1 of 1

Write now Article Tools

THE KENNEDY DEATH CAR

The first government-owned car for use by a President of the United States was a white Stanley Steamer that Theodore Roosevelt delighted in taking the wheel of himself. It was open, had no armor, no bulletproof glass, or other safety amenities, and was truly a 'stock' car. It didn't even have a Secret Service code name.
The Midnight Blue 1961 Lincoln that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas, carried the Secret Service code name "SS 100X." It had been delivered to The White House on June 14, 1961.

In 1963 the car's grille was replaced by one from a 1962 model for aesthetic reasons, and sombrero'-style wheel covers like those of the 1957 Lincoln Premiere were added. Trunk lid grab handles for Secret Service agents were also affixed. The undistinguished District of Columbia license plates on SS 100X had the simple two-letter, three number designation: GG 300.
During his time in office JFK used the car on various overseas and domestic trips. When the armored limousine needed to be transported in the air, it was typically flown in by a US Air Force cargo plane that arrived at the location before the big Boeing 707 known as Air Force 1. For moving long distances on the ground, the Secret Service had a large trailer, once used by Ringling Brothers for circus animals, to move the 21 foot leviathan from place to place.
Even before Air Force One had rolled to a stop in the appropriately designated space at Love Field in Dallas, Texas, the earphones worn by members of the Secret Service's detail were alive with chatter. On the aircraft Roy Kellerman, the senior agent attached to the President, queried Agent Bill Greer on the ground as to the status of "SS 100X." Greer replied that the vehicle was in position and waiting for "Lancer", the code name for President Kennedy, and his party. Jacqueline Kennedy's code name was "Lace." In the motorcade, Kellerman would be in the front seat, the so-called "riding shotgun" seat, next to Greer.
It was bright, sunny and 76 degrees in Dallas when Agent Greer moved the open Lincoln into position for the President and the other three occupants. Jacqueline Kennedy preceded her husband through the aircraft door and stood momentarily at the top of the 13-step debarking ramp. She was wearing a burl weave strawberry pink suit with a grape-purple collar. Her straight, shoulder length brown hair was parted in front toward the left and crowned by

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about The Kennedy death car?
We want to hear your view. Write now!