Background
Lindley was born in Illinois, the son of Joseph Perry Lindley and Julia Herndon.
Lindley was born in Illinois, the son of Joseph Perry Lindley and Julia Herndon.
In 1900–1901, the tomb underwent a massive reconstruction, and Lincoln"s body was to be placed in a steel cage which would be filled with Portland cement. In an interview on January 29, 1963, three days before his death, Lindley recalled what he had seen: "Yes, his face was chalky white. His clothes were mildewed.
And I was allowed to hold one of the leather straps as we lowered the casket for the concrete to be poured.
I was not scared at the time but I slept with Lincoln for the next six months." Though George Cashman, a later custodian of Lincoln"s tomb, claimed to be the last person to have seen Lincoln"s face that day, Cashman"s wife Dorothy disputed this in a pamphlet, stating, "At the time of his death in 1963 Fleetwood Lindley was the last living person to have looked upon Mr. Lincoln"s face."
Lindley eventually married and had two children, and worked as a florist.
He also served as president of the board of managers for Oak Ridge Cemetery. He died in Springfield on February 1, 1963, and is buried at the Lindley family plot in Oak Ridge, not far from Lincoln"s tomb.
Joseph Lindley was a member of the Lincoln Guard of Honor, assembled in February 1880 by John Carroll Power, custodian of Lincoln"s tomb, in response to the attempted theft of Lincoln"s remains from the tomb in November 1876. To satisfy their curiosity and lay to rest rumors that his body was no longer there, the surviving members of the Guard of Honor decided to open Lincoln"s coffin for a final inspection.