tower during initial planning stages, One World Trade Center stands majestically on the site of the original 6 World Trade Center.

The top floor on One World Trade Center is 1,368 above ground level, along with a 33 ft. 4 in. parapet makes it the identical roof height of the original One World Trade Center.  The tower's spire brings it to a pinnacle height of 1,776 feet, a figure intended to symbolize the year 1776.

One World Trade Center is the second-tallest freestanding structure in the Western Hemisphere - the CN Tower in Toronto exceeds One World Trade Center's pinnacle height by approximately 40 feet.

A memorial was planned in the immediate aftermath of the attacks and destruction of the World Trade Center for the victims and those involved in rescue and recovery operations.  The architects created a forest of swamp white oak trees with two square reflecting pools in the center marking where the Twin Towers stood.

On September 12, 2011, one day after the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, the memorial opened to the public.  The period from September 11, 2011 to May 25, 2014 was known as the "interim operating period", when the memorial was surrounded by construction of neighboring World Trade Center projects.  Three months after its opening, the memorial had been visited by over one million people.

Seeing the names around the memorial was overwhelming.

The names of 2,983 victims are inscribed around the memorial pools: 2,977 killed in the September 11 attacks and six killed in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.  The names are arranged according to an algorithm, creating "meaningful adjacencies" based on relationships - proximity at the time of the attacks, company or organization affiliations (for those working at the World Trade Center or the Pentagon) and in response to about 1,200 requests from family members.

The "Survivor Tree" is a Callery pear tree which stands distinct from the hundreds of swamp white oak trees on the Memorial.  It was discovered amidst the wreckage of the 9/11 attacks, its bark charred from fires at the site and many of its limbs were reduced to stumps.  Yet somehow, the tree, still bearing leaves, showed signs of life.

Recovery workers transported the tree to a nursery in the Bronx to be cared for by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.  With careful tending, the stumps of burned and gnarled bark gave growth to longer and smoother branches.  Replanted at the Memorial in December, 2010, this Survivor Tree bursts into magnificent blossom each spring, embodying a living symbol of resilience.

We didn't have advance tickets to visit the museum but, fortunately, we were able to go inside.

I'm sure most of us remember that day clearly, but the summary they had was a grim reminder.

The Survivors' Staircase was the last visible remaining original structure above ground level at the World Trade Center site.   During the attacks, the stairs served as an escape route for hundreds of evacuees from 5 World Trade Center.  The staircase was the first artifact placed inside the museum.

A transmission tower approximately 360 feet tall, assembled atop the roof of the North Tower, began broadcasting television signals in 1980.  Changes over time included the installation in 2000 of a high-definition TV master antenna.  Transmissions for most stations failed shortly after hijacked Flight 11 pierced the North Tower on 9/11.  All transmissions ceased by 10:28 a.m. when the tower collapsed.

The main hall of the Museum, showing the Last Column standing.

This piece of steel, once part of the north facade of the North Tower, was located at the point of impact where hijacked flight 11 pierced the building at the 93rd through 99th floors.

This garage door is from a firehouse in Brooklyn Heights, home to FDNY Engine Company 205 and Ladder Company 118.  The door features a mural honoring the eight members of the firehouse who were killed responding to the attacks at the World Trade Center.

Assigned to aid in the evacuation of civilians in the North Tower, members of FDNY Ladder Company 3 are known to have reached the 35th floor by 9:21 a.m.  Captain Patrick "Paddy" John Brown, unable to communicate directly with the lobby command post, used a functioning office telephone to call a Manhattan dispatcher.  He reported that burn victims and numerous others were making their way down the stairs and that he understood the fire to be above the 75th floors.  In his last recorded transmission, Captain Brown said "Three Truck, and we are still heading up."  All 11 responding members of Ladder Company 3 were inside the building and killed when it collapsed at 10:28 a.m.

Probably the most sobering exhibit was the walls of photos of those who perished.

Whew, we were emotionally spent but we hadn't had lunch yet and you know with me, it's all about the next meal.  It was Ron's birthday and his one request was to eat at one of the "world famous" delis in NYC.  Our security guard had given us a recommendation so we hopped in a cab and made our way to the lower east side.

In 1888, a small deli by the name of Iceland Brothers was established on Ludlow Street by the - get ready for it - Iceland Brothers.  Upon the arrival of Wally Katz in 1903, the name of the store was officially changed to "Iceland & Katz".  Willy's cousin Benny joined him in 1910, buying out the Iceland brothers to officially form Katz's Delicatessen.  Their landsman Harry Tarowsky bought into the partnership in 1917.  Katz's Deli was moved across the street to its present location, during the construction of the subway system.  The vacant lot on Houston Street (pronounced "House-ton" after a Dutch emigrant of the same name) was home to barrels of meat and pickles until the present storefront facade was added between 1946-49.

The place was packed!  By now it was about 2:30 and the line outside was down the block.  We asked someone in line how long they'd waited and the estimate was 25 minutes and they still hadn't made their way to the door.  But it was Ron's birthday and he wanted a big deli sandwich (pastrami, to be exact) so we got in line.  

About 30 minutes later, we'd made it to the door and went inside.  Yikes, more lines!

Customers get in a "Cutter's" line and wait to have their requested sandwich made right in front of them.

Check out the tip jar

Another wait and we were finally at the front of the line, got our order, and turned around to find a place to sit.  

We sat with two young men from the University of Florida and being that we'd spent a fair amount of time in Gainesville, we had plenty to talk about.  But the important part was the food - and Ron did get his pastrami sandwich and I had a half turkey sandwich and some Matzoh Ball soup.  Back to my Jewish roots :-)

And with that, we left the deli as we had one more stop to make.

New York City - Part 1

After our visit to Sagamore Hill, we stayed in a hotel in Long Island so that we could visit New York City.  Being that we didn't want to take the truck into the mass humanity of Manhattan, we took an Uber to the Long Island Railroad Station so that we could take the train into the city.  Smart move.

We got off the train at Grand Central Station and started walking.  And found some breakfast.

Times Square is always a great spot for people watching.

I'm not sure what these people in the bleachers were watching.

Known in the decade before World War I as "the man who owned Broadway", George Cohan is considered the father of American musical comedy.  His life and music were depicted in the Oscar wining film Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) and the 1968 musical George M!  The statue of Cohan in Times Square commemorates his contributions to American musical theater.

Radio City Musical Hall is the largest indoor theater in the world and is a full city-block long.  More than 300 million people have come to the Music Hall to enjoy stage shows, movies, concerts, and special events and it's said that there is no place like it to see a show.

NBC Studios is a recognizable place.

Especially the area where they set up the skating rink during the winter.  The area directly behind the Prometheus statue is the location of the annual Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center.

No, we didn't go up

Something was smelling good so we followed the scent and ended up at Fox.  The McLemore "Boys" (father and son) were grilling.  Boy it smelled great!

John Sr.

John Jr. and his mom

Can you believe this burger?

The hosts came out to film a segment (and have some food) and it was fun to watch them interact with the growing crowd.

Pete Hegseth likes his meat - he came out early just to check out what was on the grill.

And then the others arrived.

Rachel Campos-Duffy marched over to us and immediately gave Ron a hug!  I was in shock and almost missed the shot.

The McLemore Boys were making tomahawk steaks and Pete was only too happy to grab one.  Not being much of a steak eater, I can't believe anyone could eat one of these.

They were done filming and were happy to take some photos.

Pete agreed to take a photo with us and when I said "we're not too good with selfies" he replied "don't worry, I've got you Ma'am".  

We spent some time talking with a nice security guard but for security reasons, we couldn't take his photo.  But he gave us some great suggestions, especially subway directions.

I decided it was safest to just hang out by the police.

As we rode along, these guys walked through the train singing their hearts out.  They were good and made quite a haul.

After exiting the subway, we stopped at Trinity Church.

A few interesting people interred here.

Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804), First Secretary of the Treasury.

Alexander Hamilton founded The Bank of New York and the U.S. Mint, was one of the framers of the Constitution, and his image appears on the U.S. ten dollar bill.  He died famously as a result of a duel with Vice President Aaron Burr in 1804.  Interesting since we'd just visited Aaron Burr's gravesite in Princeton a few days before.

His widow, Elizabeth, is buried right next to him.  Both gravesites often have decorative flowers, pebbles, and coins (for good luck in finances since Hamilton was the first Secretary of the Treasury).

Traditionally, the church did not want to provide a headstone for someone who participated in the "barbaric" tradition of a duel.  Philip Hamilton, the eldest son of Alexander Hamilton, died in a duel which is likely why he didn't have a headstone.  His father, who died the same way, was likely too big of a figure to be buried in an unmarked grave.

Robert Fulton (1765-1815) is best known for developing the first commercially successful steamboat.  New York's Fulton Street is named in his honor.  Fulton is interred in the North churchyard in the Livingston Family Vault, which belonged to his wife's family.

However, a large upright marker with his facial relief was "Erected to the memory of Robert Fulton by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers" in 1901.

Of course, there was a signer of the Declaration of Independence there so we checked one more off our list.

Near this spot are interred the remains of Francis Lewis, 1713-1803.  

Signer of the Declaration of Independence, Vestryman of Trinity Church

Erected by the Society of the Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence

This is the area where Francis Lewis rests.  As we've visited graves of other signers, we've noticed that often times they are buried "somewhere near this spot" or "in this graveyard."

The Soldiers' Monument honors the soldiers of the Revolutionary War.  It is adorned with inscriptions commemorating the sacrifices of those who fought for American independence.

The days was half over and we still had much to see.