Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Jackie Kennedy’s Wedding to JFK

Sixty-four years ago on this day, John F. Kennedy was just a guy marrying a girl in Newport, Rhode Island. Sort of. Jacqueline Bouvier had been born into a well-connected New York family, and Kennedy was the good-looking junior senator from Massachusetts. After graduating from George Washington University in 1951, the former debutante was hired as the Washington Times-Herald’s “Inquiring Camera Girl.” She met Kennedy on the dinner-party circuit in Georgetown, and the two hit it off. The couple had been dating for two years when he proposed with a Van Cleef & Arpels ring set with a 2.88-carat diamond and 2.84-carat emerald.

Their wedding was the social event of the season—more than 800 guests including senators, diplomats, and other notables descended upon St. Mary’s Church on September 12, 1953, to attend the nuptials. Jackie was resplendent in an ivory silk portrait-neckline dress with a bouffant skirt designed by Ann Lowe. The gown consisted of 50 yards of fabric and was accented with an heirloom rose point lace veil. The look was a hit with the American public, although according to What Jackie Taught Us, the bride had hoped for something sleeker. The lead-up to the wedding wasn’t without its fair share of drama and wardrobe malfunctions though: Jackie’s dress almost wasn’t ready in time after a pipe burst at Lowe’s studio in New York City days before the wedding, covering the gown and bridesmaids dresses in water. All 11 dresses were quickly recreated, with Lowe and her team working nonstop the week before the wedding. The bride was escorted down the aisle by her stepfather, Hugh D. Auchincloss. Her sister, Lee, served as matron of honor, while her stepsister Nina Auchincloss was maid of honor and flower girl. The groom’s sister Jean and sister-in-law Ethel also served as members of the bridal party. The Archbishop of Boston presided over the ceremony; at one point, he even read a message from Pope Pius XII. 2,000 fans stood outside just hoping to catch a glimpse of the newlyweds.

Afterward, the reception was held at Hammersmith Farm, the mother of the bride's 300-acre property nearby. There, some 400 more guests joined the festivities—so many that it took the couple two hours to greet all of them in the receiving line. Everyone enjoyed a traditional lunch alfresco, and then the bride and groom had their first dance to “I Married an Angel” by Meyer Davis and His Orchestra. The event ended with a spectacular sendoff: The newlyweds were showered with rose-petal confetti and rice as they exited the reception. They then jetted off to Acapulco, Mexico, for their honeymoon. Here, a look back in pictures at one of the most memorable weddings of the 20th century.