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In April 1945, the funeral traincarrying the body of Franklin D. Roosevelt embarked on a three-day, thousand-mile odyssey through nine states before reaching the president'shome where he was buried. Many whowould recall the journey later would agree it was a foolhardy idea to start with - putting every important elected figure in Washington on a single train during the biggest war in history. For the American people, of course, the funeral train was just that - the train bearing the body of deceased FDR. It passed with darkened windows; few gave thought to what might be happening aboard. A closer lookinside the train, however,would reveal a Soviet spy about to leak a state secret, a newly widowed Eleanor Roosevelt, who just found out that her husband's mistress was in the room when he died, and the entirefamily ofincoming president Harry S Truman. The thrilling story of what took place behind the Pullman shades, where women whispered and men tossed back highballs, has never been told. On the occasion of the sixty-fifth anniversary of FDR's death, Klara chronicles the action-packed threeiday train ride during which, among other things, Truman hammered out the policies that would galvanize a country in mourning and win the Second World War.
- Sales Rank: #137896 in Books
- Brand: Klara, Robert
- Published on: 2011-06-21
- Released on: 2011-06-21
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.17" h x .70" w x 6.14" l, .67 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 272 pages
Review
“Klara revives a long-forgotten event with precision and pathos, allowing readers a coveted Pullman berth for a ride through three of this country's darkest yet most formative days.” ―Gay Talese, author of A Writer's Life
“A riveting, sumptuously detailed look inside a luxurious, mysterious private train swaying from one presidency to another--the picture windows in its last car showcasing a bronze coffin to thousands of trackside mourners ignorant of the vivid tensions in the cars ahead.” ―John Stilgoe, Robert and Lois Orchard Professor in the History of Landscape, Harvard University and author of Outside Lies Magic: Discovering History and Inspiration in Ordinary Places
“Robert Klara's FDR's Funeral Train is a well-written and vivid account of America's greatest national mourning since Abraham Lincoln was shot. Every page here is illuminating. At times Klara practically transports the reader back to 1945. A major new contribution to U.S. history.” ―Douglas Brinkley is author of The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America
“No fan of FDR and his presidency can afford to pass up this book. Robert Klara takes you inside FDR's funeral train, and into the minds and hearts of those who made the president's last journey with him. Klara offers a unique, never-before-told perspective on the sudden transfer of power, the players who wanted to grab some of that power and the widow whose grief was tinged with the bitter taste of betrayal. A remarkable story by a true storyteller.” ―Lorraine Diehl, author of The Late, Great Pennsylvania Station
“No one in 1945, friend or enemy, was unmoved by the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, after his dozen critical years in the White House. FDR's Funeral Train vividly recalls the nerve-racking week behind the headlines, when his family and his government rose above a trainload of personal problems to help the nation across the chasm left by his demise. An exciting addition to the Roosevelt bookshelf, Klara's book is overflowing with the stuff that every history reader craves - fresh, original research.” ―Julie Fenster, author of The Case of Abraham Lincoln and FDR's Shadow
“With great skill and riveting detail, Robert Klara uses a three day train journey to provide readers with a fascinating glimpse into the inner-workings of the Washington elite in the days after FDR's death. This fast-paced narrative is filled with vivid portraits and plenty of intrigue. It also manages to shed new light on a critical moment in our nation's history.” ―Steve Gillon, author of 10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America and Resident Historian, The History Channel
“An intriguing account of FDR's last journey and a must read for all those still caught up in the romance and mystery of rail travel” ―David B Woolner, Senior Fellow, Roosevelt Institute and Associate Professor of History, Marist College
“FDR's Funeral Train is a fascinating tale well told. Hop aboard with the skilled storyteller Robert Klara. You'll be glad you did.” ―James Bradley, author of Flags of our Fathers and Flyboys
“Klara charms as he informs. A little gem.” ―Kirkus (starred review)
“Evocative account of the sometimes awkward juxtaposition of those who had served and now mourned one president and those who were eager to begin working for, and influencing, another.” ―Asbury Park Press
“A riveting tale of how several railroads brought Franklin D. Roosevelt's body home.” ―Trainstalk
“A book that reveals much of the heretofore hidden angst and intrigue that had accompanied a dead president on his final journey back home.” ―Charlottesville Daily Progress
“Klara, a veteran reporter, has put together a thrilling piece of history. Sixty-five years after FDR's death, Klara has managed to provide a fresh look at history as well as the political landscape of the 21st century.” ―The Daily Beast
About the Author
Robert Klara is an editor and writer. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the New York Daily News, American Heritage, New Jersey Monthly, and The Christian Science Monitor. Klara has been a staff editor for numerous magazines, including Town & Country and Architecture, and has also worked as a researcher for legendary author Gay Talese. He lives in New York City.
Most helpful customer reviews
44 of 44 people found the following review helpful.
Revelations about FDR's Funeral Train Revealed
By Dr. Watson
Robert Klara has written an excellent book about the railroad train that carried FDR's body from Warm Springs to Washington, D.C. He also gives detailed logistical information about the two trains that carried the body, family, Cabinet, Court, old cronies and friends, and of course the Truman's from Washington, D.C., and on to Hyde Park. This is a must-read for anyone who is a devotee of the FDR era. All the drama is here: his death in the Little White House at Warm Springs, Georgia (in the presence of a Russian artist and her friend, FDR's old flame, Lucy Mercer). Other events at the White House are not overlooked, including Eleanor's little known visit to FDR's body in the East Room (witnessed by J.B. West, Chief Usher); the details involved in who would accompany the funeral train for the burial in Hyde Park; all are included. In short, it is a page-turner. And the author raises some good points about the safety, in wartime, of the two trains which would convey almost the entire U.S. government up to Hyde Park...something that would never be considered today, especially since only the body and the Roosevelt family was in the bullet-proofed Pullman, leaving Truman in one that was not. The author has done an excellent job in detailing the thoughts and actions of the principal players while entrained, including a soviet spy and another man who later became a public embarrassment to Truman. The end of the book is especially satisfying, with details of Truman's address to the Joint Session of Congress. Not wanting to give away any "spoilers" of the book's content, suffice to say, it is a story that has been thoroughly researched and documented. There is a surprise on almost every page; a little nugget of information, that, before now, has never been in print. My highest recommendation.
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
A History Like No Other
By G.I Gurdjieff
Of late, there have been a lot of books written about FDR including a memoir written by his grandson. I have read all of the recent ones and have enjoyed them to varying degrees. However, by far this is the one that is the standout. Intensively researched, it reconstructs the events leading to FDR's last trip to Warm Springs, GA ('the little White House'), his death, and the two legs of the funeral train that returned his body to his beloved Springwood at Hyde Park, NY.
Reading more like a novel than a history, the premise of transporting the fallen president's body for a public funeral and burial was a gargantuan task and one that was mind boggling, dangerous, and probably never should have been undertaken.
Even in a pre-9/11 America there was no shortage of security concerns. The country was at war on two fronts and national security was imperative. The game plan was essentially to include all the key players in the government in the massive funeral procession to Hyde Park by train.
The security aspects of this undertaking and the logistics involved might well have been enough for one book. However, interwoven within this undertaking is the stuff that elevates this book into a totally different category. The president's widow finds out that FDR died in the company of a former mistress named Lucy Rutherfurd. Harry Truman becomes president after 3 months as vice president. Completely unprepared for the job, FDR has not shared information with him regarding Stalin or the A-bomb or anything else for that matter. There is the typical political jockeying which occurs when a new president assumes office as another president is buried. Complicating matters further for Truman is a soviet spy and an oddball character with political aspirations which will cause some embarassment for Truman in the future.
As for the late president, it is apparent that his physical condition had been deteriorating for quite some time. Suffering from uncontrolled high blood pressure and calcified arteries for starters, the public was kept unaware of just how ill FDR was. A grieving nation mourns and the country seems directionless at a critical time.
This book is loaded with information culled from a variety of sources.
Interestingly, there are files pertaining to the funeral that have yet to be declassified by the FBI. While FDR'S FUNERAL TRAIN covers some commonly known information, much of what is covered is new material. It is a well-written and an absorbing account of FDR's death and burial.
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful.
FDR's final whistlestop
By Todd Bartholomew
So much has been written about Franklin Roosevelt that you would think there was little left to mined; you could fill a small library with the number of books written on him and this era of history. Yet the final chapter in FDR's life has not really been covered to quite this degree of detail. And Klara certainly serves up the details, many of which were quite astonishing and astounding. FDR's sudden death unleashed all sorts of drama, both on the global scale and on a more micro level amongst those closest to him. There was no way to cover-up that at the time of his death he had resumed his affair with his longtime paramour Lucy Mercer; a fact that devastated his widow Eleanor. Klara plays out all the various unfolding dramas with a tension that is gripping for the reader, even if you've read these details before. And Klara comes up with new details such as Eleanor's private viewing of her late husband's body in the East Room. But that isn't all. Klara points out the stunning breech in security as virtually every member of the government is loaded onto the two trains to carry them and FDR's body to Hyde Park for burial. More surprising, FDR's body and family were carried in the sole bullet-proof Pullman car; President Truman and virtually every other government official traveled in unarmored Pullman cars, creating the potential to wipe out the entire government in the event of sabotage or an accident. Such were the exigencies of wartime and the sudden and profoundly sad demise of FDR. Truman's moving eulogy of FDR and his pronouncement to the world that we would continue to fight on to victory is a wonderfully fitting coda to the book. The result is a lively page-turner that is a template for how to write history well. Klara also includes a dramatis personae to help readers keep track of all the characters; something I wish EVERY monograph did. Well worth the read!
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