In the final installment of our series Tracking Lincoln, Peter O'Dowd explores modern-day race relations in Springfield, Illinois.

In Lincoln’s Hometown, Race Riots Of 1908 Have Lasting Effect

Peter O'Dowd

Senior Editor, Here & Now

In Lincoln's Hometown, Race Riots Of 1908 Have Lasting Effect

For the past year, members of two  Springfield churches – one predominantly white and one predominantly black – have been coming together to talk about race. (Peter O'Dowd)

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Life

Tracking Lincoln

At President Abraham Lincoln's funeral in 1865, the oak tree stood just a few feet from the event, shading the funeral choir.

Lincoln History Told Through Tree Rings

Arborist Guy Sternberg points to the rings on the cross section of the oak tree that shaded the funeral choir at Oak Ridge Cemetery when Abraham Lincoln’s body arrived in Springfield in 1865. (Peter O'Dowd)

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Our Tracking Lincoln series continues with the third-generation owner of the Lincoln Square Lounge.

Lincoln’s Legacy Inspires Greek Family Business In Decatur

Lincoln's Legacy Inspires Greek Family Business In Decatur

The Lincoln Square Lounge in Decatur, Ill. (Peter O'Dowd)

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The Lincoln Square Lounge has been in Andrew Chiligiris's family for three generations. He says Lincoln's legacy played a role establishing his Greek immigrant family in the United States. (Peter O'Dowd)

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Most of the suspects – and most of the victims – are young black men. That's opened up a difficult conversation about race and class.

Indianapolis: Tensions Stir As Murder Rate Surges

Indianapolis Police Chief Rick Hite blames the murders on the same kind of drug crimes that New York and other major cities went through in the 1980s. (Peter O'Dowd)

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In 2014, the murder rate in Indianapolis jumped 44 percent compared to 2012. Most of the suspects - and most of the victims - were young black men. That's opened up a difficult conversation about race and class. (Peter O'Dowd)

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Kountry Kitchen owner Isaac Wilson was there when Robert F. Kennedy announce that Martin Luther King Jr. had been shot and killed. 

Kountry Kitchen, Soul Food At The Doorstep Of Indianapolis History

The Kountry Kitchen in Indianapolis serves soul food. (Peter O'Dowd/WBUR) 

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Food

Politics

As Peter O'Dowd follows part of the route of Abraham Lincoln's funeral train 150 years ago, he makes a pit stop to get a haircut. 

An Audio Postcard From A Columbus Barbershop

Peter gets a hair cut from Jim Morris in Columbus, Ohio. (Peter O'Dowd)

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Five months after the 12-year-old was shot, Peter O'Dowd visits the neighborhood and speaks with Tamir's mother.

Police Shooting Of Tamir Rice Still An Open Wound In Cleveland

Samaria Rice of Cleveland, Ohio, wears a button with her son's photograph on Dec. 15, 2014 in New York. A Cleveland police officer fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice on Nov. 22 as he played with a toy gun outside a recreation center. Rice says her son was never given a chance to follow officers' orders, but she believes the family "will have justice." (Mark Lennihan/AP)

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The funeral procession set out from Washington, D.C., stopping in major cities along the way to Springfield, Ill.

Lincoln’s Funeral Train Departed 150 Years Ago Today

Lincoln's Funeral Train Departed 150 Years Ago Today

In 1865, a train with a portrait of Abraham Lincoln mounted on the front carried Abraham Lincoln's body from Washington, D.C. to Springfield, Ill. (Library of Congress) 

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A platform hastily built to display President Lincoln's body in 1865 is a simple wooden structure, but it has a long history.

Lincoln Funeral Relic Still Used To Honor American Dignitaries

The casket bearing body of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist lies in the Great Hall of the U.S. Supreme Court, in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2005.  The casket rests on the Lincoln Catafalque, the platform that bore President Abraham Lincoln's remains following his death in 1865. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP)