Jacqueline Kennedy Thanks Her Husband’s Chief Military Aide For Perpetuating His Memory
She appreciates receiving the famous bust of JFK by Felix DeWeldon.
Felix de Weldon was widely recognized as one of the foremost sculptors of the 20th century, his most famous work being the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. After the assassination, John F. Kennedy’s military aides (Maj. Gen. Chester “Ted” Clifton, Capt. Tazewell T. Shepard, and Brig. Gen. Godfrey T. McHugh),...
Felix de Weldon was widely recognized as one of the foremost sculptors of the 20th century, his most famous work being the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. After the assassination, John F. Kennedy’s military aides (Maj. Gen. Chester “Ted” Clifton, Capt. Tazewell T. Shepard, and Brig. Gen. Godfrey T. McHugh), as a gift to Mrs. Kennedy, commissioned a memorial bust of the President. DeWeldon was selected as the sculptor, and Jacqueline Kennedy was involved in the work. As DeWeldon later wrote, "After the President was assassinated, Mrs. Kennedy came to my studio to supervise the completion of the Kennedy bust. When she saw the finished work for the first time, she burst into tears."
Typed Letter Signed, June 2, 1964, to Clifton, thanking him for the bust. “You're giving me the Felix de Weldon bust touches me more than you can imagine. I will always treasure it so much, because it came from all of you, who are such a part of our three years. And you have helped me so much now. I know it will be moving to everyone to see it in the Library as it is to me. I do thank you more than I can ever say and will never forget your thoughtfulness and wishing to perpetuate his memory.” This letter comes right from the Clifton files and has never been offered for sale.
The DeWeldon bust of Kennedy was unveiled by President Johnson in the White House later in 1964 and is now at the Kennedy Library.
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