Fast Facts about the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum

Below is information about the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, arranged alphabetically by topic. For more information please contact Kennedy.Library@nara.gov. Have a research question? Ask an Archivist.

Architect: I.M. Pei & Partners, New York, New York. The general contractor was Turner Construction Co. of Boston.

Brochure used to fundraise for the John F. Kennedy Library. 

Brochure for traveling exhibit promoting the John F. Kennedy Library.

Building Statistics: Originally 115,000 square feet, the Library attained its current size of 164,000 square feet with the addition of the Stephen E. Smith Center in 1991, and the archival/museum storage block in 2012. The building is a 9-story, white precast concrete tower joined to a glass-enclosed pavilion and flanked by the Smith Center with adjoining storage area on one side and the lobby and museum theater area on the other. The tower building is 125 feet high, and the floor of the pavilion is 80 feet by 80 feet square, while the glasswork rises to 115 feet.

Dedication:

Exhibits Designed By: Original exhibits, Chermayeff & Geismar Associates, December 1976; 1993 redesign by Kennedy & Associates (no relation).

First Plans for Establishing the Library in Cambridge: Press release from the Office of the White House Press Secretary, November 10, 1961.

Flag: Dimensions: 45' x 26'

Groundbreaking: June 12, 1977 

Irish Exhibit Song: "The Shores of Amerikay," by Sean O'Shea.

Moon Rocks (displayed): The rock displayed came from the Apollo 15 trip and was collected by Col. David R. Scott on August 7, 1971. It is mare basalt, weighs 160 grams and is thought to be approximately 3 billion years old.

Museum Rededication (1993):

Quotation, from Beginning of Museum Orientation Film: On "comfort of opinion" (from Yale University Commencement Address, June 11, 1962).

Quotation, Theater Lobby: "This library is dedicated to the memory of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States of America, and to all those who through the art of politics seek a new and better world."