Piece of American History Goes Under the Hammer

06-March-2011

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The ambulance that carried the body of assassinated American president John F Kennedy went under the hammer in the USA on the weekend.

The ambulance was reported as being the one that met Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base and transported Kennedy's body to Bethesda Naval Hospital for an autopsy and later to the U.S. Capitol to lie in state.

The navy ambulance was sold to avid car collector Addison Brown for US$120,000 at an auction in Arizona. Addison said she was proud to own “a piece of history.”

But she may have not gotten what she paid for as days before the auction, a website claimed the real ambulance had been crushed in 1986. She told reporters after the auction she was convinced the ambulance was the real deal.

She hasn’t made any solid plans for the vehicle yet but said she may see if the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. was interested in displaying it.

But the intrigue doesn’t stop there. Despite ongoing investigations, no-one was ever found guilty of the assassination, which happened on 22 November 1963 in Texas as the President travelled in a motorcade. The only major suspect was killed before he could stand trial. 

In historical pictures after the event, the ambulance is shown with first lady Jackie Kennedy, her dress still stained with her husband's blood, holding the hand of her brother-in-law Robert F Kennedy as they watched JFK's casket placed into it. Another shows Jackie reaching to open the passenger door of the ambulance, with Robert Kennedy behind her.

The ambulance was put up for sale by American John Jensen, who bought it for an undisclosed price in 2009. There was a lot of build up before the auction with some believing it would fetch more than $1 million.