Online Gallery: John F. Kennedy in World War II

Online Gallery: John F. Kennedy in World War II

 

Originally published on HistoryNet.com. Published online: February 08, 2011  - See more at: http://www.historynet.com/gallery-extra-john-f-kennedy-in-world-war-11.htm?pid=1084#sthash.x53mHkSj.dpuf

 

 

 

 ◄ Back Next ► Picture 1 of 18 In April 1943, 25-year-old John F. Kennedy arrived in the Pacific and took command of the PT-109. Just months later, the boat collided with a Japanese ship, killing two of his men. All Photos Courtesy of The John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library.

 

 

 

 

 Snapshot taken shortly after commissioning in 1941.

 

 

 

 

Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Training Center in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, in December 1942. Kennedy is in the top row 5th from right.

 

 

 

 

(Detail) Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Training Center in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, in December 1942. Kennedy is in the top row, center. -

 

 

 

 

Lieutenant John F. Kennedy

 

 

 

 

Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., circa 1942.

 

 

 

 

A young John F. Kennedy sits next to his brother, Joseph Kennedy Jr, for a photo shoot in 1942

 

 

 

 

United States Navy identification card for John F. Kennedy

 

 

 

 

John F. Kennedy in the Solomon Islands, c. 1943

 

 

 

 

Kennedy (far right) and part of his crew pose on the PT-109. The boat, which lacked radar, had old torpedoes and a vulnerable wood hull

 

 

 

 

Kennedy (middle) with fellow PT officers (from left) Jim Reed, Barney Ross, and Red Fay at the base on Tulagi in 1943

 

 

 

 

Kennedy (right) with fellow PT officers (from left) Jim Reed, Barney Ross, and Red Fay (arms outstretched) at the base on Tulagi in 1943. Navy regulars called the PT fleet the Hooligan Navy

 

 

 

 

Lt. Kennedy receives the Navy and Marine Corps medal from Captain Conklin at the Chelsea Naval Hospital in Massachusetts on June 12th, 1944. Kennedy received the medal for his heroics in the rescue of the crew of PT 109 during WWII on August 2, 1943 when the motor torpedo boat was struck by a Japanese destroyer

 

 

 

 

Lt. Kennedy receives the Navy and Marine Corps medal from Captain Conklin at the Chelsea Naval Hospital in Massachusetts on June 12th, 1944. Kennedy received the medal for his heroics in the rescue of the crew of PT 109 during WWII on August 2, 1943 when the motor torpedo boat was struck by a Japanese destroyer

 

 

 

 

Guests who joined Kennedy (second from right) at Hyannis Port for a PT boat reunion in 1944 included Barney Ross (far left) and Leonard Thom (second from left) from the 109

 

 

 

 

From left to right: Red Fay, John F. Kennedy, and Leonard Thom at the PT Boat reunion in 1944

 

 

 

 

JFK’s inaugural parade featured a float with a replica of his boat. His campaign gave supporters souvenir PT-109 lapel pins and tie clasps.