Abe must have smiled.

A South Carolina man, toting his state flag, mowed the lawn behind the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, now that federal groundskeepers have become casualties of the government shutdown.

The photo of Chris Cox’s volunteer duty Wednesday quickly went viral and drew positive tweets.

But his work was cut short when Park Police in three cruisers showed up and told him to move on.

“I didn’t find it a nuisance to be here. I found it my duty to be here,” Cox, 45, told The Washington Post.

He said that he wants “to encourage my friends and fellow Americans to go to their parks, and show up with a trash bag and a rake. Show up with a good attitude.”