Stephen A. Douglas Tomb
Encyclopedia
The Stephen A. Douglas
Tomb and Memorial or Stephen Douglas Monument Park is located at 636 E. 35th Street in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois (part of the city's Douglas
community), near the site of the Union
Army and prisoner of war Camp Douglas
. A ten-foot statue of the man best remembered for debating Abraham Lincoln
over slavery stands atop a 46 ft column of white marble
from his native state, Vermont
. Douglas died from typhoid fever
on June 3, 1861 in Chicago, where he was buried on the shore of Lake Michigan
. The site was afterwards bought by the state of Illinois
, and the imposing monument by Leonard Volk
was built over his grave. The cornerstone was laid in 1861 and the tomb was completed in 1881. The site was designated a Chicago Landmark
on September 28, 1977.
The tomb is maintained by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency
as a state historic site.
Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and was the Northern Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famed...
Tomb and Memorial or Stephen Douglas Monument Park is located at 636 E. 35th Street in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois (part of the city's Douglas
Douglas, Chicago
Douglas, located on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois is one of 77 well-defined Chicago community areas. The neighborhood is named for Stephen A. Douglas, a famous Illinois politician, whose estate included a tract of land given to the federal government...
community), near the site of the Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
Army and prisoner of war Camp Douglas
Camp Douglas (Chicago)
Camp Douglas, in Chicago, Illinois, was a Union Army prisoner-of-war camp for Confederate soldiers taken prisoner during the American Civil War. It was also a training and detention camp for Union soldiers. The Union Army first used the camp in 1861 as an organizational and training camp for...
. A ten-foot statue of the man best remembered for debating Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
over slavery stands atop a 46 ft column of white marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
from his native state, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. Douglas died from typhoid fever
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
on June 3, 1861 in Chicago, where he was buried on the shore of Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
. The site was afterwards bought by the state of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and the imposing monument by Leonard Volk
Leonard Volk
Leonard Wells Volk was an American sculptor. He is notable for making one of only two life masks of United States President Abraham Lincoln. In 1857 he helped establish the Chicago Academy of Design and served as its president until 1865. He made several large monumental sculptures, including the...
was built over his grave. The cornerstone was laid in 1861 and the tomb was completed in 1881. The site was designated a Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark
Chicago Landmark is a designation of the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council for historic buildings and other sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, architectural, artistic, cultural,...
on September 28, 1977.
The tomb is maintained by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency
The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Illinois. It is tasked with the duty of maintaining most State-owned historic sites within Illinois, and maximizing their educational and recreational value to visitors....
as a state historic site.