I visit St. Mary Roman Catholic Church in Newport, Rhode Island, an original Catholic church nearing its 200th anniversary and famous for hosting John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier’s wedding on September 12, 1953. She explains the church was chosen because Jackie’s preferred church was booked and because Newport was central to her upbringing at Hammersmith Farm, where the reception was held and where the couple sailed Narragansett Bay. Inside, Jenn highlights the “Kennedy Doors,” Pew 10 where the Kennedys sat when in town, and the kneelers used during the ceremony, along with the church’s history: first stone laid August 15, 1848, service as the Naval Academy Chapel during the Civil War, stained glass windows made in Austria in 1892–1895, an organ installed in 1958, and listing on the National Register of Historic Places on March 6, 2008.
00:00 Welcome to St Marys
00:45 Why the Kennedys Wed Here
01:21 Newport Ties and Hammersmith
02:13 Entering the Church Tour
02:40 The Kennedy Doors
03:18 Pew 10 and Wedding Kneelers
04:28 Wedding Day September 1953
05:20 Church History Highlights
06:21 Reflections and Farewell
