November 22, 2023 marks sixty years since the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The shocking death of the young, popular president catapulted the nation into a state of sincere grief. Some argue that this is when America lost its innocence. The image of him smiling in that car moments before an assassin’s bullet hit him is infamous. People remember Jackie Kennedy’s pink suit and the way Clint Hill clambered on the back of the vehicle. It’s an iconic day in American history, made memorable by three shots fired.
Sixty years later and the story remains fascinating. It’s full of questionable decisions, heroism, tragedy, coincidences and tall tales. The official story, that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, is one that few agree with. The fact that he was shot and killed only a day later only adds to the mystery.
This is the story of what happened on that day.
The Key Players
- John F. Kennedy- President of the United States, Democrat. Killed by an assassin.
- Jacqueline Kennedy- First Lady of the United States. Popular with the public.
- Lee Harvey Oswald- Former Marine who had ties with the Soviet Union. The official assassin.
- Jack Ruby- Nightclub owner with ties to the mafia. Shot Oswald.
- John Connally- Governor of Texas. Democrat, later Republican. Shot but survived.
- Nellie Connally- First Lady of Texas. In the car with her husband and the Kennedys.
- Clint Hill- Secret Service Agent. Jumped on the car after Kennedy was shot.
- Lyndon B. Johnson- Vice President of the United States. In a car behind.
- Lady Bird Johnson- Second Lady of the United States. In a car behind.
- J. D. Tippit- Dallas police officer. Killed by Oswald.
- Sarah T. Hughes- District Court Judge. Swore Johnson in.
- Malcolm Kilduff- Press Secretary. Announced Kennedy’s death to the world.
- Walter Cronkite- CBS News Anchor. Breaks the news.
- Dr. Robert McClelland- Surgeon who worked on both Kennedy and Oswald.
- Rufus Youngblood- Secret Service Agent. Jumped on top of Johnson when the shots were fired.
- Robert Kennedy- Attorney General and Kennedy’s brother.
Background
John F. Kennedy was only 43 when he was elected and became President. He was a Catholic from Massachusetts. His faith had become a point of contention for some, thus necessitating the choice of Southern Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. As President, Kennedy faced a variety of issues. Domestically, the fight for civil rights was heating up. In 1963, famed activist Martin Luther King Jr led the March on Washington to demand equality. Earlier that year, Birmingham, Alabama had seen violent clashes between police and activists. Kennedy had pushed for a ‘New Frontier’ in the USA as well as getting ahead of the Soviets in the Space Race.
Foreign policy was also important in the Kennedy administration. The war in Vietnam was steadily getting hotter, though it would not reach the level of escalation as it did during Johnson. For Kennedy, the main enemies were the Soviet Union and Cuba. In 1961, Kenned implemented the Bay of Pigs Invasion, a plot cooked up by the CIa during the Eisenhower administration to overthrow Fidel Castro in Cuba. The invasion failed miserably. 1962 saw an even greater threat. The Cuban Missile Crisis saw a nuclear stalemate between the Soviets and Americans over defensive Soviet missiles placed in Cuba. The Americans wouldn’t know until years later that offensive missiles were also there. When America hit back, DEFCON was ticked up to two and the public prepared for nuclear war. After nearly two tense weeks, Kennedy and Khrushchev managed to hash things out.
On a personal level, Kennedy’s family grew. After suffering a miscarriage and a stillbirth in 1956, Jacqueline gave birth to a healthy daughter named Caroline after her daughter. In 1960, only weeks after the successful election victory, a son named John Jr was born. Sadly, the birth of their son Patrick in 1963 was a difficult one. Having gone into labour prematurely, Jacqueline gave birth to a very poorly son. Little Patrick lasted less than two days before succumbing to his illness. Both parents were devastated.
Preparing for Dallas
With the 1964 election just over a year away, the Kennedy administration planned to go in all guns blazing. Texas in particular was looking like it could be trouble. Despite being traditionally blue and the home of Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Kennedy’s support of the civil rights movement had the state veering into red territory. There was also a problem with Governor John Connally, a Conservative Democrat. In an attempt to shore up support, a trip was planned. Jacqueline Kennedy usually avoided political trips, but agreed to go as a favour to her husband. Considering how popular she was, this was great for Kennedy.
The Kennedys arrived in Texas on the 21st November, visiting San Antonio. They arrive in Fort Worth that night and spend the morning of the 22nd there.
Dallas
The Kennedys arrive at Love Field, Texas just before midday on the 22nd November 1963. The Mayor of Dallas, Earl Cabell and his wife were on the tarmac, ready to greet them. Mrs. Cabell handed Jacqueline a bouquet of red roses. The Kennedys hop into a car with the Connallys and head to the Trade Mart in downtown Dallas.
The crowds were massive. Kennedy insisted that the car’s top would be down so that the crowds could see Jacqueline, despite the Secret Service strongly advising against it. He also asked her to take off her sunglasses. The car had just turned into Dealey Plaza at 12:30 when Nellie Connally turned to Jack Kennedy and said something to the effect of ‘well you can’t say the people of Dallas don’t love you.’ Kennedy replied with ‘no, certainly can’t.’
These would be his last words. Moments later, three shots were fired. One missed. The first shot entered Kennedy’s upper back, went through his neck and lung before exiting his throat. Kennedy shot upright, likely as a result of his back brace. The second shot went into the back of his head, went through his skull and exited to the side. Connally’s bullet went through his shoulder, a rib, lung, wrist and palm before finishing at his thigh.
Jacqueline Kennedy immediately attempted to climb off of her seat and onto the back of the car. Secret Service Agent Clint Hill jumped from the car behind and climbed on to the back of Kennedy’s vehicle, carefully guiding Jackie back into the car. The vehicle hit full speed as they headed to Parkland Memorial Hospital. The rest of the motorcade followed.
Parkland and Beyond
Parkland Hospital was warned of the incoming action. Once they arrived, doctors and agents had great difficulty in having Jackie let go of her husband. She had clung onto him after the shooting and was holding him tightly against him in a state of shock. Eventually, she was persuaded to let him go. Doctors rushed Kennedy and Connally inside.
The doctors present immediately assessed Kennedy as being critically wounded and that there was nothing that they could do for him. In order to give some hope, surgeons gave him a cardiac massage and a thoracotomy. Father Huber, a Catholic priest, gave Kennedy his Last Rites, something he had received numerous times before. At 1PM, John F. Kennedy was declared dead.
Lyndon and Lady Bird Johnson were in a separate room when someone came in and addressed Johnson as ‘Mr. President.’ Lady Bird would later recall that she realised at that moment Kennedy was dead. Security wanted Johnson out of Dallas immediately but he refused to leave without Jackie and the body.
At 1:30PM, Malcolm Kilduff announced to the press that Kennedy had died.
Lee Harvey Oswald escaped from the Book Depository. He was later confronted in the street by Dallas Police Officer J. D. Tippit, as he resembled the description put out. About forty-five minutes after he’d reportedly shot Kennedy, Oswald shot and killed Tippit before running off. He was spotted entering a cinema and was apprehended there, initially arrested for the murder of Tippit.
A problem arose as soon as Kennedy died. Texas law required an autopsy before he left the state, something the government was not a fan of. There was an argument between Texans and government officials before it was decided that the body was free to go.
The back of Air Force One was moved around to allow room for the coffin. Inside the plane, the now widowed Jackie was encouraged to change out of her blood stained suit. Jackie refused, claiming that she wanted everyone to ‘see what they have done to Jack.’ In order to continue the order of government smoothly, the Inauguration happened whilst they were still in Dallas.
As a judge who served on the district covering Dallas, Sarah Hughes was dispatched to administer the oath of office. In the famous image, Hughes is shown administering the oath to Johnson, who is flanked by Lady Bird and Jackie. Hughes is, at the time of writing, the only woman to have administered the oath.
Once Johnson was officially president, it was wheels up as the party headed back to D.C.
Aftermath
The funeral of Kennedy was immediately planned. Meanwhile, his autopsy took place that night.
On the 24th November, the press was out as Oswald was being escorted to the county jail. In the thick of the action, nightclub owner and mafia associate Jack Ruby managed to slip in. He stepped out of the crowd of reporters and shot Oswald once in the stomach, before being immediately subdued by the police. Oswald was taken to Parkland and happened to be treated by the same team that had worked on Kennedy. They were once again unsuccessful. At only twenty-four, Lee Harvey Oswald was dead.
Jack Ruby had reportedly been distraught by Kennedy’s death. He claimed that he was saving the country, and Mrs. Kennedy, from the ordeal of a lengthy trial. He also said that it was his form of revenge against Oswald. Ruby would always claim that he acted completely alone. After being imprisoned, Ruby died in 1967.
Meanwhile, Kennedy’s funeral was a large one that involved numerous dignitaries from both home and abroad. Lyndon B. Johnson and other world leaders ignored advice and instead walked openly behind the coffin. Jacqueline wore a widow’s veil, holding the hands of her little children. It also happened to be little Jack’s third birthday and he famously saluted. Following the funeral in D.C, Kennedy was laid to rest in a smaller ceremony in Arlington Ceremony. Jackie, Patrick and Arabella are all buried beside him.
What happened to the other figures?
- Jacqueline Kennedy- Jacqueline Kennedy became the object of massive public sympathy. After years away from the public, the assassination of Robert Kennedy caused her to marry Aristotle Onassis. This was widely unpopular and the marriage was unhappy. Following her second widowhood, Jacqueline started working in the publishing sector. Her popularity was once again boosted. She died of cancer at only 64 and was buried with her husband at Arlington. Jacqueline is remembered as one of America’s beloved First Ladies.
- John Connally- John Connally was treated and eventually released from hospital. He stepped down as Texas Governor several years later. Connally served as Treasury Secretary for Richard Nixon between 1971 and 1972, before stepping down to head up ‘Democrats for Nixon.’ In 1973, Connally officially switched his allegiance to the Republican Party. He attempted to win the 1980 Republican nomination for president but failed. Connally died in 1993 aged seventy-six. He’s buried in Austin.
- Nellie Connally- Nellie’s quick thinking during the assassination is credited with saving her husband’s life. She helped to suction and cover the bullet hole by holding Connally close to her, something the doctors praised. Nellie died in 2006 and is buried with her husband.
- Clint Hill- Clint Hill suffered from severe guilt following the assassination. He would go on to protect Lyndon B. Johnson and Spiro Agnew before retiring. Hill has written several books about his time in the Secret Service. He is, at the time of writing, the only living member of this group.
- Lyndon B. Johnson- Johnson set about pushing a civil rights agenda before the 1964 election, successfully. He beat Republican Barry Goldwater in a landslide, becoming president in his own right. Despite praise for his domestic agenda, Johnson’s escalation of the Vietnam War made him a villain in the eyes of many. He made the surprise decision not to run again in 1968. Poor health led to his early death in 1973.
- Lady Bird Johnson- Lady Bird struggled to follow the uber-popular Jacqueline Kennedy, but proved a very respected and well-liked First Lady in her own right. She had an active widowhood before her death in 2007.
- Sarah T. Hughes- Hughes retired in 1982. She died in 1985.
- Malcolm Kilduff- Kilduff worked for the Johnson administration before going into private practice. He died in 2003 and is buried in Arlington.
- Walter Cronkite- Cronkite remained a beloved news anchor and reporter until he retired in 1980. He continued making regular media appearances until his death in 2009.
- Dr. Robert McClelland- McLelland died in 2019.
- Rufus Youngblood- Youngblood continued to protect Johnson and later Nixon before he retired in 1971. He died in 1996.
- Robert Kennedy- Robert Kennedy took care of the widowed Jacqueline and her children. He served in the Senate from 1965 to 1968, becoming a prominent member of the Democratic Party. In 1968, he ran for president. It seemed as though he would win the nomination when he was cut down by an assassin’s bullet in California, dying on the 6th June 1968. He is buried at Arlington. Kennedy was survived by his wife Ethel and eleven children, the last of whom was born after his death.
Theories
Despite the Warren Commission deciding that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, many don’t accept the official explanation. A number of theories regarding the assassination have sprung up over the years. Here are some of the most prominent:
The Mafia- It’s believed by some that Joseph Kennedy Sr used the mafia in order to encourage votes for his son. Some say that he met with prominent leader Sam Giancana and promised that the administration wouldn’t be too strict on organised crime. Singer and close friend of Kennedy, Frank Sinatra, is known to have had mob links. It was these mob links that caused Kennedy to reluctantly end their friendship. Any promises made by the older Kennedy seemed to be lies, as Attorney General Robert Kennedy made crushing organised crime his top priority. This allegedly angered the mafia, who decided to shoot Kennedy to send a message. Considering Jack Ruby’s connections, it seems rather sketchy that he shot Oswald.
Likelihood?: Well, the organised crime community had a hell of a reach. Besides, the slaying of Oswald by a mafia man is rather strange. That being said- why not kill Robert Kennedy? Wouldn’t killing Kennedy also cause more problems?
Cuba- Kennedy had angered the Cubans with both the Bay of Pigs Invasion and Cuban Missile Crisis. It seems natural that they would want revenge.
Likelihood?: Cuba killing Kennedy- and it being outed- would just lead to more trouble. Kennedy had naturally failed in his attempts to get rid of Castro, and was hated by him just as equally by Cuban exiles in Florida.
Soviet Union- It was the very height of the Cold War when Kennedy was assassinated. Whilst he’d reached a tentative peace with Khruschev, the Soviets were still licking their wounds after the Cuban Missile Crisis. They perhaps felt humiliated by Kennedy. Even if Khrushchev didn’t order the assassination himself, there were still some in his inner circle who may have found him too soft. Considering Oswald’s association with the USSR, it’s an understandable avenue to explore.
Likelihood?: Well, they have the Oswald connection and the motive. Still, if it was revealed that they were behind it, the Americans would have gone nuclear (maybe literally). Despite all of his bravado, Khruschev was equally as scared of nuclear war as Kennedy was. If it was the Soviets, then it probably wasn’t Khruschev.
CIA: Some allege that the CIA had reason to kill Kennedy. He had wanted to gut the organisation and they were reportedly upset about how soft he was on communism. Some think that they worked with anti-Castro forces. The CIA had tried to kill Fidel Castro on hundreds of occasions, and had their fingers in plenty of other pies. Who’s to say that they didn’t attempt to use Oswald as a patsy and Ruby to shut him up?
Likelihood?: Well, the CIA is a shadowy organisation that a lot of people don’t trust, but that doesn’t mean they’re guilty. They’d easily have the ability to do it, and the motive. Inside forces would mean a lesser chance of war.
Lyndon B. Johnson: Robert Kennedy went to his grave believing that Lyndon B. Johnson was behind the assassination. Johnson didn’t like playing second fiddle to a man over a decade younger than him, from a wealthy family with connections. President Kennedy was polite enough to him, but Robert Kennedy had a mutual loathing with the Vice President. Johnson was one of the Southern Democrats, a group that opposed Kennedy, and was from Texas itself. Kennedy’s death meant that Johnson would automatically ascend to the top job.
Likelihood?: Well, motive aside, it seems that Johnson was genuinely torn up about Kennedy’s death. He could have risen to President following a Kennedy term, or other way. Assassination seems risky- and Robert Kennedy’s reasoning was down to hatred.
Other theories include the involvement of George H. W Bush and Richard Nixon (both of whom happened to be in Dallas that day), critics of Kennedy and an accidental shooting by the Secret Service.
Sixty years later, and we have more questions than answers. Kennedy remains long dead but the theories surrounding his death remain as alive as ever. Since his death, wife Jacqueline and son John have both died, leaving daughter Caroline as the only direct link who remains. As a person, Kennedy is both venerated and criticised. More is made of his personal vices, foreign policy involvement and his initial scepticism of the Civil Rights movement. That being said, his visionary approach, military heroism and attempts to avert nuclear armageddon are praised.
Kennedy will forever remain the King of Camelot, slain in Dallas for the world to see.