Wendell Willkie - Death

Death

Wendell Willkie chose to travel from Indianapolis to New York City by train. While crossing Ohio, he experienced the first of an estimated 20+ heart attacks. Other passengers implored him to get off the train at Pittsburgh and go to a hospital, he refused. He wanted to reach home and see his own doctor. He arrived safely at New York, but he died after two days in a hospital, on October 8, 1944, aged 52.

Willkie's 1940 running mate, Charles L. McNary, had died six months earlier. This is the only time that both members of a major party Presidential ticket have died during the term they sought election for.

Eleanor Roosevelt, in her My Day column for October 12, 1944, eulogized Willkie as a "man of courage... outspoken opinions on race relations were among his great contributions to the thinking of the world... Americans tend to forget the names of the men who lost their bid for the presidency. Willkie proved the exception to this rule."

Wendell Willkie is buried in East Hill Cemetery, Rushville, Indiana. In his honor, the Bar of the Summit County Courthouse erected a brass bas relief which is prominently displayed in its main hall.