1960s Timeline

Jan. 17, 1962 - Police Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor (pictured) said today that he would seek the nomination for Governor of Alabama in the May 1 Democratic primary. He indicated that the racial issue would be in the fore of his campaign. Mr. Connor, a segregationist, said that Alabama “needs a Governor in the coming four years whom the people can trust completely on this racial issue, one who will do everything that can be done to stop the slaughter of the right of the s

Jan. 16, 1962 - The U.S. Army has begun withdrawing its armored guard, including 15 tanks, from a camp on the Friedrichstrasse on the border between West and East Berlin. The move, which began last night, was described today by sources as a gesture to the Soviet Union to “normalize” the Berlin situation. An Army spokesman said the purpose of withdrawing the armored infantry task force to Tempelhof Airfield, about two miles from the border, was “to improve the disposition of U

Jan. 16, 1962 - Former Gov. Goodwin J. Knight (pictured left in 1958) withdrew today from the California gubernatorial race because of ill health. His action removed a major obstacle to former Vice President Nixon’s bid for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Mr. Nixon expressed “sympathy and best wishes” for Mr. Knight. Gov. Edmund G. Brown, a Democrat, was elected in 1958 after Mr. Knight had been maneuvered out of a bid for re-election by Republican intra-party jockey

Jan. 13, 1962 - Senator Barry Goldwater urged Republican party workers today to shape a clearly conservative image for the party. The Arizona conservative was the final speaker at a two-day meeting of the Republican National Committee in Oklahoma City. “The Republican Party has failed to present to this nation a solid political organization unequivocally committed to an easily definable political philosophy,” Mr. Goldwater said. He assailed “two-faced images.” He said the par

Jan. 10, 1962 - The election-year session of the 87th Congress opened today. The chief event was the election of John W. McCormack (right) of Massachusetts as Speaker of the House, succeeding the late Sam Rayburn. After short meetings, both chambers adjourned to await President Kennedy’s State of the Union Message in a joint session at 12:30 p.m. tomorrow. Mr. McCormack took the oath as Speaker from Representative Carl Vinson, Democrat of Georgia. He had asked Mr. Vinson to s

Jan. 9, 1962 - Former Vice President Nixon said today that both Democrats and Republicans needed “responsible leadership which will avoid the extremes of the far left and the far right.” His remarks, in partial reply to charges by Gov. Edmund G. Brown, were prepared for delivery at a birthday dinner at Whittier College. Mr. Nixon, 49 years old today, was guest of honor at his alma mater. Governor Brown charged yesterday that Mr. Nixon was soft on the John Birch Society and ex

Jan. 8, 1962 - Gov. Edmund G. Brown (pictured in 1958) of California charged former Vice President Nixon today with courting political support of the John Birch Society and other “radicals of the right.” Governor Brown, a Democrat, told a National Press Club audience that right-wing extremists had become a strong political force in California and threatened to take control of the Republican party organization. A fear of communism had caused many Californians to lose sight of

Dec. 29, 1961 - Mrs. Edith Wilson (pictured in 1915), the former First Lady, died last night at the stately Washington townhouse that became her home when she and the World War I President left the White House more than 40 years ago. She was 89 years old. Mrs. Wilson, who had no children, married the President when he was serving his first term. She shared many of Wilson’s political and wartime trials and finally, acting as intermediary between him and his associates during h

Dec. 27, 1961 - The end of a long-standing legislative impasse between New York and New Jersey appeared imminent today. Governor-elect Richard J. Hughes (pictured with President Kennedy in October), meeting with the Democratic majority in the 1962 State Assembly, won its unqualified endorsement of legislation that would enable the Port of New York Authority to erect a World Trade Center in lower Manhattan and to purchase and operate the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad. The legi

Dec. 26, 1961 - General Dwight D. Eisenhower and his family visited Disneyland today, and the former President seemed almost as delighted as his four grandchildren. “Oh boy, Mamie, look at that!” Gen. Eisenhower exclaimed to his wife when he saw the amusement park’s version of a Mississippi riverboat. The general went on some rides himself. But he contented himself with watching when the children rode about in miniature cars with the help of their parents, Lieut. Col. John S.

Dec. 22, 1961 - Hunter College’s refusal to permit programs sponsored by William F. Buckley Jr. (pictured), editor of The National Review, in its auditorium was defended and attacked in New York Supreme Court today. Mr. Buckley and William A. Rusher, publisher of The National Review, have brought an action seeking to order the college to renew a contract for the use of the auditorium. For several years, The Review has sponsored speeches or symposiums in the Hunter College ass

Dec. 19, 1961 - The Army issued today a pocket-size, 12-page pamphlet entitled “Why Me?” to National Guard and Army Reservists who have been called to active duty. The pamphlet includes 15 “questions most frequently asked by Army National Guardsmen and Reservists.” In answer to the first question, “Why was the build-up necessary?” the pamphlet says: “Increasingly hostile behavior by the Sino-Soviet bloc made it necessary to build up U.S. military strength immediately to demon

Dec. 11, 1961 - Secretary of the Navy John B. Connally Jr. announced his resignation today. President Kennedy appointed another Texan, Fred Korth, to succeed him. Mr. Connally announced at a news conference in Fort Worth, Tex., that he would seek the governorship of Texas next year. Mr. Connally has been a political associate of Vice President Johnson for many years, but his political philosophy tends to be more conservative than Mr. Johnson’s. As a successful Texas oilman, h

Dec. 10, 1961 - Senator Strom Thurmond, Democrat of South Carolina, proclaimed Senator Barry Goldwater’s popularity in the South. “The Southern people believe in what Senator Goldwater is advocating,” he declared. He declined to say whether he would support a Presidential bid by the Arizona Republican, but asserted that his views were closer to Senator Goldwater’s than to President Kennedy’s. He also said that he would like to see a realignment of national parties that would

Dec. 2, 1961 - George Romney (pictured with his son Mitt), president of American Motors Corporation, announced today that “I am giving consideration to becoming a candidate for Governor of Michigan in the 1962 elections.” Mr. Romney has also been linked with speculation regarding the Presidential contest in 1964. Mr. Romney, 54, is a Republican delegate to and a vice president of Michigan’s constitutional convention. #history #HistoryNerd #historyinpictures #historylover #his

Dec. 2, 1961 - Richard M. Nixon declared today that “second-rate” Democrats must be voted out of office in California. The former Vice President, a candidate for the Republican gubernatorial nomination next June, pledged “a crusade for new leadership to see to it that California will not be first in crime, first in high taxes, and first in bungling bureaucracy.” “We need first-rate government,” he said. “The second-raters, from Gov. Brown down, must be retired from jobs which

Nov. 28, 1961 - Senator Strom Thurmond (pictured left in 1957), Democrat of South Carolina, denounced President Kennedy today for his recent criticism of Right-Wing extremists. “I don’t know what he means by extremists,” Senator Thurmond said. “I don’t know anybody far to the Right who has hurt this country. I do know some far to the Left who have hurt the country.” “I certainly do think Left-Wingers and Socialists have influence in the Kennedy Administration,” the Senator to

Nov. 26, 1961 - United States Senator Styles Bridges (pictured center last year) of New Hampshire, one of the most influential Republicans in the nation, died at his home in Concord, N.H., today. He was 63 years old. Senator Bridges died in his sleep at 5 a.m. of complications arising from a severe coronary attack suffered Sept. 21. Senator Bridges was a leading Republican through the long years of Democratic domination. His political career was meteoric. He was elected Gover

Nov. 24, 1961 - Bone fragments and teeth exhumed from shallow graves on Saipan Island arrived in San Francisco by plane today for scientific examination to determine if they may be the remains of Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan (pictured). The fragments were taken from two graves by a radio newsman, Fred Goerner, a correspondent for CBS. He has been interested in the disappearance of the woman flier and her navigator during their attempt to fly around the world

Nov. 22, 1961 - Former Vice President John Nance Garner greeted old friends warmly as he marked his 93rd birthday quietly today. He greeted well-wishers in his combination living room-library with its two TV sets. He wore the green eye shade that has become a trademark of his later years. Mr. Garner was Vice President during the first two terms of Franklin D. Roosevelt. He retired from public life after breaking with Mr. Roosevelt over the third-term issue and other matters.