Posted on 11/22/2013 7:12:40 AM PST by shove_it
(CLICK THE LINK FOR A PREVIEW OF THE BOOK)
This book is a compilation of the personal remembrances of twenty-two former members of The Old Guard who participated in President Kennedy’s State Funeral in November 1963. The seven parts of this book are arranged in the chronological order in which the major ceremonial events took place: (1) Planning and Preparation, (2) Andrews AFB and Bethesda Naval Hospital, (3) Events at The White House, (4) The Capitol Building, (5) Saint Matthew’s Cathedral, (6) Arlington National Cemetery, and (7) The Gravesite and events after the burial.
This compilation of twenty-two personal memoirs of the JFK funeral is unique. It contains “insider” information not found in any other sources. Each of the former Old Guardsmen who wrote his account of the funeral saw only a small portion of the whole four-day event and wrote from their individual perspectives. Nobody saw the entire funeral, but by putting together the many viewpoints portrayed in this book, a more complete picture of the funeral emerges. The personal accounts of these twenty-two participants in the funeral are organized into seventy-four chapters arranged chronologically.
(Excerpt) Read more at jfkfuneral.com ...
Yup, there’s GB58, the Zoomie between the two Squids at the right side of the photo.
Here is a link to a five minute video produced by the US Department of Veterans Affairs to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Old Guard’s role in JFK’s Funeral. It features former Captain Tom Reid, author/editor of “Their Finest Hour” and former Pfc Andy Anderson, handler of the frisky caparisoned horse Blackjack who stole the show on TV...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkFGjqYzDwQ&feature=youtu.be
Morning Shove it, Yes I was there and Sam Bird did come down to Charlie Company in 1964 as our new XO. He soon made Captain and became our CO.
In the photo at reply #20, 1LT Sam Bird, OIC of the Joint Service Casket Team, is shown sharing the load with the team bearing that monster casket up the steps of the Capitol. That is normally not done but with eight bearers carrying over 165 pounds each up two long concrete flights of stairs, 1LT Bird pitched in. It was even more daunting carrying that load down the stairs.
Correction: those steps are likely either marble or granite rather than concrete.
Hello Shove it.
I’m glad a little interest in the nuts and bolts of the JFK funeral is being generated here. It was a huge event pulled off with no notice nor real past experience to draw on.
I never embellish on my time in the Army. I made it to the Old Guard on my qualifications as an Infantryman. However due to no open slots on casket teams I ended up taking a slot as a cook in the mess hall. I’ve never regretted it except the time I suspect having a cook’s MOS worked against me when applying for a police force job.
One good thing about being a cook, you knew a little bit about everything that was going on, but on the other hand you never became real close like the guys who worked every day as a squad.
You look fairly sharp but I’m late to this thread. I wuz a newman in Honor Guard Company so I got to stay in the barracks to join several others to watch it on tv. When the procession was crossing Memorial Bridge I got permission from our pltn/sgt to go down to the Boneyard in my greens to watch the gravesite ceremony. Cool.
Welcome to FreeRepublic, TheQuad. Were you in TOG or USAF Honor Guard?
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