Nostalgia: When Jackie Married John – The American Fairytale Wedding

Sixty-four years ago this month (Sept. 12, 1953) at St. Mary’s Church in Newport, R.I., in front of more than 750 guests, a young sophisticated society beauty, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, donned an ivory tissue silk gown, a pearl choker and diamond bracelet (gifts from the groom) to marry her Prince Charming, a handsome senator from Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy. Jackie was more than a wife; she was a role model to women everywhere, embodying grace and style that would be admired for years to come.

After Kennedy announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States, Jackie learned she was pregnant and not allowed to travel but she answered campaign letters, gave interviews and wrote a weekly newspaper column, Campaign Wife, helping JKF beat Republican Richard M. Nixon. The couple were the youngest president and first lady in American history. Years later, after JFK’s tragic assassination, Jackie referred to her husband’s presidency as an American Camelot, a period of hope and optimism in U.S. history.