Kennedy signed Peace Corps Act — Up for Auction!

Thanks for the ‘heads up’ from William Evensen (Peru 1964-66)

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#59 – John F. Kennedy Signed Peace Corps Act Page Estimate: $10,000+

Page of the Peace Corps Act signed by President Kennedy

Partial DS as president, signed “John F. Kennedy,” one page, 10 x 14, September 22, 1961. The seventh page of an early official printing of H. R. 7500, ‘An Act to provide for a Peace Corps to help the peoples of interested countries and areas in meeting their needs for skilled manpower,’ otherwise known as the ‘Peace Corps Act,’ boldly signed in the lower margin by President Kennedy. This section of the document outlines the general powers and authorities granted to the president under the act, and it appears to be from a printer’s proof of the act: an erroneous quotation mark next to part “(d)” is circled in pencil, which does not appear in the final version of the signed act held in the National Archives. Framed and in fine condition.

In one of his earliest and most influential acts as president, John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps by an executive order, issued on March 1, 1961, and officially approved by Congress on September 22, 1961. First proposed to students at the University of Michigan during Kennedy’s 1960 presidential campaign, the Peace Corps was created to assist other countries in their development efforts by providing skilled workers in the fields of education, agriculture, health, trade, technology, and community development—to date, over 230,000 US citizens have volunteered in 141 countries. A magnificent offering related to one of JFK’s most enduring legacies.