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John F. Kennedy. An incredible relic from the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, this is a 2.75 x 2.75-inch section o... (Total: 2 Items)
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$16,250.00
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Description
Bloodstained Leather Upholstery from the Presidential Limousine in which President Kennedy Was Assassinated
John F. Kennedy. An incredible relic from the assassination of
President John F. Kennedy, this is a 2.75 x 2.75-inch section of
the bloodstained dark blue leather upholstery taken from the rear
seat of the 1961 Lincoln Continental limousine in which the
President was sitting when he was shot and killed. This rare
artifact was obtained by noted presidential collector, Raleigh De
Geer Amyx in 1983 from F. Vaughn Ferguson, who was Technical
Service Representative of the Ford Motor Company at the White
House, responsible for the presidential automobiles from the Truman
to Nixon administrations.On Saturday morning, November 23, 1963, the day after the assassination, Ferguson was called to the White House garage by the U.S. Secret Service to inspect the presidential limousine, which already had been returned to Washington. The presidential limousine was an open-top modified 1961 Lincoln Continental that was codenamed SS-100-X by the Secret Service. The car had been in use since March 1961. Ferguson was instructed to clean the limousine and get it ready in case the new president, Lyndon B. Johnson, wanted to use it to attend the funeral. When Ferguson arrived at the garage, he found parts of it dismantled and the leather seats ripped out, the result of an FBI search for bullet fragments. Ferguson remembered that, "Blood was everywhere." He worked throughout the weekend to get the car ready for the funeral, but ultimately the car was not used by President Johnson. On November 26, 1963, Ferguson removed the bloodstained leather and kept parts of it as a memento. Twenty years later, Amyx obtained the leather fragment from Ferguson.
A copy of the November 22, 1983 letter Mr. Ferguson wrote is included with the leather fragment. It reads,
"The leather, light blue and dark blue, is from the automobile in which John F. Kennedy, President of the United States, was assassinated in on November 22, 1963. It was a royal blue Lincoln Continental.
Four days after the assassination the White House upholsterer and I removed this leather at the White House. The light blue leather is from the center of the seat. The dark blue leather is from the border of the rear seat. The spots on the leather are the dried blood of our beloved President John F. Kennedy.
Following the assassination, the Presidential Limousine was completely refurbished. About 2 ½ tons of weight was added, much of it in steel plating and 3-inch-thick glass, bullet proof tires and other security features. The refurbishing was done according to Secret Service specifications by the Ford Motor Company and a Cincinnati Custom Body Firm by the name of Hess & Eisenhardt, Inc. The standard weight of a Continental is 5,100 pounds. The Limousine in which the President was killed weighed 6,500 pounds. By the time it was rebuilt for President Lyndon Johnson it weighed 11, 210 pounds. This was some months later. President Johnson wanted the Limousine to be driven back from Cincinnati in secrecy. I drove it back during the night to avoid the press and photographers.
My career at the White House spanned a twenty-year period. There were some fun times, but this was not one of them. It was so sad."
Accompanied by a two-page Typed Affidavit Signed, by Sergeant of Police, Gerald L. Hill, Accident Investigator, Ray Hawkins, Detective Paul Bentley, and Patrolman M. N. McDonald, attesting to the circumstances of the apprehension and arrest of Lee Harvey Oswald in the death of President John F. Kennedy and Officer J. D. Tippit. No place [Dallas, Texas], November 22, 1963 [printed later], 8.5 x 11 inches.
The letter gives a blow-by-blow account of the apprehension of Lee Harvey Oswald. It reads, in part:
"At 1:18 P.M., Friday, November 22, 1963, Sergeant C. B. Owens and Sergeant G. L. Hill were at Elm and Houston Streets, investigating the shooting of the President, when we received information via the police radio that an officer had been shot in Oak Cliff.
...we found Police Unit No. 10 sitting against the South curb of Tenth Street. There was a pool of blood about two feet north of the squad car in the street.
We contacted several witnesses and after obtaining a description of the suspect as a white male, 25-30, 165 pounds, bushy hair, 5'6", wearing a white jacket, white shirt and dark trousers, a search of the area was started.
Minutes later, we received additional information that the suspect was in the Texas Theater. Several officers answered the call, and in the process of checking the occupants of the theater, Officer McDonald approached the center section on the third row from the back. As he started to search another suspect, he observed the arrested party sitting in the third seat. As he approached this suspect, the suspect said, "This is it," and sprang from the seat.
Officer McDonald began to grapple with the suspect and the suspect got his hand on a gun that was stuck inside his shirt. As the officer and the suspect wrestled for the gun, the suspect pulled the trigger once and the gun snapped, but did not fire. Officers Carroll, Hutson, Walker, Hawkins, Hill, Sgt. H. H. Stringer, Captain W. R. Westbrook, and F.B.I. Agent Bob Barrett, Paul Bentley and others aided in the arrest; and, after a struggle in which the suspect resisted violently he was disarmed and handcuffed.
The suspect, later identified as Lee H. Oswald, w/m/24, was released by arresting officers to Captain J. W. Fritz of the Homicide Bureau. The pistol and six shells recovered from the suspect at the time of arrest were marked as evidence before they were released to Homicide and Robbery.
During the arrest of the suspect he received several scratches about the face and an abrasion and swelling about the left eye."
At 12:45 p.m. on November 22, 1963, 15 minutes after President Kennedy was shot, 11-year veteran of the Dallas Police Department, J. D. Tippit received a radio order to drive to the south Dallas neighborhood of Oak Cliff. By the time he arrived, the suspect in the shooting at Dealey Plaza was described as a slender white male in his early 30s, 5 ft. 10 in. tall, weighing about 165 lb.
At around 1;14 p.m., Officer Tippit pulled alongside a man who resembled the police description of the shooting suspect. Oswald approached Tippit's patrol car, and as the officer came around the front of his car, Oswald drew his handgun and fired five shots. Three bullets struck Tippit in the chest, another in the temple, and the fifth bullet missed. Officer Tippit was pronounced dead at 1:25 p.m.
This incredible section of blood-spattered upholstery from the car that President Kennedy was assassinated in, together with the signed affidavit from the principal people responsible for apprehending Lee Harvey Oswald, represent fascinating relics from one of the most important days in the history of the 20th Century.
Condition: The upholstery shows a faint crease and is mounted on sturdy card stock for display. From the Melvin "Pete" Mark, Jr. Collection
More Information: The full affidavit text reads:
"Mr. J. E. Curry
Chief of Police
Subject: Apprehension of suspect in the Death of the President of the United States and Officer J. D. Tippit.
Sir:
At 1:18 P.M., Friday, November 22, 1963, Sergeant C. B. Owens and Sergeant G. L. Hill were at Elm and Houston Streets, investigating the shooting of the President, when we received information via the police radio that an officer had been shot in Oak Cliff.
Sergeant Owens and Sergeant Hill responded to this call, Code Three, and on arrival at the 400 block of E. Tenth, we found Police Unit No. 10 sitting against the South curb of Tenth Street. There was a pool of blood about two feet north of the squad car in the street.
We contacted several witnesses and after obtaining a description of the suspect as a white male, 25-30, 165 pounds, bushy hair, 5'6", wearing a white jacket, white shirt and dark trousers, a search of the area was started. The steps of the suspect were traced through witnesses to two large houses in the 400 block of E. Jefferson. At this point, Sergeant Owens called for additional help to cover off and search the buildings. Several officers responded to this call, and the building were shaken down without results. About this time, information was received that the suspect was seen at the Oak Cliff Branch Library at Marsalis and Jefferson. Officers T. A. Hutson, M. N. McDonald, Ray Hawkins, and C. T. Walker and Bob Carroll and K. E. Lyons were among the officers that responded to this call and others for additional manpower.
Minutes later, we received additional information that the suspect was in the Texas Theater. Several officers answered the call, and in the process of checking the occupants of the theater, Officer McDonald approached the center section on the third row from the back. As he started to search another suspect, he observed the arrested party sitting in the third seat. As he approached this suspect, the suspect said, "This is it," and sprang from the seat.
Officer McDonald began to grapple with the suspect and the suspect got his hand on a gun that was stuck inside his shirt. As the officer and the suspect wrestled for the gun, the suspect pulled the trigger once and the gun snapped, but did not fire. Officers Carroll, Hutson, Walker, Hawkins, Hill, Sgt. H. H. Stringer, Captain W. R. Westbrook, and F.B.I. Agent Bob Barrett, Paul Bentley and others aided in the arrest; and, after a struggle in which the suspect resisted violently he was disarmed and handcuffed.
Officers Carroll, Lyons, Hill, Bentley and Walker escorted the suspect from the scene to a squad car and brought him to the Homicide and Robbery Bureau.
Officer McDonald, Detective Carroll and Sergeant Hill handled the gun, in that order; and, it was released by Sergeant Hill to Detective Baker of Homicide and Robbery. During the fight with the suspect, Officer McDonald was struck in the nose and scratched on the left cheek by the suspect.
Detective Bentley received a severe sprain to the right ankle and required treatment at Baylor Emergency; and, Officer K. E. Lyons received a severe sprain to his left ankle and required treatment at Baylor Emergency.
The suspect, later identified as Lee H. Oswald, w/m/24, was released by arresting officers to Captain J. W. Fritz of the Homicide Bureau. The pistol and six shells recovered from the suspect at the time of arrest were marked as evidence before they were released to Homicide and Robbery.
During the arrest of the suspect he received several scratches about the face and an abrasion and swelling about the left eye. (Offense No. 85827)
Respectfully submitted,
Gerald L. Hill, Sergeant of Police
Ray Hawkins, Accident Investigator
Paul Bentley, Detective
M. N. McDonald, Patrolman"
Auction Info
2022 December 1 Historical Platinum Session Signature® Auction #6267 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
December, 2022
1st
Thursday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 17
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