Arlington

Here is another interesting photo from our approach into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. On the hill you can see the Custis-Lee Mansion. In the lower part of the photo is the main entrance to Arlington National Cemetery. The prominent area between the two contains the gravesite of President John F. Kennedy, to the best of my recollection. In 1964 when I was 11 years old and lived in Newark, Delaware, I saw the grave when it was just a temporary setup, bordered by a white picket fence and the ever-present eternal flame. I have also seen the permanent grave, but it has been many years.

The Custis-Lee Mansion, also known as Arlington House, was built as a memorial to George Washington by his adopted grandson, George Washington Parke Custis. Custis' daughter, Mary Anna, married her distant cousin, Robert E. Lee, and they lived there for several years until Federal troops took over the property following the secession of Virginia from the United States in 1861.