JFK Museum Releases Condolence Mail 50 Years Later

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum has released a series of condolence messages sent after the president was assassinated more than 50 years ago.

The mail released Tuesday comes from the personal papers of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It includes a letter from Maxine McNair, the mother of one of four girls killed in the bombing of the 16th Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., in 1963.

Unlike the condolence mail in the library's John F. Kennedy papers, the newly released documents were managed by Mrs. Kennedy's personal secretaries because they required special handling or included requests for charity, Mass cards, photographs or other wishes.

Each piece includes an outgoing response from Mrs. Kennedy's office. The series contains about 22,000 letters, telegrams and cards from people around the world.