On September 6^th, 1901, President McKinley stands in line for a public reception at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York when he is approached by Leon Czolgosz, a Polish-American anarchist. Czolgosz fires two shots into the president at point-blank range! President McKinley dies nine days later at the age of 59.

The McKinley National Memorial in Canton, Ohio is the final resting place for President McKinley, his wife Ida, and their two young daughters who died in infancy. It is a magnificent tribute to the 25^th President and was built entirely from private donations, organized by the McKinley National Memorial Association.

Built from 1905 to 1907, nine states contributed material for the project, arriving in Canton by rail and then brought on horse-drawn wagons to the work site. Workers were from many nationalities and races. There are accounts of African-Americans traveling from the Southeastern region of the US all the way to Canton to ask for employment because of their deep admiration for President McKinley.

Harold Van Buren Magonigle, the architect, envisioned the Monument at the centre of a large cross, representing a martyred President.

In the centre of the monument rests a double sarcophagus carved from dark green granite from Windsor, Vermont. It is carved from a single block but designed to appear as a two-in-one. It rests on a base of black “Berlin” granite from Wisconsin.

At the top of the dome is a magnificent red, white and blue stained-glass skylight. It contains 45 stars representing the 45 states that were in the Union at the time of the President’s death.