Evening star., 1945-05-06
BY John Clagett Proctor


east room, where burial services for
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
were recently held, has been the scene
of many historic events, both national
and worldwide. Indeed, in way it is
silent reminder of all our great wars,
except the American Revolution, of
numerous gala occasions, and, alas, of
many of our saddest hours as we'll.
The ringing laughter of children and
the enthusiastic gladness of their elders,
only too often-sometimes without even
a moments warning-have given way
to bereavement and mourning, only too
soon to be forgotten In turn by the
thousands who have annually entered
its doors. However, it would seem that
the outstanding events which have oc
Cured here include the more notable
marriages and deaths, and of the latter
the first person recorded as dying here
was William Henry Harrison, who passed
into the great beyond on April 4, 1841,
just one month to the day after he
was inaugurated President. His death
being due, it is said, to his being worried
too much by Office seekers, though pneu-
monia was actually the cause. OF course,
where one has the opportunity to do
so, it is always best to seek information
from original sources, and this the
writer did when he found in the press
of April S, 1841, the following account
of Mr.. Harrison's demise:
Death of President Harrison
President William Henry Harrison
died at the Presidents House. in this
city, this fourth day of April. Ammo
Donlini 1841, at 80 minutes before l
o'clock in the morning.
"" The week before last, pursu-
ing the practice of his active life, and
his habit of early rising and exercise
the President. in the course of a long
walk before breakfast, was overtaken by
a slight shower, and got wet. The fol-
lowing day he felt symptoms of indispo-
stion, which were followed by pneu-
monia, or bilious pleurisy, which ulti-
Hately baf1ed all medical skill, and
terminated his virtuous useful and illus
trious life.''
! His <attending physician was DR..
Thomas Miller, who then lived on the
north side of E street between Thir-
teenth and Fourteenth streets, and the
consulting physicians were Drs. Fred
erick May, H. W. Worthington and
Ashton Alexander.
We are told that soon after his death
-yas announced almost every private
iwelling placed crepe upon the knockel
and hall-handle of its door, and many
of the very humblest abodes hung out
some spontaneous signal of the general
5orroW'
On the day of the funeral, which
took place from the east room of the
White House, all stores and places OF
business in Washington were closed
The religious services we're conducted
by the Rev. w. Hawley, pastor of ST.
Johns Episcopal Church, at H and
Sixteenth streets, and the body was
temporarily placed in the receiving vault
of Congressional Cemetery.
Letitia Tyler
The next bereavement came to Pres
dent John Tyler, when his wife, Letitia
led on September 10, 1842.
Upon the death OF Letitia Tyler, the
ational Intelligencer paid her the fol-
1wing beautiful tribute:
The most estimable lady was, in life
more truly than we can represent her
IN words, wife, a mother, and a
Christian-loving and confding to her
husband-gentle and affectionate to
her children-kind and charitable to
the needy and the afflicted. Deeply i'm
pressed in early life by her highly re-
spected and pious parents with the
truthful and heavenly doctrines of the
meek Jesus, in all her actions, with
whatever sphere in life connected, self
was forgotten by her, and the good
of others alone remembered, which won
for her wherever she was known the
love and esteem of all.
THE funeral ceremony for the late
amented consort of the President o1
he United States took place at the
Presidents Mansion yesterday at
o'clock, according to the previous an.
:louncement. Divine service was per-
formed on the occasion by Rev. Mr.
Hawley, in the presence of large ano
most respectable assembly of sympa-
thizing friends, among whom were a
number of members of Congress and
all the principal officers of Govern
ment. The corporate councils and
chief officers of the city also attended
in pursuance of formal resolutions.
u. S. S. Princeton Disaster
Nearly year-and-a-half later, or or
February %, 1874, one of the mos
tragic marine disasters on the Potoma,
River occurred in the vicinity of ole
Fort Washington, and which, strang.
to say, ended in a most beautiful
romance.
The calamity occurred aboard th'
U. S. S. Princeton, brand-new vessel
the first screw propeller steamship bull
for the Navy. which had just beer
put into commission, and due to tn,
bursting of gun aboard the vessel
the following were killed: Abel P
Upshur, Secretary of State; Thoma.
w. Gilmer, Secretary of the Navy
Commodore Beverly Kennon, vir.
gil Naxey Of the diplomatic service
and Mr.. Gardiner, formerly a mem.
Der of the New York StatA Senate