Fifty years later, visitors still pay their last respects. They come from across the country to southeast Michigan. Their hushed voices fill a hallway. They take turns stepping toward a railing along the right side of a display, where they stop and stare with solemn faces. They stand not before a casket, but a 1961 Lincoln Continental. The vehicle is the presidential motorcade car that carried President John F. Kennedy to his death in Dallas. On exhibit at The Henry Ford, a history museum in Dearborn, Mich., bouquets of flowers are often placed near the rear right side of the car where Kennedy sat when an assassins bullets took his life on Nov. 22, 1963. As the nation prepares to observe the 50th anniversary of his death later this month, the Lincoln has again become a focal point for curiosity seekers and somber reflection. The reaction the Continental elicits from visitors is not unlike the first one to death: Momentary disbelief. Visitors try to reconcile the car of their memories with the car parked in front of them, and theres good reason theyre confused. The car looks nothing like it did 50 years ago. Conspiracy theorists could have a field day with the discrepancies. Then, it was painted midnight blue. Today, it is black. Then, it was a convertible. Today, a permanent roof has been installed. Then, the front grille contained ordinary side-by-side headlights. Flashers were installed along the bottom. Today, the headlights function as the flashers, white on the outside and red on the inside. The truth is that, as Kennedys death altered the course of the country, it also altered the course of the car. As a result, this 61 Lincoln Continental is perhaps the most innovative, maligned, reconstructed, historic, macabre, timeless, patriotic, overhauled, antiquated, well-traveled, visited vehicle in American history. An automotive icon. A death car. A historic artifact. It was literally driven out of one era and into the next. Historians have said Americas innocence died with Kennedy. That may be a cliché, but in one small way, its also true.
Posted on: Wed, 06 Nov 2013 13:01:51 +0000
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