The 9th senator or congressman to lie in state

John McCain will only be the 9th senator or congressman to lie in state who did not later get elected to Vice President or President. (Four are in the 19th century and four since WWII)


Daniel K. Inouye December 20, 2012
Senator Inouye was the first congressman to represent Hawaii when it became a state in 1959. He served in the U.S. Senate from 1963 until his death on December 17, 2012. Inouye was the second-longest serving senator in history and served as president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate. He was a World War II hero, given the Medal of Honor for his service.

Claude Denson Pepper June 1-2, 1989
Pepper served as U.S. Senator from Florida November 4, 1936 to January 3, 1951. He was a member of the House of Representatives from Florida from January 3, 1963, until his death on May 30, 1989, in Washington, D.C. Authority for use of the Rotunda was granted by House Concurrent Resolution 139, 101st Congress, 1st Session, agreed to May 31, 1989.

Everett McKinley Dirksen September 9-10, 1969
Member of the House of Representatives from Illinois, March 4, 1933 to January 3, 1949. U.S. Senator from Illinois, January 3, 1951, until his death. Died September 7, 1969, in Washington, D.C. Senate Resolution 254, 91st Congress, 1st Session, agreed to September 8, 1969, extended invitations to memorial service in the Rotunda, September 9, 1969.

Robert A. Taft August 2-3, 1953
Taft served as U.S. Senator from Ohio, January 3, 1939, until his death. He Died July 31, 1953, in New York City, during 83rd Congress, 1st Session, Senate Resolution 158, 83rd Congress, 1st Session, agreed to August 1, 1953, extended invitation to the memorial service in the Rotunda, August 3, 1953.


John A. Logan December 30-31, 1886
Logan was a member of House of Representatives from Illinois, March 4, 1859, to April 2, 1862, when he resigned to enter the Union Army, and again from March 4, 1867, until March 3, 1871. He served as U.S. Senator from Illinois, March 4, 1871, to March 3, 1877, and again from March 4, 1879, to December 26, 1886. Logan died on December 26, 1886, in Washington, D.C., during the 49th Congress, 2nd Session. No resolution.

Charles Sumner March 13, 1874
Sumner served as U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, April 24, 1851, until his death, March 11, 1874. He died in Washington, D.C., during the 43rd Congress. No resolution.

Thaddeus Stevens August 13-14, 1868
Stevens was a member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, March 4, 1849, to March 3, 1853, and again from March 4, 1859, until his death on August 11, 1868. He died in Washington, D.C., during recess of the 40th Congress, 2nd Session and lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda. No resolution.

Henry Clay July 1, 1852
Henry Clay was a member of the House of Representatives for five non- consecutive terms (1811-25). He served as Speaker of the House in 1811-14, 1815-20 and 1823- 25. He was Secretary of State from 1825 to 1829. Clay also served as U.S. Senator from Kentucky intermittently for 18 years between 1806 and 1852. He died June 29, 1852, in Washington, D.C. during the 32nd Congress, 1st Session, becoming the first person honored by a funeral ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda. No resolution.

Law enacted in 1923 after the death of President Harding provides that every president is entitled to a state funeral and to have his body lie in state.
However, the law also provides that the decision as to whether this entitlement will be accepted is left to the family of the late president with input from congressional leaders. President Nixon's family (like those of Presidents Wilson, Coolidge, Franklin Roosevelt, and Truman) chose not to accept the honor.


Gerald R. Ford Jr. December 30, 2006 – January 2, 2007
Ronald Wilson Reagan June 9-11, 2004
Dwight D. Eisenhower March 30-31, 1969
Herbert Clark Hoover October 23-25, 1964
John F. Kennedy November 24-25, 1963
William Howard Taft March 11, 1930
Warren G. Harding August 8, 1923
William McKinley, Jr. September 17, 1901 assassinated
James A. Garfield September 21-23, 1881 assassinated
Abraham Lincoln April 19-21, 1865 assassinated

Hubert H. Humphrey January 14-15, 1978 Vice President of the United States from January 20, 1965 to January 20, 1969.
Henry Wilson November 25-26, 1875 Vice President from March 4, 1873, until his death on November 22, 1875.

I'm not too sure about that. Electing a corpse just might be a better choice than some live candidates have been.