<P> Lying in state in the United States is the rare honor either authorized by a congressional resolution or approved by the congressional leadership, when permission is granted by survivors, to a deceased official whereby his or her remains are placed in the rotunda of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. for public viewing . The casket is guarded by members of the armed forces . By regulation and custom, only Presidents, military commanders, and members of Congress are granted the honor of lying in state . Except for Presidents and former Presidents, the honor is not automatic . Not all those entitled to the honor have it accepted by their survivors . The first leader to receive this honor was Henry Clay, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, when he died in 1852 . Since then, the honor has been extended to 27 people, including eleven Presidents, and to 4 Unknown Soldiers, representing U.S. service members who have died without their remains being identified . An additional four individuals have lain in honor, a similar privileged . </P> <P> The process of lying in state at the Capitol is as follows . The coffin or casket is usually placed on a catafalque, usually the Lincoln catafalque, so named as it was constructed for lying in state upon the death of Abraham Lincoln, after his assassination in 1865 . The casket is guarded at each of its corners by a serviceperson from each of the branches of the armed forces . In contrast to the practice in the United Kingdom and other countries of the Commonwealth, guards at the Capitol face the casket, hold their rifles with their right hand, and keep the rifle butt resting on the floor . After the viewing and ceremony at the Capitol, the remains are taken to the burial location . </P> <Ul> <Li> 1852--Henry Clay, long - serving Senator and Representative, Secretary of State, Speaker of the House, and three - time presidential candidate </Li> <Li> 1865--President Abraham Lincoln, assassinated in office </Li> <Li> 1868--Thaddeus Stevens, Representative from Pennsylvania </Li> <Li> 1874--Charles Sumner, Senator from Massachusetts </Li> <Li> 1875--Vice President Henry Wilson, served under Grant, died in office </Li> <Li> 1881--President James Garfield, assassinated in office </Li> <Li> 1886--John A. Logan, Senator from Illinois </Li> <Li> 1901--President William McKinley, assassinated while in office </Li> <Li> 1909--Pierre L'Enfant--although he died in 1825, his remains were disinterred; he was honored by lying in state before reinterment at Arlington National Cemetery </Li> <Li> 1917--Admiral George Dewey, Admiral of the Navy </Li> <Li> 1921--The Unknown Soldier for World War I </Li> <Li> 1923--President Warren Harding, died in office </Li> <Li> 1930--President William Howard Taft, President 1909--1913, also Chief Justice 1921--1930 </Li> <Li> 1948--General John J. Pershing, General of the Armies of the United States during World War I and after </Li> <Li> 1953--Robert A. Taft, U.S. Senator and Majority Leader </Li> <Li> 1958--The Unknown Soldiers for World War II and the Korean War </Li> <Li> 1963--President John F. Kennedy, assassinated in office </Li> <Li> 1964--General Douglas MacArthur, General of the Army </Li> <Li> 1964--President Herbert Hoover, President 1929--1933 </Li> <Li> 1969--President Dwight Eisenhower, President 1953--1961, Supreme Allied Commander during World War II </Li> <Li> 1969--Everett Dirksen, Illinois Senator, Senate Minority Leader 1959--1969 </Li> <Li> 1972--J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) 1929--1972 </Li> <Li> 1973--President Lyndon B. Johnson, President 1963--1969 </Li> <Li> 1978--Hubert Humphrey, Vice President 1965--1969, Minnesota Senator, 1968 Democratic nominee for President of the United States </Li> <Li> 1984--The Unknown Soldier for the Vietnam War (later identified as 1st . Lt. Michael J. Blassie) </Li> <Li> 1989--Claude Pepper, long - serving Senator and Representative from Florida </Li> <Li> 2004--President Ronald Reagan, President 1981--1989 </Li> <Li> 2006--President Gerald Ford, President 1974--1977 </Li> <Li> 2012--Daniel Inouye, President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate, Senator from Hawaii, and recipient of the Medal of Honor </Li> <Li> 2018--John McCain, 2008 Republican nominee for President of the United States, Senator from Arizona, and recipient of the Silver Star . </Li> </Ul> <Li> 1852--Henry Clay, long - serving Senator and Representative, Secretary of State, Speaker of the House, and three - time presidential candidate </Li>

Senators who have laid in state at capitol