Current Location of the Pink Suit
The suit is preserved at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in College Park, Maryland, as part of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum collection. The suit remains in a climate-controlled, secure storage facility designed for long-term textile conservation. Access is strictly regulated by federal archival protocols and the JFK Library's acquisition agreements. For details on the National Archives' preservation standards, see their official guidance on artifact storage here.
The suit is not on public display at the JFK Library in Boston or at the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C. Federal policy restricts the exhibition of fragile textiles from the Kennedy assassination to protect the artifact from light, humidity, and handling damage. The National Archives' preservation team uses specialized low-oxygen enclosures and acid-free housing for the suit and related items. These measures align with NARA's broader mission to safeguard presidential records and artifacts here.
History and Provenance of the Artifact
The suit was worn by Jacqueline Kennedy on November 22, 1963, during the presidential motorcade in Dallas, Texas. The garment became a key piece of evidence in the Warren Commission investigation and was retained by the U.S. government as part of the assassination record. The suit was transferred to the National Archives after the JFK Library was established in 1979. The provenance chain is documented in the Library's archival finding aids and the Warren Commission Report.
The pink wool suit and matching pillbox hat were donated to the JFK Library by the Kennedy family under a deed of gift that places the items in the permanent custody of the federal government. The deed specifies that the suit is to be preserved as a historical artifact and not sold or transferred to private collectors. The National Archives maintains the suit in accordance with the deed and federal records management laws. The JFK Library's collection policies are further detailed on its official website here.
Preservation Standards and Access
Conservation staff at the JFK Library follow textile preservation guidelines from the American Institute for Conservation (AIC) and the National Park Service Museum Management Program. The suit is stored in a dark, temperature-controlled environment with relative humidity maintained between 45 and 55 percent. Periodic condition assessments are conducted by professional textile conservators to monitor for fiber degradation, staining, or pest damage. These protocols meet federal standards for the care of nationally significant artifacts here.
Public access to the suit is limited to authorized researchers who submit formal requests to the JFK Library. The Library's research room provides supervised viewing of select items from the collection, but the pink suit is generally excluded from physical examination due to its fragility. Digital images and catalog records are available through the JFK Library's online research portal. The National Archives also maintains a digital catalog of assassination-related records that includes references to the suit here.