1960s Timeline

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Jan 5, 2022

President Kennedy Cuts Short his Florida Vacation

Jan. 5, 1962 - President Kennedy plans to deliver his annual State of the Union Message next Thursday before a joint session of Congress....

Jan 5, 2022

JFK Jr. Takes First Steps

Jan. 5, 1962 - President Kennedy’s 13-month-old son, John Jr., took his first steps in public today. He was seen walking at Palm Beach,...

Jan 4, 2022

General Shoup: Marines Need to Toughen Up

Jan. 4, 1962 - General David M. Shoup, the U.S. Marine Corps commandant, said that today’s Marines need to toughen up. He said the corps...

Jan 3, 2022

Allies Seek "Live and Let Live" Arrangement in Berlin

Jan. 3, 1962 - The West was said today to be hoping for a live-and-let-live arrangement with the Soviet Union on Berlin and Germany. It...

Jan 3, 2022

The First Lady Goes Water-Skiing

Jan. 3, 1962 - President Kennedy took Vice President Johnson and top Defense aides on a luncheon cruise today, and Mrs. Kennedy gave them...

Jan 3, 2022

U.S. Seeks to Isolate Cuba over Communist Ties

Jan. 3, 1962 - The United States has told the Inter-American Peace Committee that Cuba “represents a bridgehead of Sino-Soviet...

Jan 2, 2022

JFK Jr. Visits Grandfather at Hospital

Jan. 2, 1962 - One-year-old John F. Kennedy Jr. went to see his ailing grandfather in the hospital today for the first time. Mrs. Kennedy...

Jan 1, 2022

President's Father Shows Some Improvement

Jan. 1, 1962 - Joseph P. Kennedy, the President’s father, is beginning to spend part of each day out of bed. He sat in a wheelchair for...

Dec 31, 2021

Kennedy and Khrushchev Exchange New Year's Greetings

Dec. 31, 1961 - President Kennedy and Premier Khrushchev, in an exchange of New Year’s greetings made public today, assured each other of...

Dec 29, 2021

Former First Lady Edith Wilson is Dead

Dec. 29, 1961 - Mrs. Edith Wilson (pictured in 1915), the former First Lady, died last night at the stately Washington townhouse that...

Dec 27, 2021

World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan to Go Forward

Dec. 27, 1961 - The end of a long-standing legislative impasse between New York and New Jersey appeared imminent today. Governor-elect...

Dec 27, 2021

President Passes Physical Exam

Dec. 27, 1961 - President Kennedy passed his physical examination today with high marks, but did not quite make straight A’s. The...

Dec 26, 2021

Ike Visits Disneyland

Dec. 26, 1961 - General Dwight D. Eisenhower and his family visited Disneyland today, and the former President seemed almost as delighted...

Dec 25, 2021

East German Border Guards Arrest Three for Waving at Relatives

Dec. 25, 1961 - Communist border guards arrested three East Berliners today who waved at relatives in the West across the wall dividing...

Dec 25, 2021

Somber Christmas for Kennedy Family

Dec. 25, 1961 - President Kennedy and his family observed the customs of Christmas today, but misfortune dimmed the merriment. Joseph P....

Dec 25, 2021

President Kennedy Delivers Christmas Message to West Berliners

Dec. 25, 1961 - President Kennedy told West Berliners in a Christmas message today that the beacon of freedom in Berlin “will continue to...

Dec 24, 2021

President's Father Has Pneumonia, Undergoes Surgery

Dec. 24, 1961 - Joseph P. Kennedy (pictured last Christmas Eve with his wife Rose), partly paralyzed by a stroke, has been stricken with...

Dec 24, 2021

Robert F. Kennedy Plays Santa in Negro Ward of St. Mary's Hospital

Dec. 24, 1961 - Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy played Santa Claus today for children in the Negro ward at St. Mary’s Hospital, where...

Dec 23, 2021

President's Father Shows Improvement

Dec. 23, 1961 - Joseph P. Kennedy, President Kennedy’s 73-year-old father, improved “considerably” in the last 24 hours, it was announced...

Dec 22, 2021

Kennedy and Macmillan Conclude Bermuda Meeting

Dec. 22, 1961 - President Kennedy and Prime Minister Macmillan agreed today to seek renewed diplomatic contacts with the Soviet Union on...