First Look: The New Museum Hidden Under the Lincoln Memorial

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First Look: The New Museum Hidden Under the Lincoln Memorial

JENNA LEE
Updated Thu, June 18, 2026 at 1:51 PM PDT

A new museum and exhibit is opening beneath the Lincoln Memorial on June 25, giving visitors a look at the underground structure that supports the massive monument as well as historic documents like the 13th Amendment and Emancipation Proclamation.

The Lincoln Memorial Undercroft Museum, a $69 million project first announced in 2016, takes visitors underground, where they can walk among the 122 concrete pillars that hold up the monument. The exhibit includes lots of interactive experiences meant to show visitors how the memorial was constructed and how the site has contributed to significant moments in American history, like serving as the venue for Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech and other moments of protest.

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The exhibit places particular emphasis on celebrating the workers who constructed the memorial. In one of the museum's bathrooms, visitors can see a rendering of graffiti, depicting a woman smoking a cigarette, drawn on the concrete of the memorial by workers during construction, which took place between 1914 and 1922.

"The beauty and dignity of the memorial up on top was achieved only through hard labor over eight years of common Americans who were in here working," Griess said.

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Tickets are free with a $1 online service fee for advance reservations, and guests can also get same-day tickets in person at the nearby Korean War Veterans Memorial kiosk.

Visitors can reserve timed-entry tickets at https://www.recreation.gov/ticket/facility/10113318.