The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial is a
monument
A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, his ...
to
United States President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United State ...
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...
in the
West End Historic District of
downtown Dallas
Downtown Dallas is the central business district (CBD) of Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, located in the geographic center of the city. It is the second-largest business district in the state of Texas. The area termed "Downtown" has tradit ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
(
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
) erected in 1970, and designed by noted architect
Philip Johnson
Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8, 1906 – January 25, 2005) was an American architect best known for his works of modern and postmodern architecture. Among his best-known designs are his modernist Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut; the pos ...
.
Design
The John F. Kennedy Memorial was the first memorial by famed American architect and
Kennedy family
The Kennedy family is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P. J." Kennedy be ...
friend
Philip Johnson
Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8, 1906 – January 25, 2005) was an American architect best known for his works of modern and postmodern architecture. Among his best-known designs are his modernist Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut; the pos ...
, and was approved by
Jacqueline Kennedy
Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A po ...
. Johnson called it "a place of quiet refuge, an enclosed place of thought and contemplation separated from the city around, but near the sky and earth."
Dallas raised $200,000 for the memorial by August 1964, entirely from 50,000 individual donations contributed by private citizens.
Plaza
The simple concrete memorial lies in the block bounded by Main, Record, Commerce, and Market Streets, approximately east of
Dealey Plaza, where Kennedy was
assassinated
Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...
. The block, also known as the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial Plaza, is in
downtown Dallas
Downtown Dallas is the central business district (CBD) of Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, located in the geographic center of the city. It is the second-largest business district in the state of Texas. The area termed "Downtown" has tradit ...
near the Historic West End district, is owned by
Dallas County Dallas County may refer to:
Places in the USA:
* Dallas County, Alabama, founded in 1818, the first county in the United States by that name
* Dallas County, Arkansas
* Dallas County, Iowa
* Dallas County, Missouri
* Dallas County, Texas, the nin ...
.
Cenotaph
Philip Johnson's design is a
cenotaph
A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...
, or empty tomb, that symbolizes the freedom of Kennedy's spirit. The memorial is a square, roofless room, tall and square with two narrow openings facing north and south. The walls consist of 72 white precast concrete columns, most of which end above the earth.
Eight columns (two in each corner) extend to the ground, acting as legs that support the monument.
Each column ends in a light fixture. At night, the lights create the illusion that the structure is supported by the light itself. The corners and "doors" of this roofless room are decorated with rows of concrete circles, or medallions, each identical and perfectly aligned. These decorations introduce the circular shape into the square architecture of the Kennedy Memorial.
The cenotaph lies atop a low concrete hill, embossed with squares and slightly elevated compared to street level. Inside is a low block of dark granite, square, set into a larger shallow depression. The granite square is decorated on its north and south faces with the name "John Fitzgerald Kennedy" carved in gold letters.
It is too empty to be a base, too short to be a table, but too square to be a tomb. The letters have been painted gold to capture the light from the white floating column walls and the pale concrete floor. These words – three words of a famous name – are the only verbal messages in the empty room.
Epitaph
Two dark granite squares are set in the plaza surrounding the memorial, each approximately from the narrow entrances to the cenotaph.
They are each inscribed with an
epitaph
An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...
that reads:
File:JFK Memorial Dallas.jpg, John F. Kennedy Memorial
File:The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial, a monument to U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in the West End Historic District of downtown Dallas, Texas LCCN2015631021.tif, Narrow openings north and south
File:The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial, a monument to U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in the West End Historic District of downtown Dallas, Texas LCCN2015631186.tif, Inside the cenotaph
File:The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial, a monument to U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in the West End Historic District of downtown Dallas, Texas LCCN2015631022.tif, Low granite square
File:Dallas January 2016 02 (John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial).jpg, John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial Plaza in January 2016
File:JFK Memorial Dallas 1.JPG, With visitors, for scale
File:John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial by Philip Johnson, Dallas, Texas (41064846695).jpg, Plaza and granite marker
History
Dallas County Judge
Lew Sterrett was credited as the first to propose a monument to Kennedy on November 24, 1963, two days after the assassination.
The concept became a formal proposal on December 2, when Sterrett formed the John F. Kennedy Citizens Memorial Committee with Mayor
Earle Cabell
Earle Cabell (October 27, 1906 – September 24, 1975) was a Texas politician who served as mayor of Dallas, Texas. Cabell was mayor at the time of the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy and was later a member of the U.S. H ...
and two dozen prominent Dallas citizens.
However, other Dallas civic leaders, including former mayor
R.L. Thornton, said the memorial was better placed in Washington D.C., attempting to distance Dallas from the infamy it had gained as the assassination site.
The Committee solicited designs for a memorial after its formation; 260 proposals were received within a week, and 700 proposals were received by February 1964.
On February 5, 1964, the Committee, led by
W. Dawson Sterling, announced it had met for a fifth time to narrow down the proposals to three or four finalists. On February 22, 1964, the Committee announced that two memorials would be created: one at the
John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, and another "dignified and modest memorial near the assassination site".
The location near the
Old Red Courthouse was chosen in April 1964.
The original location, announced as the block bounded by Main, Elm, Record, and Market Streets,
was shifted to another plaza one block south bounded by Main, Record, Market, and Commerce.
Both plazas were owned by Dallas County and were being prepared as part of the new Dallas County Court House, then under construction.
By September, the concept for the Kennedy Plaza included a green space with a modest marker.
Committee member
Stanley Marcus flew to New York and successfully asked Philip Johnson to take on the memorial design, which he did for no fee. Johnson's proposal model was shown to the Committee in December 1964, and the Committee formally announced the design on December 12, hoping to demolish the existing buildings and have the memorial ready by November 1968, the fifth anniversary of the assassination.
An underground parking facility was built under the memorial site, however, and construction did not start until 1969.
The Committee stated in June 1969 the memorial was being constructed for a reasonable fee and would be dedicated by January 1, 1970. It was finally dedicated on June 24, 1970 in a ceremony attended by 300 people.
Sargent Shriver
Robert Sargent Shriver Jr. (November 9, 1915 – January 18, 2011) was an American diplomat, politician, and activist. As the husband of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he was part of the Kennedy family. Shriver was the driving force behind the creatio ...
was the first Kennedy family member to visit the memorial in 1972.
Management
The memorial was vandalized with graffiti in the spring of 1999.
In mid 1999,
The Sixth Floor Museum
The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza is a museum located on the sixth floor of the Dallas County Administration Building (formerly the Texas School Book Depository) in downtown Dallas, Texas, overlooking Dealey Plaza at the intersection of El ...
at
Dealey Plaza undertook management of the memorial, rallying the support of Dallas County and the City of Dallas. The Museum became caretaker of the monument and launched a full-scale restoration project aimed at preserving the memorial and its history. Philip Johnson, the original architect for the monument, guided the restoration process implemented by Corgan Associates, Inc. and Phoenix I Restoration and Construction, Lt. Numerous local suppliers donated the labor, materials, and equipment required to return the memorial to its original beauty. In 2000, a panel of experts wrote an explanation of the memorial to satisfy the public.
The monument attracts approximately 500,000 visitors annually.
Critical reception
Soon after the Kennedy Memorial was completed,
Gary Cartwright
Gary Royce Cartwright (born 20 February 1952) is a former Australian politician. He was the Labor member for Victoria River in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory is the unicamera ...
wrote in 1971 for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' the "memorial seems esthetically spare, even forbidding", true to the concept proposed by Johnson.
In a 1999 interview with ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', Johnson confirmed the concept: "I don't think it's sterile, of course. I love it. The idea of going into an empty room with nothing to help you, except to think about the slain president, I think that's a very moving image."
Cartwright also noted the memorial "was erected, after much delay, by the city fathers of Dallas."
Architectural critic
Witold Rybczynski
Witold Rybczynski (born 1 March 1943) is a Canadian American architect, professor and writer. He is currently the Martin and Margy Meyerson Professor Emeritus of Urbanism at the University of Pennsylvania.
Early life
Rybczynski was born in E ...
wrote in 2006 that the monument is "poorly done", likening its precast concrete slab walls to "mammoth
Lego
Lego ( , ; stylized as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of variously colored interlocking ...
blocks", and commented that Kennedy "deserved better than this". On the 50th anniversary of Kennedy's assassination, ''
Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...
'' architecture critic
Mark Lamster called the monument "a disappointing product of the city's ambivalent response to the events of November 1963" and said that Johnson lacked "an animating vision that might have produced an inspiring design. This, in turn, was compounded by a lack of experience".
Lamster also noted the similarities between Johnson's design and the unrealized
Neue Wache
The Neue Wache ( en, New Guard) is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic centre of Berlin, Germany. Erected from 1816 to 1818 according to plans by Karl Friedrich Schinkel as a guardhouse for the Royal Palace and a memor ...
redesign proposal for a war memorial in Berlin, created in 1930 by
Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd ...
.
''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' architecture critic
Christopher Hawthorne echoed these prior criticisms in 2013, stating the memorial "symbolizes the city's deep ambivalence about commemorating the assassination. A spare cenotaph, or open tomb, designed to be built in marble, it was instead cast in cheaper concrete. And its location east of the assassination site suggested an effort to tuck the history of that day away."
See also
*
Four Freedoms Park, designed by
Louis Kahn
Louis Isadore Kahn (born Itze-Leib Schmuilowsky; – March 17, 1974) was an Estonian-born American architect based in Philadelphia. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935. Whi ...
and compared to Johnson's Kennedy Memorial by ''The New York Times''
*
List of memorials to John F. Kennedy
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Texas
This is a List of National Historic Landmarks in Texas and other landmarks of equivalent landmark status in the state. The United States' National Historic Landmark (NHL) program is operated under the auspices of the National Park Service, and re ...
*
*
List of Dallas Landmarks
Dallas Landmark is a designation by the City of Dallas and the Dallas Landmark Commission for historic buildings and districts in Dallas, Texas, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historica ...
References
Bibliography
*
*Brosio, M.D. (2016). The JFK Memorial and Power in America. Createspace Publishing. .
External links
Remembering the Kennedy MemorialJFK Memorial Plaza Marker*
*
*
*
*
*
{{NRHP in Texas
Landmarks in Dallas
Philip Johnson buildings
Vandalized works of art in Texas
Buildings and structures associated with the assassination of John F. Kennedy
Monuments and memorials in Texas
1970 sculptures
Concrete sculptures in Texas
Buildings and structures completed in 1970
Monuments and memorials to John F. Kennedy in the United States
Cenotaphs in the United States