The Last Salute: Civil and Military Funeral, 1921-1969

CHAPTER XXV

Former President Herbert C. Hoover
State Funeral
20-25 October 1964

At the age of ninety Herbert Clark Hoover, the thirty-first President of the United States, died in his suite at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City shortly before noon on 20 October 1964. The former President would be accorded a State Funeral with full military honors.

At the time of Mr. Hoover's death contingency funeral plans following policies established in 1958 and incorporating the wishes of the Hoover family al­ready had been prepared. According to the scheduled sequence of events, Mr. Hoover's body was to be moved under escort on 21 October from the funeral home to St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church in New York City, where it was to remain until the funeral service took place in the late afternoon of the 22d. On the 23d the body of the former President was to be escorted from the church to Pennsylvania Station for movement by special train to Washington, D.C. Upon arrival in Washington, the casket was to be taken in procession to the Capitol, and there the former President was to lie in state in the rotunda until the morning of 25 October. At that time the body was to be escorted to Washington National Airport and then flown to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. From there a motor procession would escort the body to West Branch, Iowa, Mr. Hoover's home town, where burial would take place on the grounds of the Herbert Hoover Library during the afternoon of the 25th.

Responsibility for arranging and conducting the ceremonies rested with the major Army commands in which the three ceremonial sites were located. The Commanding General, First U.S. Army, Lt. Gen. Robert W. Porter, Jr., was responsible for the ceremonies in New York City; Maj. Gen. Philip C. Wehle, commanding the Military District of Washington, had charge of ceremonies in Washington; and responsibility for the ceremonies in Iowa fell to Lt. Gen. Charles G. Dodge, the Commanding General, Fifth US Army. General Wehle had the added responsibility of coordinating all the ceremonies.

According to plan, trained ceremonial troops from the Washington area were sent to New York City to assist the First Army commander as body bearers, color guards, and part of the guard of honor. Other troops for the guard of honor, which totaled seventy men, were provided by First Army. The Washington con-

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tingent was a joint service group of two officers and eleven enlisted men from the Army; one officer and ten enlisted men each from the Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force; and one officer and eight enlisted men from the Coast Guard. These troops left Andrews Air Force Base at 1400 and arrived at St. Bartholomew's Church at 1630 on 20 October. Along with the First Army guard of honor troops, they were billeted in the Community House, adjacent to the church; their meals were provided by the First Army Senior Noncommissioned Officer and Specialist Mess at Governors Island.

Under police escort Mr. Hoover's body was taken from the hotel suite to the Presbyterian Memorial Hospital for an autopsy supervised by the First Army mortuary officer. At 1635 on the 20th the mortuary officer and a police escort took the body to the Universal Funeral Chapel; at 2145 it was placed in the main chapel of the funeral home, and a relief of the guard of honor was posted. The casket was left open. A few minutes later Herbert C. Hoover, Jr., arrived; after his visit the casket was sealed and would not be opened again.

At 0300 on 21 October, the casket, accompanied by the First Army mortuary officer and police, was moved by hearse from the chapel to St. Bartholomew's Church. The body bearer team, which was waiting at the church entrance, carried it into the chancel and placed it on the replica of the Lincoln catafalque that had been sent from Washington. A relief of the guard of honor took post immediately. Later in the morning, at 0900, the church was opened to the public and remained open until 1530. On 22 October the church again was open to the public from 0900 until 1500 and from 1700 until 2100. It was closed for two hours during the afternoon for the funeral service. Some 22,000 people paid their respects.

In executing the plans for the funeral service at St. Bartholomew's on 22 October, a possible seating problem arose. Before Mr. Hoover's death a list of per­sons who would be invited to attend the various funeral ceremonies had been pre pared in the office of the Secretary of the General Staff, First Army. Copies with later changes made by the Hoover family had been sent to the family and to agencies involved in the funeral arrangements. Some 1,400 invitations were issued: 1,000 by the Hoover family, 300 by the Department of State to diplomatic personnel, and 100 by the White House for the Presidential representative and his group. Since the invitations had not required an answer, there was no way of estimating the number that would attend, and the church held 1,100. As it turned out, only 15 of the 300 diplomatic personnel actually appeared at the church, and only 583 of the invitations issued by the Hoover family were used. As a result, the church was scarcely two-thirds full during the service.

On 21 October when President Johnson announced that he would attend the service at St. Bartholomew's elaborate security preparations suddenly became necessary. These preparations involved the secret service, Armed Forces Police, and New York City Police Department and necessitated closing the church at

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1500 on 22 October while the building was thoroughly inspected before the funeral service.

President Johnson and his party arrived at the church about 1620. Other distinguished guests attending included Hubert H. Humphrey, Barry M. Goldwater, William E. Miller, Thomas E. Dewey, Richard M. Nixon, John B. Connally, and Robert F. Kennedy. In the family group were Mr. Hoover's two sons, their wives, and the former President's six grandchildren. The Reverend Terence J. Finlay, rector of St. Bartholomew's and personal friend and neighbor of the Hoover family, conducted a brief funeral service; at its conclusion, the church was reopened to the public.

On 23 October, in preparation for the motorcade to Pennsylvania Station, troops began to assemble outside St. Bartholomew's at 0730. They included a joint service honor cordon, which would line the church steps, a company of cadets from the US Military Academy, and the US Military Academy Band. (Table 25)

Members of the Hoover family and their friends arrived at the church between 0815 and 0845. The body bearer team from the Military District of Washington, preceded by the national color detail and the clergy and followed by the President's flag bearer, then brought the casket out of the church. At the top of the steps leading from the church to Park Avenue, the body bearers halted while the band sounded ruffles and flourishes and played "Hail to the Chief." When the band began the hymn "Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Dwelling Place," the body bearers carried the casket down the steps through the honor cordon and placed it in a hearse.

The family and friends entered automobiles, as did the escort commander, Maj. Gen. John F. R. Seitz, Acting Commander, First Army, his staff, the clergy, the national color detail, the personal flag bearer, and the body bearers. The motorcade of eighteen limousines and hearse then left for Pennsylvania Station.

At the station, the body bearers removed the casket from the hearse and carried it to an elevator to be lowered to the track platform. The escort commander and his staff, the clergy, the national color detail, and the personal flag bearer also reached the track by elevator but the family group used a different route. On the platform, a joint service honor cordon lined the way from the elevator to the funeral car in the special train. After the family group and the escort commander and staff took positions near the funeral car, the body bearers, preceded by the national color detail and clergy, and followed by the personal flag bearer, took the casket through the honor cordon and placed it aboard the funeral car. The car was then sealed. The family group of about 150 people boarded the train, which departed for Washington at 0935.

The train was scheduled to reach Washington at 1335. A half hour ahead of the arrival time, troops organized by the Military District of Washington to participate in the arrival ceremony took position at Union Station. (Table 26) From

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Track 17, on which the immediate family and funeral cars would enter the station, a joint service honor cordon lined the platform and station concourse to and through the east entrance. Waiting on the platform along Track 17 were General Wehle, who was the escort commander, the clergy, national color detail, personal flag bearer, and a joint service body bearer team. In formation outside the station entrance were the special honor guard, composed of the chairman and members of the joint Chiefs of Staff; the US Coast Guard Band; the caisson and caisson detachment from the 3d Infantry; and a 3d Infantry soldier with a caparisoned

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TABLE 26-TROOP LIST, ARRIVAL CEREMONY AT UNION STATION,
WASHINGTON, DC, FOR FORMER PRESIDENT HERBERT C. HOOVER

horse. Other troops, all from the 3d Infantry, included a security cordon and a group to control members of the press.

Two elements of the military escort for the procession from Union Station to the Capitol also were at the station in position to lead the way. These were the commander of troops, Col. Joseph Conmy, Jr., commanding officer of the 3d Infantry, and his joint service staff of five and the US Army Band. The troop units themselves had begun to assemble at noon on the three blocks of Delaware Avenue between the station and the East Plaza of the Capitol, the route to be taken by the procession. Since the distance was short, the troop units were to remain stationary instead of marching in the procession. (Table 27)

The escort troops, organized as two march units, were on line along the east side of the avenue, facing the center of the street. At the north end of the line, adjacent to the Union Station Plaza, were the first march unit commander (Army) and a joint service staff of five. In order, to the south, were a company from each of the service academies; a company each from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard; and a composite company of service­women. Next, to the south, were the second march unit commander (Army National Guard) and a staff of five representing the reserve components of all five uniformed services. Below them was a company each from the Army National Guard, Army Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air National

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TABLE 27-TROOP LIST, MAIN PROCESSION IN WASHINGTON, DC,
FOR FORMER PRESIDENT HERBERT C. HOOVER

Guard, Air Force Reserve, and Coast Guard Reserve. Completing the line at the southern end were representatives of eight veterans' organizations. (Diagram 86) On either side of Delaware Avenue was a cordon of security troops to keep the route clear. To the west of the avenue, the 3d Infantry battery was in position at Louisiana Avenue and D Street where it was to fire a 21-gun salute as the procession moved to the Capitol.

The funeral train reached Union Station at 1325,. ten minutes ahead of schedule, but the timing of the ceremonies was not affected. President and Mrs. John­son were on the platform to greet the Hoover family when the funeral cars were brought in on Track 17. The group moved through the honor cordon to positions outside the east entrance. The body bearer team meanwhile removed the casket from the train and placed it on a church truck. In procession, the escort commander leading, followed by the national color detail, the clergy, the body bearers with the casket, and the personal flag bearer, Mr. Hoover's body was taken be-

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Diagram 86. Military escort formation.

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tween the ranks of the honor cordon to the area outside the east entrance. The members of the honor cordon presented arms in ripples as the national color detail approached and ordered arms when the personal flag bearer had passed. Outside, the procession moved to positions near the Hoover family and waited. (Diagram 87)

As the procession halted, the honor cordon presented arms. The Coast Guard

Diagram 87. Arrival ceremony, Union Station, Washington, DC

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PROCESSION LEAVES UNION STATION

Band then sounded ruffles and flourishes and played "Hail to the Chief" and the hymn "The Light of God is Falling." On the first note of the hymn, the national color detail moved to a position in front of the caisson, and the body bearers, accompanied by the personal flag bearer, transferred the casket from the church truck to the caisson. When the casket was on the caisson, the band stopped playing, the honor cordon ordered arms, and the procession formed for the move to the Capitol.

General Wehle, as escort commander, led the procession, followed by the commander of troops with his staff, the Army Band, the special honor guard in three limousines, and the national color detail, clergy, and caisson. Following the caisson were the personal flag bearer, the groom with the caparisoned horse, the Hoover family in two limousines, President Johnson with a secret service escort, former Vice President Nixon, and five cars of other dignitaries. Former Presidents Truman and Eisenhower had planned to participate in the ceremonies, but illness prevented their attendance. (Diagram 88)

As the column moved south on Delaware Avenue across the front of the escort units, each escort company presented arms when the national color detail was

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Diagram 88. Order of march, Union Station to the Capitol.

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PROCESSION MOVES ALONG DELAWARE AVENUE

twelve steps to the company's right flank and ordered arms when the rear of the caisson passed the company's left flank. As the lead horse pulling the caisson entered Delaware Avenue from the Union Station Plaza, the 3d Infantry battery fired the first round of the 21-gun salute. The rounds were spaced so that the last was fired when the caisson was about to cross Constitution Avenue and enter the East Plaza of the Capitol. As the caisson crossed the avenue, forty-eight Air Force jet fighter planes in clusters of three passed overhead. When the cortege entered the East Plaza, the commander of troops, Colonel Conmy, and his staff and the Army Band continued to march until they were out of the ceremonial area. The remainder of the cortege halted in front of the Senate wing steps, which would be used in taking the former President's casket into the Capitol. The main stairway leading directly to the rotunda could not be used because inaugural platforms were under construction there.

Military formations not with the cortege but scheduled to participate in the ceremony at the Capitol had taken position at 1400. (Table 28) A joint service honor cordon lined the Senate wing steps, and the US Marine Band was in for-

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CAISSON ARRIVES AT EAST PLAZA

mation on the plaza just to the left of the steps. Inside the Capitol a joint service guard of honor was ready to post its first relief as soon as the casket was placed on the Lincoln catafalque, which had been set up in the center of the rotunda. Already in the rotunda were committees representing the various departments and agencies of the federal government, and representatives of the diplomatic corps.

By 1430 the Hoover family and others who had accompanied the procession from Union Station were in their respective positions at the foot of the Senate wing steps. (Diagram 89) At the signal of the site control officer, the officer in charge of the honor cordon ordered his troops to present arms. The Marine Band then sounded ruffles and flourishes, played "Hail to the Chief," and began "America the Beautiful." At the first note, the body bearers removed the casket from the caisson. The escort commander, General Wehle, led the special honor guard up the Senate wing steps to start the procession into the Capitol. Joining the column in order were the national color detail, the clergy, the body bearers with the casket, the personal flag bearer, the Hoover family, and other mourners. When the procession had entered the Capitol, the band ceased playing and the honor cordon ordered arms.

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TABLE 28-TROOP LIST, ARRIVAL CEREMONY AT THE US CAPITOL
AND LYING IN STATE PERIOD FOR FORMER PRESIDENT HERBERT C. HOOVER

Inside the Senate wing entrance, the body bearers placed the casket on a church truck. The procession then continued through the east hallway to the east entrance foyer to the rotunda. There the body bearers lifted the casket from the church truck and the procession entered. Inside the rotunda the Hoover family and other mourners were guided to positions while the national color detail, clergy, and personal flag bearer accompanied the casket as the body bearers carried it in a semicircular route to the center of the rotunda and placed it on the Lincoln catafalque. The Reverend Frederick Brown Harris, chaplain of the Senate, took a position near the foot of the bier; the national colors and personal flag were posted, the first relief of the guard of honor took position at the bier, and the body bearers were dismissed. (Diagram 90)

Chaplain Harris delivered a short eulogy, after which President Johnson placed a wreath at the base of the bier. Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Kenneth L. Ames of the Military District of Washington pronounced the benediction, concluding the brief rotunda ceremony a few minutes after 1500. While the rotunda cleared, the Hoover family inspected the arrangements for the lying in state period. After the

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Diagram 89. Arrival ceremony at the Capitol.

departure of the family, the rotunda was opened to the public from 1530 until 2100.

On 24 October the rotunda again was opened to the public between the hours of 0900 and 2100. Over the two days approximately 30,000 people filed past the bier. Throughout the lying in state period the joint service guard of honor maintained a constant vigil, changing reliefs each thirty minutes.

On 25 October the last ceremonies in Washington for former President Hoover were scheduled to begin at 0930. At that time the casket was to be carried from the rotunda of the Capitol and taken in a motorized procession to Washington National Airport, where a departure ceremony would be conducted as the casket was put aboard an Air Force C-130 transport for the flight to Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Participating troops at both the Capitol and the airport were in position by 0900. Those at the Capitol included the escort commander, General Wehle, and a special honor guard, this time composed of two general or flag officers from each of the uniformed services. A joint service honor cordon again lined the Senate

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CASKET IS CARRIED THROUGH JOINT HONOR CORDON

wing steps. The US Navy Band was in formation on the plaza to the left of the steps. Waiting inside the Capitol were the body bearers, national color detail, personal flag bearer, and Chaplain Ames. A hearse and other vehicles for the motorcade also were in place on the plaza, and the entire ceremonial area outside the Capitol was cordoned off by troops to keep it clear. (Table 29)

The Hoover family group and other dignitaries began to arrive at the Capitol at 0915. President Johnson, who was unable to attend the ceremony, designated as his representatives Secretary of State Dean Rusk and Under Secretary of Commerce Clarence D. Martin. By 0930 all of these participants had been guided to positions at the base of the Senate wing steps. (Diagram 91)

At that hour, the guard of honor at the bier in the rotunda was dismissed, and the body bearers secured the casket and placed it on a church truck. Then the procession, with the national color detail and clergy preceding the casket and the personal flag bearer following it, left by the east door of the rotunda and moved down the east hallway to the Senate wing entrance.
As the national color detail appeared in the doorway, the honor cordon pre-

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Diagram 90. Formation in the rotunda.

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PRESIDENT JOHNSON PLACES A WREATH DURING CEREMONY IN THE ROTUNDA

TABLE 29-TROOP LIST, DEPARTURE CEREMONY AT THE US CAPITOL
FOR FORMER PRESIDENT HERBERT C. HOOVER

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Diagram 91. Departure ceremony at the Capitol.

sented arms. After the body bearers had taken the casket to the top of the steps, they halted while the Navy Band sounded honors. When the band started the hymn "Abide With Me," the body bearers lifted the casket from the church truck and the procession continued down the steps through the honor cordon to the hearse. After the casket had been placed in the hearse, the music ceased, the honor cordon ordered arms, and the Hoover family and others scheduled to accompany the cortege to the airport entered their automobiles.

General Wehle occupied the lead vehicle of the motorcade. In the cars behind him were the special honor guard followed by the hearse, then cars carrying the Hoover family, President Johnson's representatives, and other dignitaries. The motorcade reached the Military Air Transport Service Terminal at Washington National Airport at 0955. (Diagram 92)

A street cordon lined the access road to the terminal, and at the airport a security cordon ringed the ceremonial area to keep it clear. (Diagram 93) Inside

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CASKET IS CARRIED FROM THE CAPITOL

this area the US Air Force Band was in formation and a joint service honor cordon lined the way from the point at which the hearse would stop to the air­craft itself. In a position near the ceremonial area was the 3d Infantry saluting battery. (Table 30)

As the motorcade traveled the access road to the terminal, the members of the street cordon presented arms individually when the hearse was twelve paces away and ordered arms when it had passed. The 3d Infantry battery fired the first round of a 21-gun salute as the hearse began its passage through the street cordon; the remaining rounds were spaced so that the last was fired as the hearse stopped in the ceremonial area.

After the hearse stopped, the body bearers, who, along with the national color detail and personal flag bearer, had traveled from the Capitol to the airfield separately to arrive ahead of the cortege, took position at the rear of the hearse. The other vehicles in the cortege were driven to a parking area on a ramp to the rear of the ceremonial area. The passengers then dismounted and were guided to positions for the departure ceremony.

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Diagram 92. Route of march, Capitol to Washington National Airport.

When all participants were in position, the honor cordon presented arms and the band sounded honors. As the band began the hymn "Now the Day is Over," the body bearers removed the casket from the hearse and in procession, the national color detail leading, the casket and the personal flag bearer following, the casket was carried through the honor cordon and aboard the plane. (Diagram 94) The music stopped and the troops ordered arms. The ceremonial troops, except the body bearers, national color detail, and personal flag bearer, then marched away from the cordoned area.

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Diagram 93. Street cordon, Washington National Airport.

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The body bearers, color detail, and flag bearer all boarded the plane bearing the casket; they would participate in the ceremonies in Iowa. After they were aboard, the plane was towed out of the area, and three other aircraft were brought in to take aboard the Hoover family and others, in all sixty-four people, making the flight to Iowa. The four planes were airborne by 1030.

Lt. Gen. Charles G. Dodge, commanding the Fifth US Army, directed the ceremonies in Iowa. To carry out his responsibility, he established the Fifth Army Detachment at the Cedar Rapids Municipal Airport, staffing it with officers and men from Army headquarters in Chicago and placing it under his deputy commander, Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Bastion, Jr. Additional officers for such functions as liaison and information were made available from the XIV US Army Corps, which had headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Besides these staff members, the Fifth US Army Band participated in the Iowa ceremonies. All other troops involved were provided by the Iowa Army National Guard, as arranged through Maj. Gen. Junior Franklin Miller, the Adjutant General of the state of Iowa. (Table 31)

For the arrival ceremony at the Cedar Rapids airport, a security cordon of

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CASKET ARRIVES AT WASHINGTON NATIONAL AIRPORT, above.
CASKET IS CARRIED TO THE PLANE, below.

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Diagram 94. Departure ceremony, Washington National Airport.

Army National Guard troops sealed off the area. These troops along with the 34th US Army Band and General Dodge, the escort commander, were in position at the airfield by 1300. Contrary to custom, no honor cordon was organized for the arrival ceremony.

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The four aircraft from Washington landed at Cedar Rapids shortly before 1400. The plane bearing Mr. Hoover's body, the body bearers, the national color detail, the personal flag bearer, and floral tributes that had been on display during the ceremonies in Washington was guided to the proper position in the ceremonial area, while the three aircraft carrying the family group and other mourners were parked near the terminal building outside the area.

While the site control officer went aboard the plane to brief the body bearers and color bearers, General Dodge and other escort officers guided the family and friends to positions for the ceremony. As the body bearers appeared at the door of the plane with the casket, the band sounded ruffles and flourishes and played "Hail to the Chief." When the hymn "Fight the Good Fight" was begun, the body bearers carried the casket from the plane. The procession formed, with the national color detail leading off and followed by Dr. D. Elton Trueblood, professor of philosophy at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, and a friend of the Hoover family, the casket, and the personal flag bearer. (Diagram 95)

TABLE 31-TROOP LIST, IOWA, CEREMONY FOR
FORMER PRESIDENT HERBERT C. HOOVER

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Diagram 95. Arrival ceremony, Municipal Airport, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

When the procession reached the hearse and the casket was placed inside, the body bearers and color bearers immediately moved to vehicles reserved for them at the edge of the ceremonial area. At the same time, floral vans furnished with out charge by local funeral directors were driven to the plane and loaded with the

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flowers brought from Washington. Police then escorted these vehicles to West Branch so that they would reach the gravesite ahead of the cortege.

Meanwhile General Dodge and escort officers ushered the family and other mourners to their vehicles for the motorcade to West Branch. The procession left the airfield about 1415, General Dodge leading, followed by the clergy, the hearse, and the family and other mourners in thirteen limousines also provided by local funeral directors. Moving over State Route 84, US 218, and Interstate 80, the motorcade reached the gravesite a few minutes after 1500. (Diagram 96)

On the grounds of the Herbert Hoover Library some 75,000 people had assembled for the service. A security cordon of National Guard troops surrounded the gravesite and a small group of Guardsmen controlled the movement of members of the press. The Fifth US Army Band stood in formation at the grave, and shortly before 1500 the body bearers and color bearers, arriving from Cedar Rap­ids, joined the band. All were in position for the ceremony when the procession entered the library grounds. (Diagram 97)

The cortege halted on the circular driveway at the library, with the hearse

Diagram 96. Route of march, Cedar Rapids to West Branch, Iowa.

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Diagram 97. Arrival of cortege at the Hoover Library.

standing at the pathway to the grave. General Dodge and his assistants escorted the Hoover family and other mourners from their automobiles to the hearse. When they were in place, the band sounded honors, then played "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." As the hymn began, the body bearers took the casket from the hearse. The procession then moved to the grave, with General Dodge leading, and the national color detail, clergy, body bearers with the casket, personal flag bearer, the Hoover family, and other mourners following. Escort officers guided the family group and other mourners to their positions at the graveside. (Diagram 98)

Dr. Trueblood opened the service by asking for a period of meditation and then offered a prayer. He next delivered a short eulogy at the end of which he pronounced the benediction. General Dodge laid a Presidential wreath at the head of the grave, and a bugler from the Fifth Army Band sounded taps. A 21­gun salute had been scheduled but was canceled at the request of the Hoover family. When the bugler finished, the body bearers folded the flag that had draped the casket and presented it to General Dodge, who in turn handed it to

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CASKET IS CARRIED TO THE GRAVE ON GROUNDS OF HERBERT HOOVER LIBRARY, above.
Dr. Trueblood conducts the burial service, below.

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Herbert Hoover, Jr., concluding the final rites for former President Hoover. At 1535 the family members and other mourners went to the cars that would take them to the Cedar Rapids airport from which they would leave for their homes.

After the library grounds were clear a security guard was posted at the grave, which would not be sealed until the late Mrs. Hoover, who had been buried in California, could be reburied beside her husband. (This was accomplished on 31 October.) When the guard had taken post, the public was permitted to file past the grave. At sunset on 25 October, a winding line of people still was moving slowly past the final resting place of the nation's thirty-first President.

Diagram 98. Formation at the graveside.

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