John F. Kennedy Remembered In Pittsburgh 52 Years After Assassination
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - On this date, 52 years ago, John F. Kennedy was shot and killed. Nov. 22 became a date that will live in infamy. Citizens across the country can recall where they were on that afternoon.
For the City of Pittsburgh, JFK left a mark on many levels and in multiple locations.
In 1947, Kennedy came to the now-closed Penn McKee Hotel. It was his first visit to McKeesport. At the time, Kennedy was a young congressman debating with another future-president, Richard M. Nixon.
His speech as the Senator in 1960 was done at the Syria Mosque in Cheswick.
The Mosque was a 3,700-seat performance venue that was built in 1911 and demolished on Aug. 27, 1991. It's now the site for a University of Pittsburgh Medical Center parking lot.
However, the most-important moment for Pittsburgh came in McKeesport in 1962.
In Kennedy Park, the 35th president delivered an 11-minute speech. In all, 25,000 people came out to hear Kennedy speak. Two years ago, KDKA's Dave Crawley spoke to a man whose father was there for Kennedy's speech.
Patrick Reddington's father was a detective and part of the security team at the time.
People who were at the speech in 1962 said he shook hands with everybody there.
John F. Kennedy Catholic School is an elementary school in Washington.
Kennedy also had a relationship with David L. Lawrence, Governor of Pennsylvania from 1959-63. As Kennedy was the first-Catholic president, Lawrence was the first-Catholic governor of Pennsylvania.
After he left office, Kennedy appointed him to serve as chairman of the newly-created President's Committee on Equal Opportunities in Housing. Kennedy made the following remarks on his induction into his administration:
"I want to express great pleasure in having Gov. Lawrence come with this administration as Chairman of the President's Committee on Equal Opportunity in Housing. This is a most important assignment, which requires a good deal of experience, commitment, and administrative skill," said Kennedy.
"It is not a very good way to repay you for all your political services by giving you one of our most difficult assignments, but I really feel that in this case you and your own personal qualities, plus your experience, plus the sensitivity and the importance of the job at hand, have all joined together, like the three rivers around Pittsburgh, and the country will benefit."
For the city of Pittsburgh, Kennedy definitely made his mark.
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