1960s Timeline

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Aug 10, 2021

Vice President Johnson Would Exercise Duties of President if Kennedy Incapacitated

Aug. 10, 1961 - President Kennedy disclosed today that he had made an agreement that Vice President Johnson would exercise the rights and...

Aug 9, 2021

Herbert Hoover 87 Today, Confident in America's Future

Aug. 9, 1961 - Herbert Hoover (center), 31st President of the United States, turned 87 today, and he faces the coming years unafraid,...

Aug 4, 2021

President Kennedy Gets 20,000 Letters Offering Advice on Berlin and Communists

Aug. 4, 1961 - In his recent speech to the nation on Berlin and the Communist challenge, President Kennedy said he would be glad to have...

Aug 2, 2021

Kennedy Chooses Gerald A. Behn to Head Secret Service Detail

Aug. 2, 1961 - Gerald A. Behn (pictured with President Kennedy), a Secret Service agent since 1939, was given responsibility today for...

Aug 1, 2021

McNamara Says Bomb Shelters Could Save 15 Million American Lives

Aug. 1, 1961 - Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara said today that 50 million usable shelter spaces could provide a "Spartan" minimum...

Jul 31, 2021

President Kennedy Empowered by Congress to Call 250,000 Reservists

July 31, 1961 - A resounding 403-to-2 vote of approval in the House completed today Congressional action to empower President Kennedy to...

Jul 29, 2021

President Kennedy Takes Caroline and Friends to Candy Store in Massachusetts

July 29, 1961 - President Kennedy took his daughter, Caroline, and ten of her cousins and playmates to a neighborhood store in Hyannis...

Jul 28, 2021

President Kennedy Joins First Lady on her 32nd Birthday

July 28, 1961 - President Kennedy joined his wife in Hyannis Port, Mass., today to help celebrate her 32nd birthday. Pierre Salinger,...

Jul 28, 2021

Senate Approves Kennedy's Request for More Weapons and Troops for Berlin

July 28, 1961 - The Senate approved overwhelmingly today President Kennedy's request for more weapons and troops to cope with Soviet...

Jul 27, 2021

Nixon Urges Americans to Support President Kennedy on Berlin Crisis

July 27, 1961 - Former Vice President Richard M. Nixon asked all Americans today to support President Kennedy's program for dealing with...

Jul 27, 2021

President Kennedy's Civil Defense Goals Announced

July 27, 1961 - President Kennedy's immediate Civil Defense goal is to provide fallout shelters in existing buildings for 25 percent of...

Jul 26, 2021

After Kennedy Speech, Draft-Age Americans Make Inquiries

July 26, 1961 - President Kennedy's call for an increase in military manpower touched off a sharp increase in inquiries from the nation's...

Jul 26, 2021

Financier Bernard Baruch Says U.S. Will Manage Berlin Crisis, Praises Kennedy

July 26, 1961 - Bernard M. Baruch, financier and friend of Presidents, said today that the U.S. had "all the resources to do all the...

Jul 26, 2021

Kennedy Administration Wants Home Alarms for National Emergencies

July 26, 1961 - The Kennedy Administration asked Congress today for $10 million to put into operation a home buzzer system that would...

Jul 26, 2021

President Kennedy Asks for Nation's Prayers in Meeting Soviet "World-Wide Threat"

July 26, 1961 - President Kennedy asked last night for an overall increase in the nation's military preparedness to meet a Soviet threat...

Jul 25, 2021

President Kennedy's Televised Speech on Berlin Crisis (Video)

July 25, 1961 - Watch President Kennedy's televised speech on the Berlin crisis: #JFK #americanhistory #politics #communism #communist...

Jul 24, 2021

RFK Bids Americans to Focus on Physical Fitness

July 24, 1961 - Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy said today there had been a lot of talk but little action to improve the physical...

Jul 24, 2021

U.E. Baughman, Secret Service Chief, to Retire

July 24, 1961 - U.E. Baughman (pictured), chief of the U.S. Secret Service, plans to retire next month. Mr. Baughman has served in the...

Jul 21, 2021

President Kennedy Watches Grissom Flight, Calls to Congratulate Astronaut

July 21, 1961 - President Kennedy watched the space flight of Capt. Virgil I. Grissom (pictured center) on television this morning. Then...

Jul 21, 2021

RFK to Clergy: Help Fight Racial Discrimination

July 21, 1961 - Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy today urged the nation's clergymen, especially those in the South, to take a more...