The nation honors President George H.W. Bush

By Meg Wagner, Veronica Rocha, Brian Ries, Amanda Wills and Jessie Yeung, CNN

Updated 12:02 p.m. ET, December 13, 2018
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3:53 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

What happens after the train gets to College Station

The flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush passes through Magnolia, Texas, Thursday, along the train route to College Station, Texas.
The flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush passes through Magnolia, Texas, Thursday, along the train route to College Station, Texas. AP Photo/David J. Phillip, Pool

Former President George H.W. Bush's funeral train is currently on a 70-mile journey to Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.

The campus is the site of the Bush Presidential Library and Museum. The former president will be laid to rest on the museum's grounds, alongside his wife Barbara and their daughter Robin, who died of leukemia as a child.

There's an arrival ceremony scheduled at Texas A&M University at 4:45 p.m. ET, just as Bush's train arrives.

There will then be another ceremony and the interment at 5:15 p.m. ET at the library.

2:45 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

Crowds are waiting in the rain to see the "Bush 4141" train

As George H.W. Bush's funeral train — a special locomotive dubbed the "Bush 4141" — made its way to the Bush Presidential Library and Museum, crowds gathered beside the tracks to honor the 41st president.

The window drape has been removed from the train car carrying Bush's body, giving onlookers a clear view of the flag-draped casket.

It's a rainy day in the area. Undeterred, lines of people along the railroad waited for the train to pass by to say their final goodbyes.

Watch people wave to Bush's train:

2:05 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

George H.W. Bush is taking the "Bush 4141" train

The flag-draped casket of former US President George H.W. Bush is carried by a joint services military honor guard to a Union Pacific train.
The flag-draped casket of former US President George H.W. Bush is carried by a joint services military honor guard to a Union Pacific train. DAVID J. PHILLIP/AFP/Getty Images

President George H.W. Bush is on his way to his final resting place. His casket was just loaded onto the a Union Pacific train led by a locomotive dubbed the "Bush 4141" — a train that was built to honor the President's life.

The funeral train will embark on a 70-mile route, taking Bush from Spring, Texas, to Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, the site of the Bush Presidential Library and Museum. 

Bush will be laid to rest at the library, where both former first lady Barbara Bush and their late daughter Robin are buried.

The Bush 4141 was commissioned to honor the former president in 2005. It's painted to resemble Air Force One with a white body, a presidential seal and and long vertical bars of blue.

Watch below:

12:46 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

George H.W. Bush's casket leaves the church

Former President George H.W. Bush's casket was just taken out of St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston following his funeral.

"Hail to the Chief" played as it was first carried out. The casket was then carried through an honor cordon to the hearse as the band played the hymn "Praise Ye the Lord."

The casket will now be taken to a train specifically built to honor his life, which will carry him to his final resting place.

A Union Pacific train led by a locomotive dubbed the "Bush 4141" will carry Bush's casket to the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas.

This isn't an ordinary train: The Bush 4141 is a rare locomotive that was commissioned to honor the former president in 2005. It's one of only a handful of Union Pacific trains to bear a color scheme other than the company's traditional gray and yellow: It's painted to resemble Air Force One.

Watch below:

12:22 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

Reba McEntire sings "The Lord's Prayer"

Country music star Reba McEntire just gave a vocal performance "The Lord's Prayer" during George H.W. Bush's funeral in Texas.

Bush's son George W. Bush was seen wiping his face with a handkerchief after the performance.

Watch below:

12:18 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

The Oak Ridge boys perform: "We’re here, sir. We told you we would be."

The Oak Ridge Boys, a country and gospel vocal quartet that has performed for H.W. Bush for decades, are serenading him one last time.

“We’re here, sir. We told you we would be. And it’s an honor," one of the members said as the group came up to the front of the church.

The Oak Ridge Boys said they first performed for Bush in 1983, when he was vice president.

"He said, 'Fellas' — he always called us fellas — 'Will you sing me a few songs? I’m a big fan.'"

The group then sang "Amazing Grace."

Watch the moment below:

12:08 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

George H.W. Bush's grandson just read an email the former president sent all his grandkids

Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, H.W. Bush's oldest grandson, eulogized the man he called "Gampy."

He remembered how the former President would challenge his grandkids to "the coveted first to sleep award" and wrote them all letters of encouragement when they could use some words of wisdom.

One summer, after he left public service, the elder Bush wrote an email to his grand children. In it, he wrote that "the only thing wrong with the last five months is that none of you were here enough," George P. Bush said.

Then, he read part of the email:

"Next year, promise this old gampster you’ll spend more time with us here by the sea. As you know, I had to give up fly fishing off the rocks in Maine. But there are plenty of wonderful things to do. I think of you all an awful lot. I just wonder how each of you is doing in school and in life. If you need me, I’m here for you because I love you very much."

Watch more:

1:04 p.m. ET, December 6, 2018

Former secretary of state: By celebrating Bush "we are really praising what is best about our nation"

Former Secretary of State James Baker, a close friend of George H.W. Bush, is giving the first eulogy at his Texas funeral.

Baker, who described his relationship with Bush as "one of big brother and little brother," called the former president "one of our nation’s finest presidents."

"And beyond any doubt, our nation’s very best one-term president," Baker added.

Baker continued:

"My hope is that in remembering the life of George Herbert Walker Bush and in honoring his accomplishments, we will see that we are really praising what is best about our nation. The nation he dearly loved and whose values he embodied."

Watch: Baker looks back on his relationship with Bush

11:24 a.m. ET, December 6, 2018

The Oak Ridge Boys arrive for Bush's funeral

The Oak Ridge Boys, a country and gospel vocal quartet, just arrived at St. Martin's Episcopal Church, for former president George H.W. Bush's funeral. The group is expected to perform at the service.

The former president was a fan of the group: In 2012, they performed for him while he was hospitalized.

Watch: Behind Bush's relationship with the Oak Ridge Boys