President John F. Kennedy at his desk in the White House on his first day in office as President of the United States.Photo:Bettmann
Bettmann
On Nov. 22, 1963, PresidentJohn F. Kennedy’sassassinationshocked the nation — and 60 years later, his death and legacy continue to captivate the country.
At the time of his death, Kennedy was the youngest man ever elected President of the United States. The 46-year-old father of two — his daughter,Caroline Kennedy, was about to turn 6, and his son,John F. Kennedy Jr., was about to turn 3 — was preparing to run for reelection in 1964, and the November 1963 trip to Texas was viewed as an informal kickoff to his campaign. Over two days, JFK and his wife,Jackie Kennedy, planned to visit five cities in Texas. On Nov. 21, 1963, the Kennedys made stops in San Antonio, Houston and Fort Worth. The following day, the president and first lady arrived in Dallas shortly before noon.
“On November 22, 1963, the United States lost its innocence,” one eyewitness recalled in the 2023 documentaryJFK: One Day in America.
And while the initial grief over Kennedy’s assassination has dissipated, the country continues to be fascinated with his death — even six decades later.
So what really occurred on that day in history? Here is a closer look at what happened when John F. Kennedy died and the lasting legacy he left behind.
How did President John F. Kennedy die?
US President John F Kennedy, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, Texas Governor John Connally, and others smile at the crowds lining their motorcade route in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963.Bettmann
Kennedy was assassinated while traveling in a motorcade through Dallas with his wife, Jackie, Texas Gov. John Connally and his wife, Nellie Connally. As their open-topped limousine turned into Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Oswald opened fire with a rifle from a sixth-floor window at the Texas School Book Depository.
Oswald fired three shots, two of which hit Kennedy: The first bullet struck the president in the back and exited through his throat, and about five seconds later, the second delivered what would be a fatal blow to the head, according to theWarren Commission Report, the government’s official findings on JFK’s assassination.
“Thinking back, I’ll never forget those shots — ‘Pow. Pow. Pow,’ ” one eyewitness said in the National Geographic documentaryJFK: One Day in America.
The motorcade sped to the hospital, with Jackie cradling her husband’s gravely wounded body in her lap.Clint Hill, the U.S. Secret Service agent assigned to the first lady, recounted the devastating scene in the documentary.
“I jumped to the rear bumper,” he said. “Mrs. Kennedy was screaming, ‘I love you, Jack.’ ”
The motorcade arrived at Parkland Memorial Hospital, where emergency room doctors attempted to revive the president. But after his condition was deemed “hopeless,” according to the Warren report, and after a Catholic priest administered last rites, Kennedy was pronounced dead. The autopsy recorded his official cause of death as a gunshot wound to the head.
When did President John F. Kennedy die?
Oswald shot JFK at about 12:30 p.m. CT on Nov. 22, 1963. Kennedy was officially pronounced dead around 30 minutes later, at 1:00 p.m. CT.
Where did President John F. Kennedy die?
US President John F Kennedy, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, Texas Governor John Connally, prepared for motorcade into the city from the airport in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963.Bettmann
Kennedy was shot while his motorcade was traveling on Elm Street in downtown Dallas. He was officially pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital, just north of Dealey Plaza.
How old was President John F. Kennedy when he died?
JFK was 46 years old at the time of his death.
Who killed President John F. Kennedy?
Lee Harvey Oswald in a mug shot after he was arrested for assassinating President John F Kennedy.Kypros/Getty
Kypros/Getty
At 17, Oswald dropped out of high school and joined the U.S. Marines. He was disciplined three separate times during his service and, in 1959, obtained a release from the Marines, citing his mother’s ill health and financial situation. In September 1959, Oswald defected to the Soviet Union — where he lived for three years, attempted to become a citizen and met his wife, Marina.
Oswald and Marina married in 1961, had their first daughter in February 1962 and moved to Texas in June 1962. In March 1963, he purchased the rifle and telescopic sight tool that he would later use to assassinate JFK. In October of that same year, the couple had their second daughter, and Oswald began working at the Texas School Book Depository — just over a month before he fired three shots from the building’s sixth floor and killed Kennedy.
What were President John F. Kennedy’s last words?
John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, ride up Broadway in a ticker-tape parade.Frank Hurley/NY Daily News Archive/Getty
Frank Hurley/NY Daily News Archive/Getty
“Mr. President, they can’t make you believe now that there are not some in Dallas who love you and appreciate you, can they?” Nellie Connally, the first lady of Texas, asked JFK as they drove through the cheering crowds, perFour Days in November.
Kennedy responded with what would be his final words: “No, they sure can’t,” he said as he waved and smiled at the crowds. Oswald fired just minutes later.
What happened after President John F. Kennedy’s assassination?
White House/Cecil Stoughton/AP
Nearly 40 minutes after Kennedy was pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, Walter Cronkite deliveredhis news bulletin— announcing to the public that the president had been killed, visibly holding back tears. The event sent shockwaves and devastation throughout the country, with the front page ofTheBoston Globebearing the headline “SHOCK…DISBELIEF…GRIEF” the day after Kennedy’s death.
“She went out in her blood-stained suit and stood next to Lyndon Johnson,” said historian Steve Gillon. “Despite these horrible circumstances, she was willing to stand for a photo because she understood what it meant for the nation to have continuity in government. Sheunderstood that she had a role to play in helping the nationtransition to a new president.”
Gillon continued, “They wanted to get those photographs out on the wire services while the plane was still flying back to Washington, to reassure the American people that we had a new president.”
The country plunged into mourning in the days that followed. The three major U.S. television networks at the time — ABC, NBC and CBS — suspended all commercials and switched to continuous news coverage for more than 70 hours following JFK’s assassination, according toThe New York Times.
“It was a death that touched everyone instantly and directly; rare was the person who did not cry that long weekend,” CBS correspondentRoger Muddwrote about JFK’s death in his 2008 bookThe Place to Be: Washington, CBS, and the Glory Days of Television News.
Kennedy’s state funeral was held on Nov. 25, 1963 — JFK Jr.’s third birthday — at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C., and the late president was laid to rest at Arlington Memorial Cemetary.
In the 60 years since, manyconspiracy theoriesabout Kennedy’s assassination have emerged. Some of the most popular theories over the years have suggested there was a second shooter located on the grassy knoll of Dealey Plaza, and the CIA and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnsonorchestrated the assassination. However, these theories have been discredited.
What legacy did President John F. Kennedy leave behind?
President John F. Kennedy.Bettmann
Kennedy’s assassination became one of the most defining moments of the 20th century, with the question “Where were you when JFK was shot?” emerging as a popular query in the decades that followed. His death was such a momentous event that, as of September 2011, 95% of Americans born in 1955 or earlier could still recall exactly what they were doing at the moment he was killed, according to thePew Research Center.
“I think for the good of the country, everything has to be put out there so there’s greater understanding of our history,” former Rep.Patrick Kennedy, JFK’s nephew, toldPoliticoabout the document release.
Helping to shape Kennedy’s lasting legacy was his wife, Jackie. Immediately following JFK’s funeral, the widowed mother of two invited aLifemagazinejournalist to the Kennedy family compound in Massachusetts to discuss her husband’s three years in the White House. During this interview,Jackie invented the Camelot myth, referencing JFK’s favorite Broadway musical.
“She wanted to be sure he was remembered as a great President,” her longtime Secret Service agent Hill, who was present for the interview and later published his memoirMrs. Kennedy and Me, told PEOPLE.
What happened to Lee Harvey Oswald?
Lee Harvey Oswald is shown after his arrest here on November 22.Bettmann
Shortly after firing the shots that killed Kennedy, Oswald left the Dealey Plaza area. At about 1:15 p.m., Oswald shot and killed a Dallas police officer named J.D. Tippit, who had stopped Oswald because he fit a description of the assassin on a local street, according tothe Warren report. He was arrested at approximately 2 p.m. in a local movie theater and charged with the murder of Tippit — and named a suspect in the assassination of the president. He was formally charged with assassinating JFK hours later, despite telling reporters outside police headquarters, “No, I’ve not been charged with that,” perCBS News.
After a 10-month investigation, the Warren Commission concluded in September 1964 that Oswald was responsible for killing Kennedy and that he had acted alone. They were able to connect the murder weapon — a rifle found on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository — to Oswald through purchase records, handwriting analysis, photographs and a palm print.
In 1979, the House Select Committee on Assassinations agreed that Oswald had assassinated JFK — but disagreed that he had acted alone. This statement only added fuel to the popular conspiracy theory that a second shooter was located on the grassy knoll of Dealey Plaza. However, that finding has since been discredited several times. In 2008, a team of experts determined that Oswald’s sixth floor location was the likely origin point of the bullet that killed Kennedy, according toNBC News.
source: people.com
