George H.W. Bush will join the ranks of former presidents, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses Grant, Franklin Roosevelt and Dwight Eisenhower and be taken in a presidential funeral train to his final resting place on Thursday.
The 70 mile rail journey will be the final mode of transport in an elaborate week long ceremony planned with military procession and involving the Air Force’s flagship jet, Air Force One, which arrived in Houston Sunday and will fly Bush’s body to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Monday morning.
The locomotive chosen for his final journey, to the site of his presidential library at Texas A&M University, was tailored made in Bush’s honor in 2005 and the president marveled over the train as it was unveiled to him in October of that year.
The train bears the number 4141 in Bush’s honor. The train will escort the 41st president to his final resting place on the site of his presidential library on Thursday. Train is seen above Sunday being prepared
Texas A&M University said Saturday that the president’s casket would be unloaded at a railroad stop near campus. A Twitter user shared a video Sunday ( astill from it is seen above) of the train blasting through Sweet Home, Arkansas, as it headed to Spring, Texas
The route that the train will take beginning at Spring and ending at College Station.
The Union Pacific locomotive, painted the same blue colors that adorned Air Force One during Bush’s presidency was custom built for George W.H.Bush (pictured above at its unveiling in October 2005)
On that October day in 2005, the former president looked excited and smiled and said the word ‘wow’ as the locomotive was shown to him for the first time, according to the Star Tribune.
The Union Pacific locomotive, painted the same blue colors that adorned Air Force One during Bush’s presidency, stands nearly 16 feet tall and bears the number 4141 in honor of the 41st president.
Bush was said to be fascinated by the train’s mechanics and asked whether he could take it for a spin.
He was allowed to so do, after some brief training, and operated the locomotive for a couple of miles under the supervision of an engineer.
Bush had shown a passion for trains since he was a boy and enjoyed childhood travels with his family.
‘We just rode on the railroads all the time, and I’ve never forgotten it,’ the AP quoted Bush as saying at the time.
Bush said ‘wow’ when he saw the train. He had a passion for trains since he was a boy and enjoyed childhood travels with his family
Bush (pictured in the cab of the Union Pacific Locomotive 4141 was said to be fascinated by the train’s mechanics and asked whether he could take it for a spin. The answer was yes
‘It’s an opportunity for a large swath of the population to pay their final respects to someone who has done so much for our country,’ Scott Moore, a Union Pacific senior vice president, said in a press release Saturday about the plans for Bush’s funeral week. ‘Having a train like this pulled by a locomotive specifically about this man is just really unprecedented.’
The route, as outlined by Union Pacific Railroad, will pass through Hufsmith, Pinehurst, Magnolia, Todd Mission, Stoneham, Navasota, Millican and Wellborn.
The locomotive, which can travel up to 70 mph, will move slower than usual track speed and will not make any stops along the way.
The Union Pacific locomotive, painted the same blue colors that adorned Air Force One during Bush’s presidency and stands nearly 16 feet tall
The train can travel up to 70 mph. It will move slower than usual track speed on Thursday as it carries the former president’s remains and will not make any stops along the way.A Twitter user shared a video Sunday ( astill from it is seen above) of the train blasting through Sweet Home, Arkansas, as it headed to Spring, Texas
The train ride will be the culmination of a long list of ceremonies honoring the life of the 41st president, who died Friday, aged 94.
Funeral proceedings begin at 9:45 a.m. on Monday with a departure ceremony from the George H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home on Bering to Ellington Field.
Around 10:30 a.m., there will be another departure ceremony at Ellington Field.
The former president’s remains will then be flown in Air Force One to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, with an arrival ceremony to be held Monday afternoon.
Bush will be taken to the U.S. Capitol where he will lie in state in the rotunda with a guard of honor in attendance.
After some brief training Bush operated the locomotive for a couple of miles under the supervision of an engineer
He is expected to arrive at the Capitol building at 5:00 pm on Monday. The public will be welcome to pay their respects from 7:30 p.m. until 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday.
At the Capitol, Bush’s remains will lie on a wooden structure that was constructed for Abraham Lincoln to lie in state after his assassination in 1865.
The casket will be guarded at each of its corners by a serviceperson, one from each of the branches of the armed forces.
A state funeral will be held on Wednesday at 11 a.m. at the Washington National Cathedral. Trump and first lady Melania will attend.
Afterward, Bush will be flown back to Houston to lie in repose at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church before a service there at 10 a.m. Thursday.
Following the funeral service the train is scheduled to depart at 1 p.m. from the Union Pacific Railroad Westfield Auto Facility. It will be closed to the public.
Texas A&M University said Saturday that the president’s casket would be unloaded at a railroad stop near campus. The funeral procession will then travel down George Bush Drive, with a brief arrival ceremony followed by a private interment. The campus will be closed Thursday.
Bush will be interned next to his wife and daughter Robin at 4:15 p.m.
The former president passed away Friday at the age of 94, surrounded by family members at his home in Houston, Texas.
Locomotive No. 1414 stands outside Kyle Field at Texas A&M University on October 19, 2005. The train will take President Bush to his resting place on the site of his presidential library at the university