On this day, December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford died.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

I liked the guy. I liked the whole family.

Along with many other residents of Alexandria, I stood in the dark and the cold to see the motorcade carrying his casket from Andrews (AFB at the time, I think; now a Joint Base) to the U.S. Capitol via the George Washington Parkway. The Suitland Parkway is far more direct, but the Ford family lived in Alexandria for many years, so the motorcade took the long way.

When the VC-25A left DC after the funeral a few days later, it flew over Alexandria. I watched it fly west against a cold clear blue sky.

Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford



Gerald Ford's remains lie in state in the United States Capitol rotunda

Date: December 30, 2006 – January 3, 2007 (state funeral)
December 27, 2006 – January 25, 2007 (mourning period)

Location: Capitol Rotunda, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Participants: Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush; Members of the 109th United States Congress; Members-elect of the 110th United States Congress

On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford, the 38th President of the United States, died at his home in Rancho Mirage, California at 6:45 p.m. local time (02:45, December 27, UTC). At 8:49 p.m. local time, President Ford's wife of 58 years, Betty Ford, issued a statement that confirmed his death: "My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather has passed away at 93 years of age. His life was filled with love of God, his family and his country." The causes of death listed on the subsequent death certificate were arteriosclerotic cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis.

At the age of 93 years and 165 days, Ford was the longest-lived U.S. president in history until November 25, 2017, when his record was then surpassed by George H. W. Bush, who lived to be past 94 years.

Ford was the second president to die during the presidency of George W. Bush, as well as the second to die in the twenty-first century, the first being Ronald Reagan.

{snip}

Tue Dec 27, 2022: On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford died.

I never noticed until now that the American History forum existed. This post belongs here.

Sun Dec 27, 2020: On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford died.

[ChazII]

1. Thank you. I never knew about

this forum either. Thank you for sharing your memory.