William Rehnquist

Death

Rehnquist died at his Arlington, Virginia, home on September 3, 2005, at the age of 80, after enduring a long battle with thyroid cancer. Rehnquist was the first Supreme Court justice to die in office since Justice Robert H. Jackson died in 1954 and the first Chief Justice to die in office since Fred M. Vinson died in 1953. His three children by his late wife, the former Natalie Cornell (who died from ovarian cancer in 1991), were present at his bedside. Rehnquist's passing was somewhat overshadowed by the devastation following Hurricane Katrina, which had hit the Gulf Coast less than a week prior to his death.

Related Topics:
Arlington, Virginia - September 3 - 2005 - Thyroid cancer - 1954 - Fred M. Vinson - 1953 - Hurricane Katrina

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On the morning of September 6, 2005, eight of Rehnquist's former law clerks (including his eventual successor John Roberts) helped carry Rehnquist's coffin into the Great Hall of the Supreme Court building, where it was placed on the catafalque that bore Abraham Lincoln as he lay in state following his 1865 assassination. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/06/politics/16cnd-roberts.html

Related Topics:
September 6 - 2005 - Law clerk - John Roberts - Supreme Court building - Catafalque - Abraham Lincoln - Lay in state - 1865 - Assassination

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Rehnquist's body lay in the Great Hall in repose until his funeral on September 7, a Lutheran service conducted at the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C. He was eulogized by President Bush and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, as well as by members of his family. http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/09/07/ap/headlines/d8cfke7o0.txt His funeral was followed by a private burial service, in which he was interred next to his late wife, Nan, at Arlington National Cemetery http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/04/AR2005090401066.html.

Related Topics:
Repose - September 7 - Lutheran - Roman Catholic - Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle - Washington, D.C. - Eulogized - Sandra Day O'Connor - Arlington National Cemetery

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