FUNERAL TRAIN CARRIES RFK'S REMAINS TO ARLINGTON
Arlington (JFK+50) Senator Robert Francis Kennedy was laid to rest fifty years ago this evening, June 8, 1968, in a grave just thirty yards from JFK's. The grave would be marked, like so many others at Arlington, by a single white cross.
The graveside service was held at 9 p.m. making it the first night time burial in the history of Arlington National Cemetery. The reason for the late service was due to the long, slow funeral train that bore RFK's body from New York to Arlington. Millions of people lined the train route to pay silent tribute to the fallen Senator.*
Michael Scott, a 15 year old African-American, was one of those people. He said...
"The fact that (RFK) was willing to stand up for people who look like me....that spoke to me. The train was carrying the remains of our last hope."
*RFK's remains were transported from Los Angeles to New York City where the funeral services were held. They then were carried by train from NYC to Arlington on a journey of 225 miles. It is estimated that as many as two million people stood by the tracks to pay their respects.
SOURCE
"Americans remember Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train, 50 years later", CBS NEWS, June 6, 2018, www.cbsnews.com/
Arlington (JFK+50) Senator Robert Francis Kennedy was laid to rest fifty years ago this evening, June 8, 1968, in a grave just thirty yards from JFK's. The grave would be marked, like so many others at Arlington, by a single white cross.
The graveside service was held at 9 p.m. making it the first night time burial in the history of Arlington National Cemetery. The reason for the late service was due to the long, slow funeral train that bore RFK's body from New York to Arlington. Millions of people lined the train route to pay silent tribute to the fallen Senator.*
Michael Scott, a 15 year old African-American, was one of those people. He said...
"The fact that (RFK) was willing to stand up for people who look like me....that spoke to me. The train was carrying the remains of our last hope."
*RFK's remains were transported from Los Angeles to New York City where the funeral services were held. They then were carried by train from NYC to Arlington on a journey of 225 miles. It is estimated that as many as two million people stood by the tracks to pay their respects.
SOURCE
"Americans remember Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train, 50 years later", CBS NEWS, June 6, 2018, www.cbsnews.com/
RFK Gravesite
Arlington National Cemetery
Photo by John White (2017)
