Talk to anyone who is 55 years old or older, and he or she can tell you exactly where she was when President John F. Kennedy was shot, and where she was when Kennedy was announced dead. Even for those of us who were not yet born on November 22, 1963, the Kennedy assassination continues to haunt us. Iconic images of John F. Kennedy, JR saluting his father’s casket, or Lyndon Johnson taking the oath of office, flanked by Mrs. Kennedy still wearing her blood stained suit are seared into our minds.

There are many ways to honor the 50th anniversary of this tragic event and the life of John F. Kennedy.

• Check out our display in the reference area of the library. It includes several books about the assassination and the Kennedy’s presidency. There are also copies of the front pages of The Boston Globe and The New York Times from November 23, 1963 (the next day) and the library’s copy of Life Magazine.
• Check out our Pinterest Board “50th Anniversary of John F. Kennedy Assassination”
• Read articles from The Boston Globe and The New York Times from the days leading up to and following the assassination by using our database accessing the historical archives of the two papers. Don’t feel like searching through the database? Read the front pages of the November 23, 1963 The Boston Globe and The New York Times by clicking here and here.
• Visit the JFK Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. If you’re a Waltham resident or a non-Waltham member of the Library Friends, you can reserve a pass through the Waltham Public Library.
• Review the digital archives from the JFK Presidential Library and Museum with its excellent November 22, 1963 Press Kit. The photo gallery is quite extensive with several pictures of President and Mrs. Kennedy arriving in Dallas and several more of the funeral. The video gallery contains footage from Universal Newsreel of the news of the assassination as well as coverage of the funeral. The audio portion contains the transmissions of the Dallas Police Department from November 22, 1963. Lastly, do not forget to check out the Oral Histories portion containing memories from Walter Cronkite, Lady Bird Johnson, and several others.
• The John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site at Kennedy’s birth place in Brookline will be open to the public all day on November 23 and November 24. There will also be a memorial ceremony on November 24.
• The John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum on Cape Cod will feature a ceremony on November 22, starting with a wreath laying memorial at 10:00 am.
• Several news organizations have created excellent sites about their own coverage and the legacy of the Kennedy Assassination. One that particularly stands out is CBS which features an interview with Lyndon B. Johnson’s daughter, Luci Baines Johnson. On Friday, starting at 1:40 pm Eastern Standard Time, the site will stream all of its November 22, 1963 coverage. No doubt it will include the famous clip of Walter Cronkite announcing the death of President Kennedy.

posted by Laura