John F. Kennedy assassinated - Nov 22, 1963 - HISTORY.com John F. Kennedy assassinated Publisher A+E Networks John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, is assassinated while traveling through Dallas, Texas, in an open-top convertible. First lady Jacqueline Kennedy rarely accompanied her husband on political outings, but she was beside him, along with Texas Governor John Connally and his wife, for a 10-mile motorcade through the streets of downtown Dallas on November 22. Sitting in a Lincoln convertible, the Kennedys and Connallys waved at the large and enthusiastic crowds gathered along the parade route. As their vehicle passed the Texas School Book Depository Building at 12:30 p.m., Lee Harvey Oswald allegedly fired three shots from the sixth floor, fatally wounding President Kennedy and seriously injuring Governor Connally. Kennedy was pronounced dead 30 minutes later at Dallas’ Parkland Hospital. He was 46. Vice President Lyndon Johnson, who was three cars behind President Kennedy in the motorcade, was sworn in as the 36th president of the United States at 2:39 p.m.

He took the presidential oath of office aboard Air Force One as it sat on the runway at Dallas Love Field airport. The swearing in was witnessed by some 30 people, including Jacqueline Kennedy, who was still wearing clothes stained with her husband’s blood. Seven minutes later, the presidential jet took off for Washington. The next day, November 23, President Johnson issued his first proclamation, declaring November 25 to be a day of national mourning for the slain president. On that Monday, hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets of Washington to watch a horse-drawn caisson bear Kennedy’s body from the Capitol Rotunda to St. Matthew’s Catholic Cathedral for a requiem Mass. The solemn procession then continued on to Arlington National Cemetery, where leaders of 99 nations gathered for the state funeral. Kennedy was buried with full military honors on a slope below Arlington House, where an eternal flame was lit by his widow to forever mark the grave. Lee Harvey Oswald, born in New Orleans in 1939, joined the U.S. Marines in 1956. He was discharged in 1959 and nine days later left for the Soviet Union, where he tried unsuccessfully to become a citizen.

He worked in Minsk and married a Soviet woman and in 1962 was allowed to return to the United States with his wife and infant daughter. In early 1963, he bought a .38 revolver and rifle with a telescopic sight by mail order, and on April 10 in Dallas he allegedly shot at and missed former U.S. Army general Edwin Walker, a figure known for his extreme right-wing views. Later that month, Oswald went to New Orleans and founded a branch of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee, a pro-Castro organization. In September 1963, he went to Mexico City, where investigators allege that he attempted to secure a visa to travel to Cuba or return to the USSR. In October, he returned to Dallas and took a job at the Texas School Book Depository Building. Less than an hour after Kennedy was shot, Oswald killed a policeman who questioned him on the street near his rooming house in Dallas. Thirty minutes later, Oswald was arrested in a movie theater by police responding to reports of a suspect. He was formally arraigned on November 23 for the murders of President Kennedy and Officer J.D. Tippit.

On November 24, Oswald was brought to the basement of the Dallas police headquarters on his way to a more secure county jail. A crowd of police and press with live television cameras rolling gathered to witness his departure. As Oswald came into the room, Jack Ruby emerged from the crowd and fatally wounded him with a single shot from a concealed .38 revolver. Ruby, who was immediately detained, claimed that rage at Kennedy’s murder was the motive for his action. Some called him a hero, but he was nonetheless charged with first-degree murder. Jack Ruby, originally known as Jacob Rubenstein, operated strip joints and dance halls in Dallas and had minor connections to organized crime. He features prominently in Kennedy-assassination theories, and many believe he killed Oswald to keep him from revealing a larger conspiracy. In his trial, Ruby denied the allegation and pleaded innocent on the grounds that his great grief over Kennedy’s murder had caused him to suffer “psychomotor epilepsy” and shoot Oswald unconsciously. The jury found Ruby guilty of “murder with malice” and sentenced him to die.

In October 1966, the Texas Court of Appeals reversed the decision on the grounds of improper admission of testimony and the fact that Ruby could not have received a fair trial in Dallas at the time. In January 1967, while awaiting a new trial, to be held in Wichita Falls, Ruby died of lung cancer in a Dallas hospital. The official Warren Commission report of 1964 concluded that neither Oswald nor Ruby were part of a larger conspiracy, either domestic or international, to assassinate President Kennedy. Despite its seemingly firm conclusions, the report failed to silence conspiracy theories surrounding the event, and in 1978 the House Select Committee on Assassinations concluded in a preliminary report that Kennedy was “probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy” that may have involved multiple shooters and organized crime. The committee’s findings, as with those of the Warren Commission, continue to be widely disputed. Related Videos November 22, 1963: Death of the President - John F.

Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum November 22, 1963: Death of the President November 22, 1963: Death of the President Shortly after noon on November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated as he rode in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. By the fall of 1963, President John F. Kennedy and his political advisers were preparing for the next presidential campaign. Although he had not formally announced his candidacy, it was clear that President Kennedy was going to run and he seemed confident about his chances for re-election. At the end of September, the president traveled west, speaking in nine different states in less than a week. The trip was meant to put a spotlight on natural resources and conservation efforts. But JFK also used it to sound out themes—such as education, national security, and world peace—for his run in 1964. Campaigning in Texas A month later, the president addressed Democratic gatherings in Boston and Philadelphia. Then, on November 12, he held the first important political planning session for the upcoming election year.

At the meeting, JFK stressed the importance of winning Florida and Texas and talked about his plans to visit both states in the next two weeks. Mrs. Kennedy would accompany him on the swing through Texas, which would be her first extended public appearance since the loss of their baby, Patrick, in August. On November 21, the president and first lady departed on Air Force One for the two-day, five-city tour of Texas. President Kennedy was aware that a feud among party leaders in Texas could jeopardize his chances of carrying the state in 1964, and one of his aims for the trip was to bring Democrats together. He also knew that a relatively small but vocal group of extremists was contributing to the political tensions in Texas and would likely make its presence felt—particularly in Dallas, where US Ambassador to the United Nations Adlai Stevenson had been physically attacked a month earlier after making a speech there. Nonetheless, JFK seemed to relish the prospect of leaving Washington, getting out among the people and into the political fray. The first stop was San Antonio. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Governor John B. Connally, and Senator Ralph W. Yarborough led the welcoming party.

They accompanied the president to Brooks Air Force Base for the dedication of the Aerospace Medical Health Center. Continuing on to Houston, he addressed a Latin American citizens' organization and spoke at a testimonial dinner for Congressman Albert Thomas before ending the day in Fort Worth. Morning in Fort Worth A light rain was falling on Friday morning, November 22, but a crowd of several thousand stood in the parking lot outside the Texas Hotel where the Kennedys had spent the night. A platform was set up and the president, wearing no protection against the weather, came out to make some brief remarks. "There are no faint hearts in Fort Worth," he began, "and I appreciate your being here this morning. Mrs. Kennedy is organizing herself. It takes longer, but, of course, she looks better than we do when she does it." He went on to talk about the nation's need for being "second to none" in defense and in space, for continued growth in the economy and "the willingness of citizens of the United States to assume the burdens of leadership." The warmth of the audience response was palpable as the president reached out to shake hands amidst a sea of smiling faces.

Back inside the hotel the president spoke at a breakfast of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, focusing on military preparedness. "We are still the keystone in the arch of freedom," he said. "We will continue to do…our duty, and the people of Texas will be in the lead." On to Dallas The presidential party left the hotel and went by motorcade to Carswell Air Force Base for the thirteen-minute flight to Dallas. Arriving at Love Field, President and Mrs. Kennedy disembarked and immediately walked toward a fence where a crowd of well-wishers had gathered, and they spent several minutes shaking hands. The first lady received a bouquet of red roses, which she brought with her to the waiting limousine. Governor John Connally and his wife, Nellie, were already seated in the open convertible as the Kennedys entered and sat behind them. Since it was no longer raining, the plastic bubble top had been left off. Vice President and Mrs. Johnson occupied another car in the motorcade. The procession left the airport and traveled along a ten-mile route that wound through downtown Dallas on the way to the Trade Mart where the President was scheduled to speak at a luncheon.

The Assassination Crowds of excited people lined the streets and waved to the Kennedys. The car turned off Main Street at Dealey Plaza around 12:30 p.m. As it was passing the Texas School Book Depository, gunfire suddenly reverberated in the plaza. Bullets struck the president's neck and head and he slumped over toward Mrs. Kennedy. The governor was also hit in the chest. The car sped off to Parkland Memorial Hospital just a few minutes away. But little could be done for the President. A Catholic priest was summoned to administer the last rites, and at 1:00 p.m. John F. Kennedy was pronounced dead. Though seriously wounded, Governor Connally would recover. The president's body was brought to Love Field and placed on Air Force One. Before the plane took off, a grim-faced Lyndon B. Johnson stood in the tight, crowded compartment and took the oath of office, administered by US District Court Judge Sarah Hughes. The brief ceremony took place at 2:38 p.m. Less than an hour earlier, police had arrested Lee Harvey Oswald, a recently hired employee at the Texas School Book Depository.

He was being held for the assassination of President Kennedy and the fatal shooting, shortly afterward, of Patrolman J. D. Tippit on a Dallas street. On Sunday morning, November 24, Oswald was scheduled to be transferred from police headquarters to the county jail. Viewers across America watching the live television coverage suddenly saw a man aim a pistol and fire at point blank range. The assailant was identified as Jack Ruby, a local nightclub owner. Oswald died two hours later at Parkland Hospital. The President's Funer al That same day, President Kennedy's flag-draped casket was moved from the White House to the Capitol on a caisson drawn by six grey horses, accompanied by one riderless black horse. At Mrs. Kennedy's request, the cortege and other ceremonial details were modeled on the funeral of Abraham Lincoln. Crowds line d Pennsylvania Avenue and many wept openly as the caisson passed. During the 21 hours that the president's body lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda, about 250,000 people filed by to pay their respects. On Monday, November 25, 1963 President Kennedy was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery.

The funeral was attended by heads of state and representatives from more than 100 countries, with untold millions more watching on television. Afterward, at the grave site, Mrs. Kennedy and her husband's brothers, Robert and Edward, lit an eternal flame. Perhaps the most indelible images of the day were the salute to his father given by little John F. Kennedy Jr. (whose third birthday it was), daughter Caroline kneeling next to her mother at the president's bier, and the extraordinary grace and dignity shown by Jacqueline Kennedy. As people throughout the nation and the world struggled to make sense of a senseless act and to articulate their feelings about President Kennedy's life and legacy, many recalled these words from his inaugural address: All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days, nor in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration. Nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin. The Warren Commission On November 29, 1963 President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy. It came to be known as the Warren Commission after its chairman, Earl Warren, Chief Justice of the United States.

President Johnson directed the commission to evaluate matters relating to the assassination and the subsequent killing of the alleged assassin, and to report its findings and conclusions to him. The Warren Commission's report is available here . The House Select Committee on Assassinations The US House of Representatives established the House Select Committee on Assassinations in 1976 to reopen the investigation of the assassination in light of allegations that previous inquiries had not received the full cooperation of federal agencies. Note to the reader: Point 1B in the link below to the findings of the 1979 House Select Committee on Assassinations states that the committee had found "a high probability that two gunmen fired" at the president. This conclusion resulted from the last-minute “discovery” of a Dallas police radio transmission tape that allegedly provided evidence that four or more shots were fired in Dealey Plaza. After the report appeared in print, acoustic experts analyzed the tape and proved conclusively that it was completely worthless—thus negating the finding in Point 1B. The committee, which also investigated the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., issued its report on March 29, 1979. To see the report, click here . Assassination Records Collection Through the President John F.

Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992, the US Congress ordered that all assassination-related material be housed together under supervision of the National Archives and Records Administration. Learn more about the collection here . Arlington National Cemetery To learn more about President Kennedy's funeral and grave site, go to the Arlington National Cemetery website. November 22 1963: Witness to History November 22 1963: Witness to History Description On November 22, 1963, reporter Hugh Aynesworth was not among the cadre of reporters and photographers assigned to cover the Dallas visit of President John Kennedy. Within thirty-six hours, however, Aynesworth had witnessed the assassination of the president, the arrest of the assassin, and the shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald by Jack Ruby. Now fifty years later, November 22, 1963: Witness to History recounts events that have passed into memory and controversy-and sets the record straight. A four-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Aynesworth offers readers an inside, in-depth account of that tragic day in his new book "November 22,1963: Witness to History" Related Products...

The Assassination of John F Kennedy | Crime and Investigation The Assassination of John F Kennedy Timeline On Friday 22nd November 1963, John F Kennedy, the thirty-fifth president of the United States of America, was assassinated at 12.30 pm local time in Dallas, Texas. The event was to shock the world and go on to be etched in the memories of future generations, mainly due to the amateur film footage that recorded the tragic incident at the time. Kennedy was fatally wounded by several contested gunshots as he rode in a presidential motorcade in Dealey Plaza, Dallas. He was the fourth president to be assassinated and one of the country’s most popular. An investigation into the murder revealed ten months later that the assassin was Lee Harvey Oswald. However, in 1976 a further investigation carried out by the House Select Committee on Assassinations, concluded that the President had been assassinated ‘probably as a result due to conspiracy’. “The murder of one of America’s most glamorous and inspiring leaders is still a contentious issue even forty years after the tragic event.” J F Kennedy, like all presidents, was not without his enemies.

The Democratic Party leader’s liberal stance certainly agitated the ultra-conservatives both within the political arena and conservative factions within American society. Kennedy’s social reforms and anti-war position did not go down well with the right-wing, religious fraternity of the country. This was also a volatile time with the Civil Rights Movement challenging racial discrimination and protests against US military involvement in Vietnam. One major critic of Kennedy’s liberal policies was an organisation known as The John Birch Society. The JBS, an ultra conservative and religious organisation, was founded in 1958 to counter what it saw as a threat to the status quo of federal government and was particularly concerned about communist infiltration. Kennedy’s views on the Vietnam War had riled the JBS and its members who were ardently anti-socialist, anti-leftist and virulently supported free-enterprise. The JBS even opposed the Civil Rights Movement on the grounds that they believed it was supported by the American Communist Party. Throughout Kennedy’s presidential campaign and on the day he toured Dallas, various groups demonstrated and handed out fliers accusing him of treason, mainly for conspiring with communists. The day before Kennedy was killed a handbill criticising the President on the above issues was also distributed.

On the actual day of the assassination a paid advert by the JBS, proselytising similar accusations, was published in the local press. John F Kennedy’s tour of Dallas began on 20th November 1963. He had chosen to visit the Texas state to help raise funds for his Democratic Party presidential campaign for the upcoming 1964 election. He ignored warnings of possible disturbances and threats to his life and on 22nd November chose to take a motorcade through Dallas city centre. Ironically, the president had discussed the possibility of a sniper attack with his security team that very morning. The president’s motorcade route was worked out with precision by both the Dallas police and the Secret Service. But rather oddly, Winston Lawson of the Secret Service, put in a request to the Dallas force that they refrain from assigning homicide detectives to follow behind the president’s vehicle. It was later implied after the assassination that had these safeguards been put in place, Kennedy may have survived the attack. Certainly a bullet-proof vehicle would have helped shield the president, but in 1963 there were no presidential cars with bullet-proof tops.

A 1961 Lincoln Continental, open top limousine was chosen to take the president, Jacqueline Kennedy, Texas Governor John Connally and his wife Nellie, on the short tour. Kennedy’s planned route was to travel from Love Field airport in a motorcade through downtown Dallas where he would give a speech at the Dallas Trade Mart. Despite a handful of protests the main journey went without incident. On the way Kennedy stopped to shake hands with Catholic nuns and school children, but as his vehicle turned onto Main Street, a man launched himself in front of the limousine. He was soon overpowered by a Secret Agent. It was 12.29 pm local time when the motorcade entered Dealey Plaza. Kennedy’s limousine approached the Texas School Book Depository head on and then made a 120-degree turn in front of the building, which was now less than 65 feet away. According to witnesses, shots rang out shortly after the limousine made the turn from Houston onto Elm Street. There was hardly any reaction from the crowd as most people believed they were hearing a firecracker or car exhaust backfiring. The shooting lasted between six to twenty four seconds.

While this occurred the president’s vehicle slowed down from 13 mph to 9 mph before gathering speed to make a speedy exit from the danger zone. The incident was caught on 8 mm film by Abraham Zapruder, whose footage has now gone down in history, and was examined extensively during trials to determine how the president was killed. Zapruder, along with other citizens, some with film cameras, were standing in the nearby vicinity or on the now much referred to ‘grassy knoll’. Many witnesses claimed they heard three gunshots being fired. As soon as the shooting began, Agent Clint Hill who was riding in a car immediately behind the president jumped up and ran towards his vehicle. He quickly climbed onto the trunk in order to protect the president and the First Lady, Jacqueline Kennedy. As Hill held onto a small handrail at the back of the presidential car, he saw a bullet strike the president’s head. During the ensuing chaos the driver sped up causing Hill to jump on to the back of the car as it sped away towards an underpass. Zapruder’s film shows a clearly distressed Mrs Kennedy clambering back towards the trunk.

It was rumoured that she had been trying to retrieve a part of the president’s skull or brain, but this is now known to be untrue. Hill crawled over to her and guided the First Lady back into her seat as he shielded both her and the president as the vehicle sped to Parkland Memorial Hospital. Governor Connally had been hit in the back, chest, wrist and left thigh but he survived. At the time he was hit Nellie Connally, his wife, pulled the Governor onto her lap. The resulting posture helped close his front chest wound and helped save his life. James Tague, a spectator who witnessed the assassination, received a minor wound to his right cheek when he was standing less than 300 feet from where Kennedy was hit. It was assumed that his injury was caused by debris that shot up when a bullet hit the curb. The news of Kennedy's death shocked the world. A hero and symbol of hope for millions around the world had been cruelly and inexplicably taken from them. Memorial services were held worldwide and a day of national mourning for a state funeral was arranged for Monday, 25th November 1963.

Grassy Knoll Witnesses : The JFK Assassination Go straight to: Search | Main Navigation Grassy Knoll Witnesses The Essential JFK Assassination Book and E–Book Find out more in the book, a readable and fully referenced account of the JFK assassination. CA $6.49 Evidence of Shots from the Front About 40 witnesses to the assassination of President Kennedy claimed either to have heard gunshots from the infamous grassy knoll in the northwest corner of Dealey Plaza, or to have seen smoke or smelled gunpowder in that area. Interviewing the Dealey Plaza Witnesses Several of these witnesses were interviewed by newspaper, radio and television reporters immediately after the assassination. The interviews were influential in generating doubt about the lone–gunman theory. Many other interviews have been carried out in the years since the assassination, almost all of them by private researchers. Examination of photographs and home movies suggests that there were perhaps as many as 600 people in Dealey Plaza at the time of the assassination. Official interviews or statements exist for around 200 of these witnesses. Because the Warren Commission did no investigation of its own, almost all of the witnesses who testified before the Commission were chosen from those who had already made official statements.

The other 400 or so, including many of the spectators nearest to the president, were never interviewed officially at all. Few of these missing witnesses were identified, even when the authorities had been informed of their existence ( , vol.15, pp.525f ). In many cases, the witnesses appear not to have been asked about the origin of the shots. Of those who were asked, probably a small majority claimed that the shots came from the general direction of the Texas School Book Depository. A handful of people claimed to have heard shots from both directions. Many had no opinion. Status of the Dealey Plaza Witness Evidence Most of the evidence quoted below falls into four categories: contemporaneous reports by journalists who were in Dealey Plaza; statements to the police or sheriff’s deputies within hours of the assassination; statements to the FBI, mostly within a few days of the assassination; and interviews by the Warren Commission’s staff attorneys several months after the assassination. None of the official evidence became publicly available until the Warren Commission’s Hearings and Exhibits were issued in November 1964. Some of it was not published at all, but was placed in the National Archives, and was only discovered at a later date.

Access to the evidence was not helped by the fact that the witnesses’ statements and testimony were scattered throughout many of the 26 volumes of the Hearings and Exhibits . There are some curiosities within the evidence: Emmett Hudson, the only man identified out of the three standing on the steps leading up to the fence on the grassy knoll, claimed that all the shots came from the general direction of the TSBD (see Abraham Zapruder Several other witnesses gave statements that may be interpreted as evidence of shots from the grassy knoll. Four witnesses of varying degrees of credibility, Gordon Arnold, Cheryl McKinnon, Lee Bowers, and Ed Hoffman , also claimed to have experienced shots or other sinister activity on the grassy knoll. The Layout of Dealey Plaza For online images and maps of Dealey Plaza, see the Mary Ferrell Foundation website . A plan of Dealey Plaza with the locations of known witnesses can be found in Josiah Thompson, Six Seconds in Dallas : A Micro–Study of the Kennedy Assassination , Bernard Geis Associates, 1967, pp.252f.

For an illustrated identification of witnesses in photographs of the assassination, see Les Témoins de Dealey Plaza , which contains links to the witnesses’ testimony; although it is in French, it can be easily understood by those who don’t read the language. Victoria Adams Victoria Adams was watching the motorcade from a window on the fourth floor of the Texas School Book Depository. She believed the sound came from toward the right of the building, rather than from the left and above as it must have been according to subsequent information disseminated by the news services. ( , vol.6, pp.365f , 7 April 1964) Virginia Baker (née Rackley) Virginia Rackley, who got married shortly after the assassination, was standing on the north side of Elm Street close to the main entrance to the TSBD. It sounded as though these sounds were coming from the direction of the Triple Underpass, and looking in that direction after the first shot she saw something bounce from the roadway in front of the Presidential automobile and now presumes it was a bullet bouncing off the pavement. … Rackley stated that she did not look up at the Texas School Book Depository building since she did not think that the sounds were coming from that building.

( Warren Commission Document 5 , pp.66f , 24 November 1963) [Linguistic note: although almost every British reader will know that a ‘pavement’ in the UK is a ‘sidewalk’ in the US, not all will be aware that in US English, the word ‘pavement’ refers to the hard surface of a road.] Mr Liebeler : , vol.7, p.510 , 22 March 1964) Jane Berry Jane Berry was standing on the north side of Elm Street a few yards west of the TSBD. Everyone was very excited and no one seemed to know where the shot had come from. It sounded as if it had been fired from a position west of where she was standing. ( , p.42 , 24 November 1964) Charles Brehm Charles Brehm was standing with his wife and young son on the south side of Elm Street, just a few yards from President Kennedy at the moment of the fatal shot. The witness Brehm was shaking uncontrollably as he further described the shooting. “The first shot must not have been too solid, because he just slumped.

Then on the second shot he seemed to fall back.” Brehm seemed to think the shots came from in front of or beside the President. He explained the President did not slump forward as he would have after being shot from the rear. The book depository building stands in the rear of the President’s location at the time of the shooting. ( , 22 November 1963, p.1) Ochus Campbell Ochus Campbell, the vice–president of the Texas School Book Depository Company, was standing with Roy Truly on the north side of Elm Street, about 30 feet from the front entrance to the TSBD. Campbell says he ran toward a grassy knoll to the west of the building, where he thought the sniper had hidden. ( , vol.6, p.195 , 1 April 1964) Buell Wesley Frazier Frazier, who had driven Oswald to work that morning, was standing on the front steps of the TSBD. Mr Ball : Now, then, did you have any impression at that time as to the direction from which the sound came?

Mr Frazier : Well to be frank with you I thought it come from down there, you know, where that underpass is. There is a series, quite a few number of them railroad tracks running together and from where I was standing it sounded like it was coming from down the railroad tracks there. ( , vol.2, p.234 , 11 March 1964) Dorothy Garner Garner was watching the motorcade from a fourth–floor window of the TSBD. I thought at the time the shots or reports came from a point to the west of the building. ( , vol.22, p.648 , 20 March 1964) Jean Hill Jean Hill was standing on the south side of Elm Street, just a few yards from President Kennedy as he was shot in the head. Mrs. Hill stated she heard from four to six shots in all and believes they came from a spot just west of the Texas School Book Depository Building. ( , vol.6, pp.212f , 24 March 1964) S. M.

Holland Sam Holland was standing on the railway bridge known as the triple underpass, at the west end of Dealey Plaza. When they got just about to the Arcade I heard what I thought for the moment was a fire cracker and he slumped over and I looked over toward the arcade and trees and saw a puff of smoke come from the trees and I heard three more shots after the first shot but that was the only puff of smoke I saw. … But the puff of smoke I saw definitely came from behind the arcade through the trees. ( , vol.6, pp.243f , 8 April 1964) Ed Johnson Ed Johnson, a reporter for the Fort Worth Star–Telegram , was in the press bus, a few car–lengths back in the motorcade, and described his experiences in the next day’s paper: The shots snapped out in the brisk, clear noon air. Some reporter said, “My God, what’s that? It must be shots.” The caravan kept wheeling on, picking up speed. Some of the White House reporters yelled for the bus driver to stop. He kept on going, heading toward the Stemmons Expressway.

Some of us saw little puffs of white smoke that seemed to hit the grassy area in the esplanade that divides Dallas’ main downtown streets. ( , vol.22, p.659 , 23 March 1964) Paul Landis Paul Landis was a Secret Service agent in the car immediately behind President Kennedy’s car. My reaction at this time was that the [fatal] shot came from somewhere towards the front. ( , vol.18, p.759 , 17 November 1963) Billy Lovelady Lovelady was standing on the front steps of the TSBD. A famous photograph by James Altgens showed a man who resembled Lee Oswald in the doorway during the assassination; it is now generally agreed that the man was in fact Lovelady, not Oswald. For details, see Was Oswald on the TSBD Front Steps? I heard several loud reports which I first thought to be firecrackers and which appeared to me to be in the direction of Elm Street viaduct just ahead of the Motorcade. I did not at any time believe the shots had come from the Texas School Book Depository.

( , vol.6, p.225 , 8 April 1964) A.J. Millican I was standing on the North side of Elm Street, about half way between Houston and the Underpass. … I heard three shots come from up toward Houston and Elm right by the Book Depository Building, and then immediately I heard two more shots come from the Arcade between the Book Store and the Underpass, and then three more shots came from the same direction only sounded further back. ( , vol.19, p.486 , no date, but filed with a group of similar statements given on 22 November 1963) Luke Mooney Mooney, a deputy sheriff, was standing on Main Street, on the edge of Dealey Plaza. He was one of the officers who found the rifle hidden under boxes on the sixth floor. Mr Ball : , vol.22, p.843 , 24 November 1963) William Newman William Newman (no relation to Jean Newman) was also standing on the north side of Elm Street, a little further along toward the knoll.

I thought the shot had come from the garden directly behind me, that was on an elevation from where I was as I was right on the curb. I do not recall looking toward the Texas School Book Depository. I looked back in the vacinity [sic] of the garden. ( , vol.19, p.490 , 22 November 1963) Kenneth O’Donnell and David Powers Two members of the White House staff, Kenneth O’Donnell and David Powers, were travelling in the Secret Service car immediately behind President Kennedy’s car. O’Donnell testified that the shots came from the rear ( , p.473 ). The politician, Tip O’Neill, claimed in his memoirs that both men had in fact heard shots from the grassy knoll: I was never one of those people who had doubts or suspicions about the Warren Commission’s report on the president’s death. But five years after Jack died, I was having dinner with Kenny O’Donnell and a few other people at Jimmy’s Harborside Restaurant in Boston, and we got to talking about the assassination.

I was surprised to hear O’Donnell say that he was sure he had heard two shots that came from behind the fence. “That’s not what you told the Warren Commission,” I said. “You’re right, ” he replied. “I told the FBI what I had heard, but they said it couldn’t have happened that way and that I must have been imagining things. So I testified the way they wanted me to. I just didn’t want to stir up any more pain and trouble for the family.” “I can’t believe it,” I said. ”I wouldn’t have done that in a million years. I would have told them the truth.” “Tip, you have to understand. The family — everybody wanted this thing behind them.” Dave Powers was with us at dinner that night, and his recollection of the shots was the same as O’Donnell’s. Kenny O’Donnell is no longer alive, but during the writing of this book I checked with Dave Powers. As they say in the news business, he stands by his story. (Thomas P.

O’Neill, Jr., Man of the House: The Life and Political Memoirs of Speaker Tip O’Neill , Random House, 1987, p.178) Roberta Parker Parker was standing directly opposite the main entrance to the TSBD. The shot sounded to her as though it had come from a cement memorial building to the north of the Texas School Book Depository on Elm Street. She looked in that direction but saw nothing that she could relate to the shot. During this time, she heard two additional shots and in looking around, glanced at the Texas School Book Depository building which was directly across Elm from her. ( , p.504 , 16 December 1963) Frank Reilly Reilly was standing with other railway workers on the railway bridge at the west end of Dealey Plaza. He saw two cars turn on Elm toward the underpass and at this time heard three shots which he thought came from the trees west of the Texas School Book Depository. ( , vol.6, p.230 , 8 April 1964) Arnold Rowland Arnold Rowland was standing on the east side of Houston Street, facing the TSBD.

Mr Specter : Did you have any impression or reaction as to the point of origin when you heard the first noise? Mr Rowland : Well, I began looking, I didn’t look at the building mainly, and as practically any of the police officers there will tell you, the echo effect was such that it sounded like it came from the railroad yards. That is where I looked, that is where all the policemen, everyone, converged on the railroads. … Mr Specter : Now, as to the second shot, did you have any impression as to the point of origin or source? Mr Rowland : , vol.7, p.568 , 24 July 1964) Joe Marshall Smith Like his fellow police officer, Edgar Smith, Joe Marshall Smith (no relation) was at the corner of Elm Street and Houston Street. [T]he reporter calling stated he had interviewed Patrolman J. M. Smith who advised that he definitely distinguished the aroma of gunpowder near the underpass. … He stated he did smell what he thought was gunpowder but stated this smell was in the parking lot by the TSBD Building and not by the underpass.

He advised he never at any time went to the underpass and could not advise if there was the smell of gunpowder in the underpass. ( , vol.3, p.227 , 24 March 1964) Harry Weatherford Weatherford, a deputy sheriff, was standing outside the Criminal Court building on Main Street. I heard a loud report which I thought was a railroad torpedo, as it sounded as if it came from the railroad yard. Thinking, this was a heck of a time for one to go off, then I heard a 2nd report which had more of an echo report and thought to myself, that this was a rifle and I started towards the corner when I heard the 3rd report. By this time I was running towards the railroad yards where the sound seemed to come from. ( , vol.19, p.502 , 23 November 1963) Seymour Weitzman Weitzman was one of the police officers who discovered the rifle on the sixth floor of the TSBD. At the time of the shooting, he was on the corner of Main Street and Houston Street.

I ran in a northwest direction and scaled a fence towards where we thought the shots came from. ( , vol.24, p.228 , 23 November 1963) Otis Williams Williams was standing on the front steps of the TSBD. Just after the Presidential car passed the building and went out of sight over the Elm Street embankment I heard three loud blasts. I thought these blasts or shots came from the direction of the viaduct which crosses Elm Street. ( , vol.22, p.683 , 19 March 1964) Mary Woodward Mary Woodward, a journalist on the Dallas Morning News , was standing on the north side of Elm Street, about halfway between the TSBD and the grassy knoll. She wrote about her experience in the following day’s paper. Suddenly there was a horrible, ear–shattering noise coming from behind us and a little to the right. (‘Witness From the News Describes Assassination’, Dallas Morning News , 23 November 1963, p.3) United States Attorney H. BAREFOOT SANDERS, Dallas, Texas, telephonically advised ASAC KYLE G.

CLARK on December 5, 1963, that a reporter for the Dallas “Morning News”, name unrecalled, had advised him that four of the women working in the Society Section of the Dallas “Morning News” were reportedly standing next to Mr. ZAPRUDA [sic] when the assassination shots were fired. According to this reporter, these women, names unknown, stated that the shots according to their opinion came from a direction other than from the Texas School Book Depository (TSBD) Building. ( , vol.22, p.685 ) Disputed Witnesses Not all of the following witnesses are equally credible, but they all crop up in various accounts of the assassination. Gordon Arnold In 1978, the Dallas Morning News reported the claims of Gordon Arnold to have witnessed the assassination. Arnold, a soldier on leave, had apparently: been standing close to the fence on the grassy knoll, encountered a man who brandished Secret Service credentials, and fell to the ground on hearing shots from behind the fence.

Although the existence of the apparently bogus Secret Service agent had been mentioned 15 years earlier by witnesses such as the policemen Joe Marshall Smith and Seymour Weitzman (see Warren Commission Hearings , vol.7, p.107 ), there is no conclusive evidence that Arnold himself was actually in Dealey Plaza during the assassination. He is not visible in any photographs or films, and none of the witnesses on the knoll mention his presence. He did, however, receive some support from Senator Ralph Yarborough, who was riding in the motorcade. Yarborough contacted the journalist Earl Golz, who had made Arnold’s story public, and told Golz that he had seen a man fall to the ground in the way Arnold had described. Yarborough may have seen Arnold, or he may instead have seen William Newman , who certainly fell to the ground close to the grassy knoll immediately after the fatal shot. For more about Arnold’s story, see: Earl Golz, ‘SS Imposters Spotted by JFK Witnesses,’ Dallas Morning News Reasonable Doubt : An Investigation into the Assassination of John F. Kennedy , Henry Holt, 1985, pp.111–3.

Cheryl McKinnon Another possible witness whose presence in Dealey Plaza cannot be substantiated is Cheryl McKinnon, a journalism student who claimed to have been standing on the north side of Elm Street. Cheryl McKinnon does not appear to have offered an opinion on the source of the shots, or indeed on the assassination itself, until 20 years afterwards, when she wrote an account of her experiences for her newspaper: Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, is a lovely square. It sits in the heart of the downtown area [sic; Dealey Plaza is actually just to the west of downtown Dallas], a haven for those who want to enjoy their lunch under a tree on a spot of grass. On Nov. 22, 1963, I stood, along with hundreds of others, on the grassy knoll in Dealey Plaza, waiting for just one thing — a chance to see, even for just a moment, that magical person, the president, John F. Kennedy. I had prepared for days to be in the plaza. As a journalism major in school, my plans were to write a story about my experiences as a class project.

Kennedy was for me the ideal of what a president should be — young and aggressive, yet thoughtful and seemingly genuinely concerned for his fellow man. As we stood watching the motorcade turn onto Elm Street, I tried to grasp every tiny detail of both President and Mrs Kennedy, “How happy they look,” I thought. Suddenly, three shots in rapid succession rang out. Myself and dozens of others standing nearby turned in horror toward the back of the grassy knoll where it seemed the sounds had originated. Puffs of white smoke still hung in the air in small patches. But no one was visible. Turning back to the street, now terribly frightened, I suddenly realized the president was no longer sitting up in the seat waving to the crowd. He was slumped over toward his wife, whose facial expression left no doubt as to what had occurred. The motorcade was beginning to gain speed and soon passed under the railroad trestle headed for its eventual destination, Parkland Hospital. It was an impressionable teenage girl who watched the assassination of a president, but today, 20 years later, it is still as clear in my mind as if it happened this morning. One moment they were laughing and waving.

The next moment, both men were slumped over and pandemonium reigned. As the months passed, following the shootings of first Kennedy, then Oswald and then the deaths of Ruby and others, I tried to maintain the faith with my government. I have read the Warren Commission Report in its entirety and dozens of other books as well. I am sorry to say that the only thing I am absolutely sure of today is that at least two of the shots fired that day in Dealey Plaza came from behind where I stood on the knoll, not from the book depository. I can’t accuse the government of hiding the truth or lying about the assassination, because no matter what I may personally believe, I have no proof. But that day in Dallas and those that followed left their mark and I have never quite had the same faith and trust in those that lead us as I did before. ( , 22 November 1983) Doris Mumford Cheryl McKinnon is frequently identified, without any supporting evidence, as the woman wearing sunglasses who is seen in several films and photographs, crouching on the grass.

The woman in question has also been identified by Karen Moore , a contributor to an online forum, as her mother, Doris Mumford. Photographs uploaded to the forum are consistent with the identification of the woman as Doris Mumford, who at the time of the assassination was 36 years old and living in Richardson, a few miles north of Dallas. In a comment on the excellent jfkfacts.org blog , Karen Moore writes that her mother was standing near William Newman , and “heard three shots, they came from behind her, and she saw the life leave the President’s face.” Lee Bowers Lee Bowers was working in the railway control tower north of the car park at the top of the grassy knoll. He was not sure where the sound of the shots came from: Mr Ball : And were you able to form an opinion as to the source of the sound or what direction it came from, I mean? Mr Bowers : The sounds came either from up against the School Depository Building or near the mouth of the triple underpass.

Mr Ball : , vol.6, p.287 , 2 April 1964) Bowers did, however, testify to having seen unusual activity behind the fence on the grassy knoll. A few minutes before the assassination, three unfamiliar cars came into the car park, drove around, and left. One of the drivers appeared to be using a walkie–talkie. More significantly, Bowers appears to claim that two men were standing behind the fence: Mr Ball : Now, were there any people standing on the high side — high ground between your tower and where Elm Street goes down under the underpass toward the mouth of the underpass? Mr Bowers : Directly in line, towards the mouth of the underpass, there were two men. One man, middle–aged, or slightly older, fairly heavy–set, in a white shirt, fairly dark trousers. Another younger man, about midtwenties, in either a plaid shirt or plaid coat or jacket. Mr Ball : , pp.287f ) And so Joseph Ball changed the subject.

Bowers did not supply explicit evidence to the authorities of gunshots from the grassy knoll, but his credible account of two men standing by the fence, and of a ‘commotion’ at the time of the shooting, surely makes him one of the most intriguing eye–witnesses to the assassination. Shortly before his untimely death in a car crash in 1966, Lee Bowers was interviewed for Mark Lane ’s film, Rush to Judgment . Extracts from the interview can be found online. According to a transcript of the interview, Bowers suggests that the two men he saw may have been on the steps leading up from Elm Street, rather than behind the fence: “And one of them, from time to time as he walked back and forth, er, disappeared behind a wooden fence which also is slightly to the west of that.” Bowers does, however, give a more detailed description of the ‘commotion’: At the time of the shooting, in the vicinity of where the two men I have described were, there was a flash of light or, as far as I am concerned, something I could not identify, but there was something which occurred which caught my eye in this immediate area on the embankment.

Now, what this was, I could not state at that time and at the time I could not identify it, other than there was some unusual occurrence — a flash of light or smoke or something which caused me to feel like something out of the ordinary had occurred there. Ed Hoffman Ed Hoffman, who was deaf, was standing on Stemmons Freeway, about 200 yards to the west of Dealey Plaza. He claimed to have seen two men in the railway yard behind the fence on the grassy knoll, followed by a puff of smoke among the trees, and finally one of the men passing a rifle to the other, who disassembled it, packed it in a bag, and made his escape while the first man went back to the fence. For details of Hoffman’s account, see: James Douglass, op.cit., pp.262–6; Ed Hoffman with Ron Friedrich, Eye Witness President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in 1963 - NY Daily News President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in 1963 President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in 1963 NEW YORK DAILY NEWS President John F.

Kennedy slumps down in the back seat of a car after being fatally shot in Dallas in this Nov. 22, 1963 photo. (JAMES W. IKE ALTGENS/AP) NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Saturday, November 21, 2015, 12:00 PM (Originally published by the Daily News on November 23, 1963. This story was written by Paul Healy.) DALLAS, TEX., Nov. 22 - President Kennedy was mortally wounded by a rifle bullet at 12:31 P.M. (1:31 P.M. New York time) today as he rode in an open convertible limousine leading a motorcade through the streets of Dallas. He died in Parkland Hospital 29 minutes later. Gov. John Connally of Texas was gravely wounded by the same assassin while seated directly in front of the President. Seized soon after as the suspected slayer was a Soviet-loving young Texan, Lee Harvey Oswald of Fort Worth. Police think he may have fired the fatal round from the fifth floor of a building which the motorcade was passing.

AMERICANS ARE IN SHOCK AFTER JFK IS ASSASSINATED Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, riding two cars behind, was unscathed, but in severe shock. He was admitted to the same hospital as the President and the Governor a few minutes after the shooting. But Johnson was soon released. Johnson was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States at 2:39 P.M. (3:39 P.M. New York time) in the forward compartment of the Presidential plane at the airport. The new President and the body of the assassinated President were then flown to Washington. An Enthusiastic Welcome JFK assassinated. (New York Daily News) Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline had landed at Love Field, Dallas, in bright sunny weather with the 46-year-old Governor and his wife and the Johnsons just over two hours before and had received an enthusiastic ovation from 250,000 Texans in this Republican city. The Kennedy's and the Connallys were discussing the warmth of the welcome when the bullet entered Kennedy's head. A half hour later, the nation's first Catholic President was dead. The last rites were administered in the hospital by the Rev.

Oscar Huber, pastor of nearby Holy Trinity Church. The sudden death of Kennedy, 46, the nation's youngest elected President, stunned the nation. The assassination left the citizens of Dallas in shock. They had just begun to congratulate themselves on giving a dignified, friendly reception to the President, particularly after the humiliation of the Adlai Stevenson incident just last month. On Oct. 24, Stevenson, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, was spat upon and struck with a picket sign here. All taken by Surprise The swiftness of the attack caught Secret Servicemen and motorcycle outriders by surprise. They quickly unlimbered automatic rifles and pistols, but it was too late, Kennedy was dying. US President John F. Kennedy and Mrs. Kennedy deplane from Air Force One at Love Field, Dallas, Texas, USA. (CECIL STOUGHTON/WHITE HOUSE/HANDOUT/EPA) Mrs. Kennedy cradled her husband's bloodsoaked head in her arms as the limousine rushed to Parkland Hospital. She had screamed in horror, "Oh, no!" as the shots rang out and he slumped down, but she did not give way to hysteria.

She repeated unbelievingly, again and again, "Oh, no!" Even as the car arrived at the hospital, a hurry-up call was sent out for blood and for top specialists. But the President died without regaining consciousness. Dr. Malcolm Perry, 34, later reported: "There was an entrance wound below his Adam's apple. There was another wound in the back of his head." Both wounds, some of the specialists explained, could have been caused by a single bullet. Dr. Perry said medical help was immediately available, "but at this point the President's condition was critical and moribund." Mrs. Kennedy was spattered with blood from her husband's wound. Mrs. Connally was drenched with blood. She clutched her husband, lying on the floorboard as he slumped from his jump seat. A Connally assistant, Bill Stinson, said he talked to the Governor in the hospital operating room where Connally was undergoing emergency treatment. Hands reach out to greet President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy upon their arrival at the airport in Dallas, Texas, in this Nov. 22, 1963 photo.

(AP) Stinson asked Connally how it happened and the Governor replied: "I don't know, I guess from the back. They got the President, too." Governor Conscious Doctors said Connally "seems to have been struck by just one bullet, which entered the back of his chest and moved outward, taking out and fragmenting a portion of a rib. The bullet emerged from his chest and struck his wrist and thigh. The thigh wound is trivial." Connally later was reported fully conscious and responding to questions. He was described as being in satisfactory condition. In a four-hour operation surgeons removed the shattered rib and mended a damaged lung. They said that if he had not turned after the first shot, the slug would probably have pierced his heart. He gasped to an aid, right after being wounded: "Take care of Nellie" (his wife). Wife Recalls Scene President John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, arrive at Love Field airport in Dallas, as a television camera, above, follows them. (AP) Mrs.

Connally said later that when the firing broke out "Jackie grabbed the President and I grabbed John and we both ducked down in the car." Connally's wife was given a room next to his. Their oldest son, John, 17, also was at the hospital. Two younger children stayed at the Governor's mansion in Austin. Julian A. Read, aid to the Governor, told newsmen that "Mrs. Connally said her husband and the President and the two wives had just been commenting on what a friendly reception the President had received in Dallas. Connally Turned "She said she observed: 'You can't say Dallas wasn't friendly to you today.' She said it was then the President was struck by the bullet. She said she saw her husband turn from the jump seat toward Kennedy, then the other two shots struck him." "She said the next thing she heard was the Secret Service man in the front seat grabbing the radiotelephone under the dashboard and saying: 'Let's get the President out of here.'" The doctors opened Kennedy's throat to relieve breathing and administered blood and fluids intravenously. It did no good. Nor did oxygen. President John F.

Kennedy is seen riding in motorcade approximately one minute before he was shot in Dallas, Texas, in this Nov. 22, 1963 photo. (AP) Robert Clark, radio-TV reporter, who was 75 yards back of the President's car, said: "When we got to the hospital, I ran up to the side of the car. The President was lying on his back, Mrs. Kennedy cradling his head. She was not crying. "One Hand Over His Head" "The thing that struck me was that he was completely motionless, with one hand over his head. It took a minute and a half before the stretchers came out. During this time, the Vice President walked into the hospital holding his side. Mrs. Kennedy helped lift her stricken husband aboard the stretcher. "Connally was left unattended at this time. He was holding his chest. He was conscious. Mrs. Connally was cradling his head. There was blood on the President's head." The three shots rang out as the Presidential motorcade was rounding a slight curve where there is a triple overpass.

By this time, the motorcade was in a more industrialized area and the huge crowds had thinned out. What Yarborough Saw Sen. Ralph Yarborough (D-Tex.), who was riding with Vice President Johnson two cars behind the Kennedy limousine, with a Secret Service car in between, told newsmen later in a voice choked with sobs: President John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline are shown riding in a motorcade moments before the president was fatally shot in 1963. (AP) "It is too horrible to describe. We did not see them shot, but we knew immediately they were. "I saw a Secret Service man in the car beating his fists on the back as they drove off, in frustration, anger and despair." Newsmen Heard Shots The press bus in which I was riding was farther back. We also heard the shots as the motorcade ahead of us was just rounding a curve. Then the Presidential limousine left the motorcade at furious speed. We found later that it was bound for Parkland Memorial Hospital, three miles away - five minutes at fast city speed.

Our press bus did not stop, but proceeded to the Trade Mart Building, where the President was to have been guest at a luncheon given in his honor by three Dallas civic organizations. 2 Boys Witnessed It The presidential limousine carrying President Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, as well as Texas Gov. John Connally and his wife, is followed by secret servicemen on running boards, in this Nov. 22, 1963 photo in Dallas, Texas. (AP) Two 17-year-old boys sitting atop a signboard, waiting to take pictures of the motorcade, witnessed the shooting. They were Mike Cargile and Charles Hopkins. Cargile said that when they looked at the car, right after the shots rang out, they saw Mrs. Kennedy lying across the President on the floorboards and a Secret Service man shielding them both with his body. Connally, they said, was lying slumped in the jump seat, his wife kneeling next to him, trying to tend him.

Charles Brehm, 38, who was standing five yards away from the car, reported: "He (Kennedy) was waving as the first shot hit him - and then that awful look crossed his face." Later Assistant Presidential Press Secretary Malcolm Kilduff hustled newsmen into a hospital classroom, mounted the lectern and read in a choked voice: "President John F. Kennedy died at approximately 1 P.M. here in Dallas. He died of a gunshot wound in the brain. I have no other details regarding the assassination of the President." He said in reply to a question: "No, he did not regain consciousness." The President had arrived in Texas yesterday morning for a two-day, five-city swing which had been billed as "nonpolitical," except for a fund-raising dinner at $100 a plate which had been scheduled for Austin, the capital, tonight. The President spoke in San Antonio at noon yesterday and at Houston last night when Mrs. Kennedy also addressed an assemblage in Spanish. Friends said that her first thought following her husband's death was for her children, Caroline, 6, and John Jr., 3 next week.

A third child, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, died in August after less than two days of life. Tags: November 22, 1963: Death of the President - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum November 22, 1963: Death of the President November 22, 1963: Death of the President Shortly after noon on November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated as he rode in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas. By the fall of 1963, President John F. Kennedy and his political advisers were preparing for the next presidential campaign. Although he had not formally announced his candidacy, it was clear that President Kennedy was going to run and he seemed confident about his chances for re-election. At the end of September, the president traveled west, speaking in nine different states in less than a week. The trip was meant to put a spotlight on natural resources and conservation efforts. But JFK also used it to sound out themes—such as education, national security, and world peace—for his run in 1964.

Campaigning in Texas A month later, the president addressed Democratic gatherings in Boston and Philadelphia. Then, on November 12, he held the first important political planning session for the upcoming election year. At the meeting, JFK stressed the importance of winning Florida and Texas and talked about his plans to visit both states in the next two weeks. Mrs. Kennedy would accompany him on the swing through Texas, which would be her first extended public appearance since the loss of their baby, Patrick, in August. On November 21, the president and first lady departed on Air Force One for the two-day, five-city tour of Texas. President Kennedy was aware that a feud among party leaders in Texas could jeopardize his chances of carrying the state in 1964, and one of his aims for the trip was to bring Democrats together. He also knew that a relatively small but vocal group of extremists was contributing to the political tensions in Texas and would likely make its presence felt—particularly in Dallas, where US Ambassador to the United Nations Adlai Stevenson had been physically attacked a month earlier after making a speech there. Nonetheless, JFK seemed to relish the prospect of leaving Washington, getting out among the people and into the political fray.

The first stop was San Antonio. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Governor John B. Connally, and Senator Ralph W. Yarborough led the welcoming party. They accompanied the president to Brooks Air Force Base for the dedication of the Aerospace Medical Health Center. Continuing on to Houston, he addressed a Latin American citizens' organization and spoke at a testimonial dinner for Congressman Albert Thomas before ending the day in Fort Worth. Morning in Fort Worth A light rain was falling on Friday morning, November 22, but a crowd of several thousand stood in the parking lot outside the Texas Hotel where the Kennedys had spent the night. A platform was set up and the president, wearing no protection against the weather, came out to make some brief remarks. "There are no faint hearts in Fort Worth," he began, "and I appreciate your being here this morning. Mrs. Kennedy is organizing herself.

It takes longer, but, of course, she looks better than we do when she does it." He went on to talk about the nation's need for being "second to none" in defense and in space, for continued growth in the economy and "the willingness of citizens of the United States to assume the burdens of leadership." The warmth of the audience response was palpable as the president reached out to shake hands amidst a sea of smiling faces. Back inside the hotel the president spoke at a breakfast of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, focusing on military preparedness. "We are still the keystone in the arch of freedom," he said. "We will continue to do…our duty, and the people of Texas will be in the lead." On to Dallas The presidential party left the hotel and went by motorcade to Carswell Air Force Base for the thirteen-minute flight to Dallas. Arriving at Love Field, President and Mrs. Kennedy disembarked and immediately walked toward a fence where a crowd of well-wishers had gathered, and they spent several minutes shaking hands. The first lady received a bouquet of red roses, which she brought with her to the waiting limousine.

Governor John Connally and his wife, Nellie, were already seated in the open convertible as the Kennedys entered and sat behind them. Since it was no longer raining, the plastic bubble top had been left off. Vice President and Mrs. Johnson occupied another car in the motorcade. The procession left the airport and traveled along a ten-mile route that wound through downtown Dallas on the way to the Trade Mart where the President was scheduled to speak at a luncheon. The Assassination Crowds of excited people lined the streets and waved to the Kennedys. The car turned off Main Street at Dealey Plaza around 12:30 p.m. As it was passing the Texas School Book Depository, gunfire suddenly reverberated in the plaza. Bullets struck the president's neck and head and he slumped over toward Mrs. Kennedy. The governor was also hit in the chest. The car sped off to Parkland Memorial Hospital just a few minutes away. But little could be done for the President. A Catholic priest was summoned to administer the last rites, and at 1:00 p.m. John F. Kennedy was pronounced dead. Though seriously wounded, Governor Connally would recover.

The president's body was brought to Love Field and placed on Air Force One. Before the plane took off, a grim-faced Lyndon B. Johnson stood in the tight, crowded compartment and took the oath of office, administered by US District Court Judge Sarah Hughes. The brief ceremony took place at 2:38 p.m. Less than an hour earlier, police had arrested Lee Harvey Oswald, a recently hired employee at the Texas School Book Depository. He was being held for the assassination of President Kennedy and the fatal shooting, shortly afterward, of Patrolman J. D. Tippit on a Dallas street. On Sunday morning, November 24, Oswald was scheduled to be transferred from police headquarters to the county jail. Viewers across America watching the live television coverage suddenly saw a man aim a pistol and fire at point blank range. The assailant was identified as Jack Ruby, a local nightclub owner. Oswald died two hours later at Parkland Hospital. The President's Funer al That same day, President Kennedy's flag-draped casket was moved from the White House to the Capitol on a caisson drawn by six grey horses, accompanied by one riderless black horse. At Mrs.

Kennedy's request, the cortege and other ceremonial details were modeled on the funeral of Abraham Lincoln. Crowds line d Pennsylvania Avenue and many wept openly as the caisson passed. During the 21 hours that the president's body lay in state in the Capitol Rotunda, about 250,000 people filed by to pay their respects. On Monday, November 25, 1963 President Kennedy was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. The funeral was attended by heads of state and representatives from more than 100 countries, with untold millions more watching on television. Afterward, at the grave site, Mrs. Kennedy and her husband's brothers, Robert and Edward, lit an eternal flame. Perhaps the most indelible images of the day were the salute to his father given by little John F. Kennedy Jr. (whose third birthday it was), daughter Caroline kneeling next to her mother at the president's bier, and the extraordinary grace and dignity shown by Jacqueline Kennedy.

As people throughout the nation and the world struggled to make sense of a senseless act and to articulate their feelings about President Kennedy's life and legacy, many recalled these words from his inaugural address: All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days, nor in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this administration. Nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin. The Warren Commission On November 29, 1963 President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy. It came to be known as the Warren Commission after its chairman, Earl Warren, Chief Justice of the United States. President Johnson directed the commission to evaluate matters relating to the assassination and the subsequent killing of the alleged assassin, and to report its findings and conclusions to him. The Warren Commission's report is available here . The House Select Committee on Assassinations The US House of Representatives established the House Select Committee on Assassinations in 1976 to reopen the investigation of the assassination in light of allegations that previous inquiries had not received the full cooperation of federal agencies.

Note to the reader: Point 1B in the link below to the findings of the 1979 House Select Committee on Assassinations states that the committee had found "a high probability that two gunmen fired" at the president. This conclusion resulted from the last-minute “discovery” of a Dallas police radio transmission tape that allegedly provided evidence that four or more shots were fired in Dealey Plaza. After the report appeared in print, acoustic experts analyzed the tape and proved conclusively that it was completely worthless—thus negating the finding in Point 1B. The committee, which also investigated the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., issued its report on March 29, 1979. To see the report, click here . Assassination Records Collection Through the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992, the US Congress ordered that all assassination-related material be housed together under supervision of the National Archives and Records Administration. Learn more about the collection here . Arlington National Cemetery To learn more about President Kennedy's funeral and grave site, go to the Arlington National Cemetery website.

SHOCKING: Unpublished Video JFK Assassination - YouTube SHOCKING: Unpublished Video JFK Assassination Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Jun 26, 2013 Los internautas se han mostrado inquietos por una grabación del famoso asesinato de John F. Kennedy. Dicen que es un video completo de lo que ocurrió desde el aeropuerto de Dallas hasta el hospital el día 22 de noviembre de 1963. La escena más impresionante empieza en el minuto 5:59 . La primera bala pasa casi desapercibida, sólo podemos ver cómo el presidente de EE.UU. empieza a caer en manos de su mujer, Jacqueline. Pero la segunda bala impacta de lleno en el cráneo. Kennedy fue llevado al hospital, donde media hora después de los disparos, los médicos certificaron la muerte.

El video dura un poco más de 15 minutos. Se desconoce quién fue el autor del montaje del nuevo video, que, de hecho, representa una mezcla de videos diferentes, tanto en color, así como en blanco y negro. Netizens have shown disturbed by a recording of the famous assassination of John F. Kennedy. They say it's a complete video of what happened from the Dallas airport to the hospital on November 22, 1963. The most impressive scene starts at minute 5:59 . The first bullet goes almost unnoticed, we can only see how the U.S. president begins to fall into the hands of his wife, Jacqueline. But the second bullet strikes squarely in the skull. Kennedy was taken to hospital, where half an hour after the shooting, doctors certified the death. The video is a little over 15 minutes. It is unknown who was the author of the assembly of the new video, which, in fact, represents a mixture of different videos in both color and black and white. Notice

Question: Which month of 1963 witnessed the assassination of President J.F. Kennedy?
Answer: NOVEMBER