Wedding of Jacqueline Bouvier and John F. Kennedy (2024)

Newport, Rhode Island, September 12, 1953

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier and John F. Kennedy were married on the morning of September 12, 1953, in St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Newport, Rhode Island. The more than eight hundred guests included many notable individuals.

The bride, given in marriage by her stepfather, Hugh D. Auchincloss, wore a dress of ivory tissue silk, with a portrait neckline, fitted bodice, and a bouffant skirt embellished with bands of more than fifty yards of flounces. Her rosepoint lace veil, worn first by her grandmother Lee, was draped from a tiara of lace and orange blossoms. Jacqueline wore a choker of pearls and a diamond bracelet that was a gift from the groom. The bride’s bouquet was of pink and white spray orchids and gardenias.

The bride's attendants, dressed in pink taffeta, included: her sister, Lee (Mrs. Michael T. Canfield) as matron of honor; her stepsister Nina G. Auchincloss as maid of honor; and ten bridesmaids, among them the groom’s sister Jean and sister-in-law Ethel, and the bride’s former boarding school roommate, Nancy Tuckerman. Half sister Janet Auchincloss was flower girl and half brother James Auchincloss served as a page. Senator Kennedy’s best man was his brother Robert and among the ushers were brother Edward, brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, cousin Joe Gargan, brother-in-law Michael Canfield, friends Lem Billings, Red Fay, and Torbert Macdonald, Senate colleague George Smathers, and Charles Bartlett, who had introduced the couple.

The ceremony was performed by Archbishop Cushing, a friend of the Kennedy family, and he was assisted by four other priests, including the former president of Notre Dame and the head of the Christopher Society. Before the mass, a special blessing from Pope Pius XII was read.

Tenor soloist Luigi Vena from Boston sang Gounod’s Ave Maria.

The reception was held on the terrace of the 300 acre Auchincloss oceanfront estate, Hammersmith Farm, for more than twelve hundred guests. The wedding cake, four feet tall,was ordered by Joseph P.Kennedy. Meyer Davis and his orchestra played under a huge canopy.

Wedding invitation

The lettering on the invitation was not raised, andwas printed in black ink on a cream colored paper. It stated:

Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Dudley Auchincloss
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of Mrs. Auchincloss' daughter
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier

to

The Honorable John Fitzgerald Kennedy
United States Senate
on Saturday, the twelfth of September
at eleven o'clock
Saint Mary's Church
Spring Street
Newport, Rhode Island

The invitation inthe holdings of the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum is framed. The frame is nine inches high and seven inches wide.The original invitation wasapproximately six inches in height and approximately four inches in length. (5.75" X 3.75" of the invitation is visible.)

Wedding of Jacqueline Bouvier and John F. Kennedy (2024)

FAQs

Wedding of Jacqueline Bouvier and John F. Kennedy? ›

Kennedy, the future 35th President of the United States, and Jacqueline Bouvier were married at St. Mary's Church in Newport on September 12, 1953.

Why didn't Jackie Kennedy's father give her away at her wedding? ›

“I think it was due to the fact that her father couldn't give her away,” Bartlett said. “He was there. He'd got totally intoxicated the night before and couldn't get up the next morning.” Bouvier III was an alcoholic and it often got him in trouble, like on Jackie's wedding day.

What was the age difference between Jackie Kennedy and JFK? ›

January 20, 1961: John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy become president and first lady. On Jan. 20, 1961, John became the 35th president at age 43, making Jackie first lady at age 31.

Who walked Jackie down the aisle? ›

Jackie walked down the aisle on the arm of her stepfather, Hugh D. Auchincloss.

How much older was JFK than Jackie? ›

At the time of the wedding, Senator Kennedy was 36 years old and Jacqueline was 24 years old. In 1961, the couple would become the youngest president and first lady in American history.

What happened to Jackie Kennedy's engagement ring? ›

Her original engagement ring from John F. Kennedy, a toi et moi style composed of a diamond and emerald stone from Van Cleef & Arpels, was redesigned in the 1960s; today, it can be found on display at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston.

Did the Bouvier family have money? ›

Within months of her birth, the stock market crash of October 1929 had cast its shadow over the Bouvier family fortunes, giving Jackie and her younger sister, Lee, born four years later, a sense of insecurity and fear of poverty that was to last almost all their lives.

Why is Bouvier called Black Jack? ›

Early life and education. John Vernou Bouvier III was born May 19, 1891 in Manhattan, New York, the eldest of five children, to John Vernou Bouvier Jr. and Maude Frances Bouvier (née Sergeant). His nickname, "Black Jack", referred to his flamboyant lifestyle.

Were the Bouviers wealthy? ›

Growing Up. Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was born on July 28, 1929, in Southampton, New York. Her father, John, was a wealthy stockbroker on Wall Street whose family had come from France in the early 1800s. Her mother, Janet, had ancestors from Ireland and England.

How many miscarriages did Jackie Kennedy have? ›

Did Jackie Kennedy lose a child? Actually, she lost two children. A daughter Arabella who was stillborn in 1956. Then she lost a son, Patrick who lived only 39 hours in 1963, just a little over 3 months before she lost her husband.

What happened to JFK's kids? ›

In 1952, she met John Kennedy at a dinner party—they married in September 1953 in Newport, Rhode Island. Jackie and JFK had four children, two of whom who died as infants: Arabella, born stillborn in 1956, Caroline, born 1957, John Jr., born 1960, and Patrick, who died two days after his premature birth in 1963.

How old would JFK be if he wasn't killed? ›

So on November 20th, 2022, he would've been 97 years old. "John F. Kennedy, born on May 29, 1917, became the 35th U.S. president in 1961 and sadly, he was assassinated on November 22, 1963. If he were alive today, he would be 106 years old.

Who did Jackie Kennedy remarry? ›

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier married future U.S. president John F. Kennedy on September 12, 1953. Jacqueline Kennedy's second husband was the Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis, whom she married in October 1968.

Did JFK wear a wedding ring? ›

John F. Kennedy, on his wedding to Jacqueline Bouvier on September 12, 1953, wore a classic Van Cleef & Arpels half-round high polished, 18K yellow gold, 5mm wedding band. Internal engraving, unknown. JFK's cufflinks were a gift from his father, Joseph P.

How old was Aristotle Onassis when he married Jackie Kennedy? ›

Aristotle Onassis was sixty-two at the time of his marriage to Jackie Kennedy in 1968. After their marriage they were together until his death in 1975. They had no children together but both had children from their first marriages.

Who was in Jackie Kennedy's wedding? ›

Senator Kennedy's best man was his brother Robert and among the ushers were brother Edward, brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, cousin Joe Gargan, brother-in-law Michael Canfield, friends Lem Billings, Red Fay, and Torbert Macdonald, Senate colleague George Smathers, and Charles Bartlett, who had introduced the couple.

Was Jackie's father at her wedding? ›

On the day of his daughter's wedding, Bouvier wasn't able to walk her down the aisle. Instead, her stepfather stepped in to do the honors. Jackie was devastated by her father's absence, though she kept her turmoil hidden inside.

Did Jackie and Elizabeth get along? ›

Jackie Kennedy and Queen Elizabeth "Had a Good Relationship" Says Secret Service Agent Clint Hill. His new book, My Travels with Mrs.

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