Citizens encouraged to attend Thurmond's funeral

State Sen. John Courson, center, the spokesman for the Thurmond family, discusses funeral plans for the former senator at the Statehouse. (JAMES T. HAMMOND / Staff) e-mail this story to a friend Related Related stories: • Thurmond's legacy already established

With no way to measure the level of interest in participating, Courson said officials are planning for a major turnout.

Because of the national figures who will attend the funeral at Columbia's spacious First Baptist Church, the Secret Service will be in charge of security.

But Courson urged anyone who is interested in participating not to be deterred by the presence of the national leaders.

He said Thurmond had always considered himself to be a man of the people and would want the service to be accessible to everyone.

Saturday afternoon, red velvet crowd-control ropes were being arranged from the Statehouse's first-floor entrance to the upper lobby where Thurmond's unopened casket will be stationed beside a bronze statue of John C. Calhoun.

Security officials said they anticipate it will take longer to get through the line this evening, as visitors stop to speak to Thurmond's family and swap stories about the former senator. On Monday and Tuesday, there will only be the casket and a guest book to sign.

Visitors will enter the Statehouse through the usual entrance under the exterior stairway of the north side of the building.

Lines will be arranged to snake through the building to get as many people in from the heat or inclement weather, should either become a problem, the organizers said.

On Saturday, state police officials, Statehouse custodians, Shellhouse Funeral Home officials and military honor guard representatives spent several hours at the Statehouse planning the details to bring Thurmond's remains to the capital, where he will lie in state from 4 p.m. today until 11 a.m. Tuesday.

Most of Thurmond's family members are expected to be at the Statehouse to receive condolences this evening.

On Tuesday, visitors will be able to see Thurmond's casket being transported by horse-drawn caisson from the Statehouse, east on Gervais Street, north on Sumter Street and east on Hampton Street to First Baptist Church for the 1 p.m. funeral service.

After the funeral, the casket will be taken by Shellhouse Funeral Home vehicles to the Edgefield town square, where it will be loaded on a second caisson at the monument to Thurmond and pulled by horses and a military honor guard to Willowbrook Cemetery in Edgefield, Thurmond's hometown.

Robert Shellhouse, the funeral home owner, said, "We have the cooperation of the state, and that makes it a lot easier."

Shellhouse said he expects a large number of vehicles with the hearse returning to Edgefield. Local police are working to accommodate the cars and on getting the caisson in and out.

"These horses need a large area to turn around," he said.

He knew "a few days" before Thurmond died that he would be handling the service, a "once-in-a-lifetime" event for him.

Thurmond was a retired major general in the Army Reserve, as well as a World War II combat veteran, and former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The Saturday meeting at the Statehouse dealt with the minutiae of the ceremony. State custodians noted that special plans would be necessary in case of rain. The flag-draped casket would need protection, or the movement must be delayed.

Courson said the family wants people to participate in the 100-year-old political leader's funeral.

"I've worked on two gubernatorial inaugurations. At one, people became concerned that they did not show. The church was about half full," Courson said.

"First Baptist Church seats 2,700 people. That's ample seating. There's ample parking around the Statehouse. That should not be a problem," Courson said.

"With three days of mourning and the lying in state at the Statehouse, there will be plenty of time for anyone who wants to pay their respects and sign the guest book," Courson said.

"Frankly, the Statehouse has just been remodeled, and it would be a good time for people to see their Statehouse," Courson said.

There will be security screening at the Statehouse, measures that have become routine to enter the building in recent years. And the Secret Service will screen visitors at the church, Courson said.

"Do not let the fact that the vice president and other dignitaries from Washington deter you from coming," he said.