J. Edgar Hoover was, among other things, devoted to his dogs. His first, Spee De Bozo, was so beloved that Hoover kept his photograph on his desk at work. When Spee De Bozo died in 1934, Hoover buried him in Aspin Hill Memorial Park. Accompanied by three of his aides, he watched as his beloved Airedale was lowered into the ground. He told the cemetery groundskeeper, “This is one of the saddest days of my life.”
Over the years, Hoover buried six more of his dogs at Aspin Hill, the last in 1964. Spee De Bozo was the only dog whose name is inscribed on the monument over the Hoover plot. Although the director of the FBI seldom visited the cemetery himself, employees of the agency were known to check in on the grave site from time to time. J. Edgar Hoover died in 1972 and is buried in Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Inscription: In Memory of Spee De Bozo. Born July 3, 1922. Died May 24, 1934. Our Best Friend Location: Aspin Hill Memorial Park N 39° 4.737 W 77° 4.631
Sources Consulted
Summers, Anthony. Official and Confidential: the Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover. New York: Putnam, 1993. p. 41-42.
“Where Hoover’s Pets Rest,” The Washington Post, Feb 5, 1972. pg. C3.
If someone can figure out what the tube sticking out of the ground is, I’d be most interested – a top secret breathing tube ?
I feel so bad for that dog,at least he had a happy long life 🙁
My son and I wandered Aspin Hill Memorial Park this weekend looking for J. Edgar Hoover’s dog’s gravesite, first on Friday rather haphazardly, walking the rows, then returning the next day after I found your site with the specific coordinates for the spot.
Alas, those coordinates didn’t help, for we could not see it when we stood there, and my son suspects, based on our failure, that the stone has been removed either for safekeeping or by vandals.
Do you know whether the mraker is still there? If so, how can we find it more easily? We’re hoping to return and continue searching soon.
Thank you!