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Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Inlaid Portraits of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.

Inlaid Portraits of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln

Artifact IDMO 1941.4.18
Object Type Carving
Maker (American, 1863 - 1948)
Dateca. 1937
Mediumwood (oak), ink stain, stone (standstone, granite)
Dimensionsoverall H 8 3/4 in x W 8 in x D 2 in (22.2 cm x 20.3 cm x 5.1 cm )
Physical DescriptionA sculptural wood piece featuring inlaid, inked, and stained portraits of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. The round-shaped piece, with a squared off base, is made from the wood of a white oak tree. On one side of the sculpture is Franklin D. Roosevelt's head flanked by the inlaid date "1937." A piece of sandstone from the Lincoln fireplace is inserted below FDR's portrait. On the opposite side is a profile portrait of a young Abraham Lincoln. Inserted below Lincoln's portrait is a piece of gray granite picked up in "Devil's Den" at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Words inlaid into the 2" deep edge of the piece reads: LINCOLN OAK.

An adhesive sticker on the underside of the base has the handwritten number: D-27-20.
Historical NoteThis carving was sent to Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937 by the maker, Henry Weber of Oakville, Indiana. The white oak tree, from which the wood for the piece was taken, stood beside the trail leading from Abraham Lincoln's cabin to the cemetery - and near the grave - of Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln, in Spencer County, Indiana. When the tree died in 1933, it was estimated to be 350 years old. The stump was shipped to Weber by his son, Horace S. Weber, a member of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).
Additional Details
Custodial History NoteDeposited at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum by Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 20, 1940. It was donated as a bequest of FDR to the Library in 1947.
Credit LineEstate of Franklin D. Roosevelt
National Archives Catalog CollectionFranklin D. Roosevelt Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 735948)
National Archives Catalog SeriesGift Items and Commemorative Artifacts (National Archives Identifier 782690)
Use Restriction StatusRestricted - Possibly
CopyrightCopyright or other proprietary rights may be held by individuals or entities other than the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum does not warrant that the use of materials will not infringe on the rights of third parties holding the rights to these works, or make any representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement, treaty, or protections that may apply. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy any copyright or other use restrictions. Pertinent regulations can be found at 36 C.F.R 1254.62.
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