Jackie and John F. Kennedy married on September 12, 1953, the entire Kennedy family turned out in Newport, Rhode Island. The two invited roughly 800 guests to attend the ocean-front wedding at Saint Mary’s Church. It sounds like an amazing wedding, we can’t imagine anyone not going to it.
Jackie had a total of ten bridesmaids, not including her maid of honor. All of them wore pink taffeta gowns to the ceremony. Her bridesmaids included her sister Lee, her stepsister Nina Auchincloss, John’s sister Jean, sister-in-law Ethel, and Jackie’s former roommates, Nancy Tuckerman.
Grover Cleveland Was the Only President to Get Married at the White House
At the time of Grover Cleveland’s marriage Frances Folsom in 1886, he was the first and only president to be married at the White House. They celebrated their beautiful wedding in the summer of 1886. Prior to Frances becoming the first lady, Grover’s sister served.
For whatever reason, reporters were so fascinated by the President’s honeymoon that they followed the two around with binoculars. The couple had five children in total together and remained married until he sadly passed away in 1908.
Thomas Jefferson’s Wedding
The famous Founding Father, Thomas Jefferson married Martha Wayles in 1772 who was a widow. At the time of their wedding, Jefferson was the Governor of Virginia, making Martha the state’s first lady.
Jefferson gifted Martha with a mahogany forte-piano that he said was “worthy the acceptance of a lady for whom I intend it.”
Jackie Kennedy and the Best Men
You’d assume that JFK would include his brothers in his bridal party, and he did! In this photo, Jackie is with the men of the family, including Robert and Edward Kennedy who are standing on either side of John.
At the time, JFK was a United States Senator, and his Senate colleague George Smathers, brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, cousin Joe Gargan, and brother-in-law Michael Canfield were all in his wedding party. In addition, so were a few of his friends, such as Lem Billings, Red Fay, and Robert Macdonald. And of course, Charles Bartlett stood close to the couple because he was the one who introduced the happy couple.
Jackie’s Dress on Display at the Kennedy Library
It’s not common to be able to see the First Ladies’ wedding dresses on display, but you can go see Jackie Kennedy’s! This is another dress that was designed by Ann Lowe and is now iconic for American brides. Jackie’s dress is probably one of the best-remembered gowns of all time.
Jackie kept it simple and wore very little jewelry with her dress. The bouquet she held had pink and white spray orchids and gardenias. If you want to go see Jackie’s dress, it’s on display at the Kennedy Library which is located in Boston, Massachusetts. You can also see many of her other popular outfits there.