Robert E. Lee's Coffin

So it turns out that, when Robert E. Lee died in October 1870 in Lexington, Virginia, there was rain, serious rain. Rain enough to wash out the dock on the river, on which was stored the most recent delivery of coffins, resulting in a problem: The late, great general had no box to be buried in.

A pair of local youths set out downstream to search for the coffins, finally finding one washed up on a small island that divided the river. This was brought back and, though it was a bit small and required Lee's boots be removed to make him fit in, was used for the burial of Robert E. Lee.

Nearly 150 years later, local artist and entrepreneur Mark Cline rediscovered the story and decided to reenact it October 2016.

Here we see Mark's styrofoam reproduction coffin resting on the island's shore, not far from where the original probably landed, after floating downstream from Jordan's Point, where the original was washed away. A fun adventure for a warm autumn day.