On April 4, 1865, just after Union troops took control of Richmond, the Confederate capital, President Lincoln and his 12-year-old son Tad toured the hostile city. This full-size bronze grouping symbolizes that moment in time, as depicted by American sculptor David Frech. Behind the figures is a phrase from Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, delivered one month before: "To bind up the nation's wounds." Amazingly, Lincoln survived this dangerous visit, only to be murdered by a Confederate activist in Washington on April 14.

The sculpture, dedicated on April 5, 2003, set off protests by Confederate apologists, who attempted to disrupt the ceremonies at the Richmond National Battlefield Park Civil War Center. This National Park Service site is located on the grounds of the Tredegar Iron Works, once a munitions producer for the Confederacy. The statue was sponsored by the United States Historical Society, a local nonprofit organization.

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