November 6, 1960
JFK SAYS IT'S TIME NEW ENGLAND HAS A DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT
Waterbury, Connecticut (JFK+50) Senator John F. Kennedy, speaking to a crowd of supporters from a balcony of the Roger Smith Hotel here in Waterbury, said that New England has not had a Democratic president since Franklin Pierce.*
JFK, reminding the crowd that was 104 years ago, added:
"I think it is about time."
*Waterbury is located 33 miles SW of Hartford, Connecticut. The city, known for manufacturing brassware, is called 'Brass City.' The Knights of Columbus was founded in the city in 1881 & the Waterbury Clock Company manufactured the Mickey Mouse watch.
JFK Bumper Sticker 1960
JFK Library Image
With Election Day just 2 days away, JFK spoke at 2:45 a.m. local time. He said....
"On Tuesday night, the 1st state of the union to vote & have its results is the state of Connecticut.
This state is important. You can have an effect here & across the country."
Senator Kennedy quoted FDR, who said in 1936...
'Governments can err, presidents do make mistakes, but the immortal Dante tells us that Divine Justice weighs the sins of the coldblooded & the sins of the warmhearted in a different scale. Better the occasional faults of a government living in the spirit of charity than the consistent omissions of a government frozen in the ice of its own indifference.'
JFK concluded his speech with words spoken by President Lincoln 100 years ago:
'I know there is a God, & I know He hates injustice. We see the storm coming, & we know His hand is in it. But if He has a place & a part for me, I believe that we are ready.'
The Elton Hotel
The Roger Smith Hotel in 1960
West Main Street
Waterbury, Connecticut
