"I COULD STAY UP HERE FOREVER"

JFK LAID TO REST

Arlington, Virginia (JFK+50) On November 25, 1963* the 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, was laid to rest at the National Cemetery here in Arlington.  The burial spot, located just below Custis-Lee Mansion**, was chosen by Jacqueline Kennedy because it was one of her husband's favorites when he visited the cemetery.

It was originally thought that the late President would be buried in Brookline, Massachusetts, but Mrs. Kennedy's wishes prevailed.  She believed that more people would be able to visit the grave if located near the Nation's Capital.

President Kennedy had been at the cemetery just a couple of weeks before his death, on Veteran's Day.  While strolling on the green hillside, he looked at the beautiful view of the Capital city below and said...

"I could stay up here forever." 

 And so he will.

*November 25, 1963 was proclaimed a National Day of Mourning by President Lyndon B. Johnson.  It began just after 10 a.m. when JFK's casket was removed from the Capitol Rotunda by a military honor guard & placed on a horse drawn caisson.  Funeral services were held at St. Matthew's Cathedral before the procession to Arlington. 

**Custis-Lee Mansion is now known as Arlington House.  Construction was begun in 1803 by order of George Washington Custis, adopted son of George Washington & only grandson of Martha Custis Washington.  It is located in Virginia overlooking the Potomac River. 

 

Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington, Virginia

Photos by John White (2016)

WELCOME TO ARLINGTON MRS. KENNEDY

JFK+50:  Volume 7, No. 2182

REFLECTIONS ON "JACKIE": PART VII

Knoxville, Tennessee (JFK+50) JFK+50 begins the year 2017 with a review of "Jackie" starring Natalie Portman.  "Jackie" is a Fox Searchlight Pictures film directed by Pablo Larrain.

The screenplay was written by Noah Oppenheim.  Released on December 2, 2016, the movie has an "R" rating and lasts 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Moving forward in the film to a scene at Arlington National Cemetery.  The weather is rainy and misty.  A motorcade of black Lincolns pulls to a stop. Jackie steps out under umbrellas with Bobby and (Bill) Walton.  The cemetery's superintendent, John Metzler* says...

"Welcome to Arlington, Mrs. Kennedy."

After checking out a couple of potential grave sites, Mr. Metzler says...

"The third option is down...at the base of the hill."

Jackie walks out from under an umbrella into the rain...drawn toward the hill.

Bobby asks,

"Where are we going?"

Jackie answers,

"He can't just be buried anywhere.  He deserves more."

In front of the Robert E. Lee Mansion**, Mr. Metzler hands Bill Walton a wooden stake who then drives it into the ground in the center of the hill.  Jackie pulls out the stake, walks a few feet to the right and drives it back into the ground.

It is settled.

*John "Jack" C. Metzler, Sr. (1909-1990) was a Sgt. in WWII & served as superintendent of Arlington National Cemetery from 1952-1972.  He nearly doubled the size of the cemetery during his tenure adding 190 acres to the original 200.  

JCM played a major role in the selection process of the JFK gravesite & after the burial presented Mrs. Kennedy the folded interment flag from JFK's coffin.  Jack's son John C. Metzler, Jr.was ANC superintendent from 1991 to 2010.

**Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, a.k.a. Custis-Lee Mansion is a Greek revival style home adorned with imposing Athenian columns once owned by General Lee.  It was built in 1803 on the order of George Washington Parke Custis, the only grandson of Martha Custis Washington.

JFK+50 NOTE

The movie does not include the contributions of Sargent Shriver and Robert McNamara in the gravesite selection process.  Sarge, Peace Corps director, was put in charge of the funeral arrangements and it was he who contacted Superintendent Metzler about possible burial at ANC.

Secretary of Defense Bob McNamara contacted Metzler to arrange a tour of potential burial locations.  Three plots were considered, one near the mast of the USS Maine and another at Dewey Circle.  Bob Kennedy saw the third location below the Lee Mansion as "ideal" and Jackie agreed.

Their choice was enhanced when National Park Service employee Paul Fugua recalled JFK's visit to Arlington on March 3, 1963 when the President stood on the hill and said, "I could stay here forever."

SOURCES

"Jackie-Screenplay," by Script Pipeline, www.scriptpipeline.com/

"President John Fitzgerald Kennedy Gravesite," Arlington National Cemetery, www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/

Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington, Virginia

Photos by John White (2016)

ARLINGTON HOUSE

JFK+50:  Volume 6, No. 1981

NATIONAL CEMETERY ESTABLISHED 152 YEARS AGO 

Arlington, Virginia (JFK+50) 152 years ago today, June 15, 1864, 200 acres around Arlington House* were set aside as a national cemetery by order of President Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

The United States government purchased the site from the family of Confederate General Robert Edward Lee for $26,800.

Arlington National Cemetery has hosted five state funerals in its' history.  They include....

President William Howard Taft
President John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Senator Robert Francis Kennedy
Senator Edward Moore Kennedy
General John J. Pershing

The gravesite of President John F. Kennedy, located just below Arlington House, is the most visited in the cemetery.

*Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial was original known as Mount Washington but was renamed Arlington after an early Custis family plantation.  The house, modeled after a Greek temple, was the home of the Custis & Lee families until the Civil War.  The house and heights were occupied by Union troops and in 1863 it was the site of a Freedman's village.

The National Park Service acquired Arlington in 1933 & restored the house & grounds.  The house became the Custis Lee Mansion, but in 1972 was renamed Arlington House.

SOURCE

"Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial," National Park Service, US Department of the Interior Brochure.

Arlington House
Arlington National Cemetery
Photo by John White (2016)

JFK Gravesite

Arlington National Cemetery

Photo by John White (2016)