Coconut Shell Bearing Rescue Message
Artifact IDMO 63.4852
Maker
President John F. Kennedy
(35th President of the United States 1960-1963, American 1917-1963)
Date
1943
Place MadeSolomon Islands
Medium
coconut shell, wood, polystyrene
DimensionsOverall H 3 in x Diam 7 in (7.6 cm x 17.8 cm )
Physical DescriptionCoconut shell with message from Lieutenant John F. Kennedy carved on surface. Message carved on coconut shell reads "NAURO ISL…COMMANDER…NATIVE KNOWS POS'IT…HE CAN PILOT…11 ALIVE…NEED SMALL BOAT…KENNEDY." The coconut shell is encased in plastic and mounted on wood to create a desk paperweight. Writing on the shell was enhanced by embedding the letters with carbon at the time it was encased in 1944.
Historical NoteOn the night of August 1, 1943, the PT boat commanded by Lieutenant John F. Kennedy was sunk after being hit by a Japanese destroyer in Blackett Strait, south of Kolombangara in the Solomon Islands. Four days after they had been given up as lost, Kennedy and his surviving crew were discovered by Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, two indigenous Solomon Islands scouts working for the Allies. Kennedy carved the message into this coconut husk that 11 crew members were still alive and passed it along to two Gasa and Kumana, who carried the message to a nearby Australian coast watcher. The chance encounter with the islanders resulted in the rescue of PT-109's crew.
Joseph P. Kennedy had the inscribed coconut shell fragment encased in plastic and mounted to a wood base for his son. The object became a treasured memento, one that served as a reminder of a turning point in young Kennedy's life that would shape him as a man and a president. He kept it prominently displayed on the desks he used throughout his political career. The coconut husk was on the President's desk in the Oval Office on the day he died.
Additional DetailsJoseph P. Kennedy had the inscribed coconut shell fragment encased in plastic and mounted to a wood base for his son. The object became a treasured memento, one that served as a reminder of a turning point in young Kennedy's life that would shape him as a man and a president. He kept it prominently displayed on the desks he used throughout his political career. The coconut husk was on the President's desk in the Oval Office on the day he died.
Custodial History NoteItem is from the personal collection of President and Mrs. Kennedy. It was donated to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum by the Estate of President John F. Kennedy in 1965.
Credit LineJohn F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, MA; Gift of the Estate of President John F. Kennedy
National Archives Catalog CollectionJohn F. Kennedy Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 1676934)
National Archives Catalog SeriesJohn F. Kennedy Personal Collection (National Archives Identifier 76055731)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestrictedUse Restriction NoteThis material is not subject to any known copyright or other image use restrictions.Subjects
On view
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