Thursday, February 27, 2020

You never know what you might find...

Kaylee and Daniel's Corner

John F. Kennedy letter to Gaarenstroom

Interesting find in the University Archives at Minnesota State University, Mankato! Today, we were completing a rehousing project with some of our older collections, replacing some of our acidic folders and boxes, ensuring our records stay ship-shape. While combing through a collection of papers from Mr. C. F. Gaarenstroom (an attorney in the early 1960’s from Fairmont, MN), we discovered something cool in a folder labeled ‘miscellaneous papers’: A letter to Mr. Gaarenstroom from then-President Elect John F. Kennedy! The letter was dated January 11, 1961, just days before Mr. Kennedy took office. Kennedy wrote to thank Mr. Gaarenstroom for his support during the Presidential campaign, and his work on behalf of Citizens for Kennedy and Johnson. Nice! Who knows what other pieces of history we might find in our repository! See the attached digital copy for a closer look at the letter.