Mary Hollies Oral History

Mary Hollies gave a statement to Dallas police detective W.E. Potts on February 18, 1964. It can be found here as part of the Dallas Municipal Archives: [Intelligence Report - Mary Hollies Interview, February 18, 1964] - Page 1 of 2 - The Portal to Texas History (unt.edu). In addition, her similar statement to the FBI, taken on March 19, 1964, is part of Warren Commission Exhibit No. 1381. Her 2011 oral history contradicts most of the details of her official statements, including what floor she was on at the time of the assassination and that she was not acquainted with Lee Harvey Oswald. During this 2011 interview, Hollies suggested that she knew Oswald, who asked her out on dates, and that she saw him carrying a package "almost as tall as him" on November 22, 1963 that Oswald said contained "fishing rods."

When I shared with her one of her 1964 statements during this oral history, Hollies dismissed it and said, "I was hiding a lot of information because I was terrified." She also indicated several times that the FBI was tapping her telephone following the assassination. However, her February 1964 statement to the Dallas police states that she had no telephone at the time. Due to these contradictions and her controversial claims about Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby, this oral history has generated some research interest over the years. -- Stephen Fagin, Curator