John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame

The John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame is a presidential memorial at the gravesite of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, in Arlington National Cemetery. The permanent site replaced a temporary grave and eternal flame used during President Kennedy's funeral on November 25, 1963. The site was designed by architect John Carl Warnecke, a long-time friend of the President. The permanent John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame grave site was consecrated and opened to the public on March 15, 1967.Original gravesitePresident John F. Kennedy was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963.Initial press reports indicated that President Kennedy would be buried at Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline, Massachusetts, where his son Patrick Bouvier Kennedy (who had died on August 9, 1963, two days after his premature birth) was buried.But the site for the President's grave was quickly changed to the hillside just below Arlington House. The site was chosen because the President and his friend, architect John Carl Warnecke, happened to visit the site in March 1963 and the President had admired the peaceful atmosphere of the location. The initial suggestion to bury President Kennedy at Arlington appears to have been made by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy agreed to the change. Although Kennedy's sisters and many of his long-time associates from Massachusetts were opposed to burial at Arlington, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy visited the site with McNamara on Saturday, November 23, and concluded that Mrs. Kennedy's wishes should be honored.