Hidden History Excursions! | Ep. 8 | President John F. Kennedy's Gravesite

On November 22, 1963, while on a campaign trip to Dallas, President Kennedy was shot and killed. At the time of Kennedy's death, many believed that he would be buried in Brookline, Massachusetts, where he was born and raised. However, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy wanted her husband's gravesite to be widely accessible to the American public. In selecting a location, she consulted with the president's brother, Robert F. Kennedy, and Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara—both of whom are now also buried at Arlington. The original gravesite was located on a sloping hillside along an axis line between Arlington House and the Lincoln Memorial.

The initial plot was 20 feet by 30 feet and was surrounded by a white picket fence. During the first year after Kennedy's death, up to 3,000 people per hour visited his gravesite, and on weekends an estimated 50,000 people visited. Three years after Kennedy's death, more than 16 million people had visited the gravesite. Because of the large crowds, cemetery officials and members of the Kennedy family decided that a more suitable site should be constructed. Construction began in 1965 and was completed on July 20, 1967. An eternal flame, lit by Mrs. Kennedy, burns from the center of a five-foot circular granite stone at the head of the grave. Kennedy is one of only two presidents buried at Arlington. The other is William Howard Taft, who died in 1930.

Information provided by Arlington National Cemetery: https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/explore/monuments-and-memorials/president-john-f-kennedy-gravesite

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