Collections
The Museum collects materials related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and its aftermath, preserving and interpreting them so that people born after 1963 will better understand how that day changed history. The Museum also collects materials that illustrate President Kennedy's still-powerful legacy, mid-twentieth century Dallas history and the culture of the 1960s.
Introduction
The Sixth Floor Museum holds in its collections approximately 40,000 items related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the local and global aftermath of his tragic death, the legacy of his presidency and the history and culture of the 1960s.
The Museum strives to preserve these fragile materials as well as to provide public access to important historical images, documents, recordings and artifacts.
Visitors may see our collections in exhibits, object-based programs, by research appointments in our Reading Room and by searching our online database.
The online collections do not represent the entirety of the Museum's holdings; new records are added regularly. Please click on the button to explore our collections.
What's in the Museum's Collections?
The Museum's collections include original documents and manuscripts, photographs, newspapers and magazines, three-dimensional artifacts, architectural elements and audio-visual recordings including early 1960s television and radio broadcasts, amateur home movies and more than 900 oral histories, all pertaining to the assassination of President Kennedy, the aftermath and legacy of that event, and the history and culture of Dallas and the 1960s.
Among the Museum's special collections are the Abraham Zapruder and Orville Nix Collections. Please follow these links for more information:
Oral History Collection
The personal interviews recorded in the Museum's Oral History Collection include memories of the life, death and legacy of President Kennedy and provide insight into the history and culture of Dallas and the 1960s. More than 1,000 interviews and public programs have been recorded since 1989.
Research
The Museum's Librarian and curatorial staff actively assist researchers and students whose projects would benefit from access to the Museum's collections. Information on conducting research at the Museum may be found here.
Rights & Reproductions
For more information on using images and recordings from the Museum's collections, please see the Rights & Reproductions Request Form.
How can I contribute?
The Museum's collection is widely recognized as one of the world's largest and most important chronicles of the Kennedy assassination, but it is not complete. If you have films, photographs, documents, artifacts or other materials related to the story of the assassination and its ongoing impact please contact us.
The vast majority of the Museum's collections are donated by generous supporters who want these materials preserved for future generations. While staff members are unable to provide financial evaluations of your materials, we are happy to help you identify what you have. For more information please contact us: collections@jfk.org.
Other Sources
