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Keith Shelton's White House press pass from November 21-22, 1963
Keith Shelton's White House press pass from November 21-22, 1963

Keith Shelton's White House press pass from November 21-22, 1963

Object number1998.023.0021.0001
Date11/21/1963 - 11/22/1963
ClassificationsArtifacts
ObjectPress pass
Credit LineKeith Shelton Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza
MediumPaper, Cloth
Dimensions3 x 3 in. (7.6 x 7.6 cm)
Collections
  • "On Assignment: Dallas Times Herald 1963"
  • All Online Objects
DescriptionWhite House press pass for the dates November 21 - 22, 1963. The pass is made out of white, thick paper that is cut in a circle. It has a brown paper and metal hole protector at the top where a blue yarn is attached to the pass. The pass reads, "WHITE HOUSE PRESS/ TRIP OF THE PRESIDENT" in green printed text. Below this text is the outline of a green box with a date stamp, "NOV. 21-22, '63." A political reporter for the Dallas Times Herald, Shelton traveled with the presidential party throughout Texas and later covered the Jack Ruby trial. He donated his Kennedy-related personal papers to the Museum. His oral histories were recorded February 23, 1998, and January 12, 2011.
Curatorial Commentary
This object is featured in the Museum's special exhibit, "On Assignment: Dallas Times Herald 1963," which opened on April 29, 2026.
A political reporter at the Dallas Times Herald, Keith Shelton traveled with the presidential party during the trip to Texas in November 1963. Aboard a White House press bus in the motorcade, he heard shots fired in Dealey Plaza and went to the Dallas Trade Mart. He later covered the Jack Ruby trial in 1964. Shelton, a longtime journalism professor at the University of North Texas, donated his assassination-related papers to the Museum.

As a longtime friend of the Museum, he recorded two oral history interviews and a public program. His interview from January 2011 may be viewed in the Museum’s online collections database here: Keith Shelton Oral History – Works – The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza.

Other objects related to Mr. Shelton may be found here: Thesaurus – Vocabularies – The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. - Riley Harris, Collections Cataloger

The Museum's Keith Shelton Collection (1998.023) includes the notebook that Shelton used while covering the Kennedys' visit to Texas in November 1963, as well as press credentials, his wife's invitation to the Dallas Trade Mart luncheon, draft stories, news clippings and press releases. Keith Shelton passed away on December 11, 2024. - Stephen Fagin, Curator