Today, on November 22, 1963, 46-year-old President John F. Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas.

Kennedy had been planning to tour Texas on November 22 and 23 to gain support for his New Frontier political agenda. He began in Fort Worth, where he gave two talks and then took a brief flight to Dallas that fateful day.

Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connolly and their wives rode in an open-top convertible through Dealey Plaza on their way to the next planned speech at a Dallas business meeting. The motorcade had stopped twice earlier so Kennedy could shake hands with supporters. There were no incidents.

At 12:30 pm, CST, the motorcade took a sharp turn at Dealey Plaza. Shots rang out. The President had been hit. His mouth hung open in anguish. The bullet hit him through the upper back and throat. Another shot hit Kennedy in the head.

The limousine sped up. Jacqueline Kennedy screamed. Secret Service agents attempted to get between the President and his assailant, but they were too late. Thirty minutes later, the President was declared dead at Parkland Hospital.

Governor Connolly was also severely injured by bullets in the attack. He survived. The two wives were not struck.

The assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, had shot the President and the Governor from the 6th floor of the Texas School Book Depository building. He later killed a policeman who questioned him and was arrested in a movie theater.