See the Lincoln Memorial Undercroft’s Glow Up

You know that scene in National Treasure where Nicholas Cage walks into the treasure vault under the church, glowing torch in hand? That’s what entering the new Lincoln Memorial Undercroft feels like. Except that instead of gold and jewels you get to see the Emancipation Proclamation and archival graffiti that looks like it was done by a cursed toddler.

Located directly beneath the memorial, the undercroft will be D.C.’s newest addition to the National Mall. Inside, 122 concrete pillars entomb the dark chamber, which was built over 100 years ago to stabilize the marshland and prevent the monument from sinking. On June 25, it will open to the public for the first time in decades, just ahead of America’s 250th anniversary.

For a brief period in the 80s, the Park Service led flashlight tours of the undercroft where visitors would crawl through the pitch black crypt-like space to see stalactites, stalagmites, and graffiti. But the tours stopped abruptly in 1989 when tests revealed asbestos on overhead pipes and a “negligible” amount in the air of the undercroft.

Luckily, (or unluckily) that section has been completely sealed off. Now the space offers a solemn and cool refuge from the incessant heat on the west side of the National Mall where there are practically no facilities. Not to mention, some pretty nice bathrooms.

The $69 million project took three years to build but has been fundraising since 2016. The result is an eerie and awe-striking museum with interactive displays that explore President Abraham Lincoln’s legacy and the stories of the local workers who brought the monument to life.

“ [It’s] the only space on the Mall that is a salute to the people that built the Mall,” Kevin Griess, the Superintendent of the National Mall, told me. “I hope people come here and, for a moment in their mind, take themselves back to that place and stand in those shoes and appreciate what it takes.”

The Emancipation Proclamation is the crown jewel of the collection but there are plenty of other thoughtful tidbits worth seeing, including mock-ups of alternative designs, original tools, historic photos, and even a mini replica of Lincoln's chair visitors can sit in and take photos.

One of the museum’s gems is hidden in the bathroom, where there is a blown up photo of graffiti the team uncovered when building the museum. One of the figures — a curly-haired lady smoking a cigarette — is thought to be a figure of actress Gloria Swanson.

“ My personal one is the graffiti,” Griess told me when I asked about his favorite part of the undercroft. “I can imagine myself standing there either doing the scratching — although my artistic skills are not that good — or maybe standing next to them. It transports me to what it might feel like to build something like this.”

The museum opens officially on June 25. Tickets are free and can be reserved for a $1 service fee or picked up on the same day at the Korean War Veterans Memorial kiosk.