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 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt Attends Funeral of William Brockman Bankhead, Speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives - Jasper, AL
N 33° 50.002 W 087° 16.658
16S E 474311 N 3743714
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt Attends Funeral of William Brockman Bankhead, Speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives - Jasper, AL
Waymark Code: WMBZ5Z
Location: Alabama, United States
Date Posted: 07/06/2011
Views: 8
Marker Text:
On Tuesday, September 17, 1940, the funeral of William Brockman Bankhead, speaker of the United States House of Representatives, was held at the First United Methodist Church, Jasper. Bankhead (1874-1940) was elected to the House in 1917 and served as its speaker from 1936 until his death. He was a political ally of President Roosevelt and his New Deal policies.
Of the estimated 40,000 people who attended Bankhead’s funeral were many Alabama notables. U. S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and members of his Cabinet, and State and Congressional Representatives and Senators, including Harry S. Truman, who later served as U. S. President. They arrived in Jasper by special train from Washington D. C. A wooden ramp was built at the church so that the official car transporting the President could drive up to the main door. Today, a brass plaque marks the pew occupied by President Roosevelt during the funeral service.
Marker Name: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt Attends Funeral of William Brockman Bankhead, Speaker of the U. S. House of Representatives
Marker Type: Urban
Addtional Information::
William B. Bankhead died at the U. S. Naval Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. A short funeral service was held at 12:30 p.m. in the House of Representatives on Monday, Sept. 16, 1940. A special train for Jasper, Alabama, left Union Station, Washington, D.C. at 4:30 p.m. that afternoon and arrived at 11 a.m. in Jasper on Sept. 17th. Funeral rites were held at the First Methodist Church of Jasper where he was a member.
The President of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, along with his cabinet members, 63 members of the House of Representatives, 30 Senators and many other dignitaries attended the funeral. B. B. Speed, Chief of Police, estimated a crowd of 40,000 people who came to pay final tribute to one of Jasper's most beloved citizens.
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~alwalker/ThneBankheadFamily.htm
On the reverse side is a marker for the First United Methodist Church.
Date Dedicated / Placed: Unknown
Marker Number: None
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