David Harold Byrd.
From the Education Forum JFK Assassination Debate
Byrd was born in Detroit, Texas, on April 24, 1900. He studied geology at the University of Texas (1917-19) and during his holidays worked on an oil rig in Santa Anna.
After leaving university he worked for H. E. Humphreys. He joined Old Dominion Oil Company of San Antonio in 1924 but the following year he became a freelance geological consultant. During this time he acquired his nickname by drilling fifty-six dry holes. His luck changed when he discovered oil on 5th May, 1928. The Byrd-Daniels oil-field produced 1,000 barrels a day, which sold for three dollars a barrel.
Byrd formed a business partnership with Jack Frost and in 1931 founded Byrd-Frost Incorporated. The new company operated 492 East Texas wells that produced an average of 4,000 barrels a day. In the 1930s he purchased property, including the Texas School Book Depository in Dallas.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Byrd's cousin was Harry F. Byrd, who was described by Alden Hatch (The Byrds of Virginia: An American Dynasty) as "the leader of conservative opinion in the United States." Byrd also had a close relationship with Sam Rayburn, Lyndon Johnson and John Connally. As Byrd pointed out in his autobiography, I'm an Endangered Species: "Another goal was to reach a rapport with the politicians who ran things, especially at the seat of state government in Austin.... Sam Rayburn, Morrie Sheppard, John Connally, and Lyndon Johnson on the national scene were to become men I could go to any time that I wanted action, and so were a succession of Texas governors."
In 1944 Byrd founded Byrd Oil Corporation and B-H Drilling Corporation. In 1952 Byrd established the Three States Natural Gas Company. Byrd later sold Byrd Oil to Mobil and Three States to Delhi-Taylor. Byrd used this money to invest in aircraft production and established Temco. A company that employed Mac Wallace after he was convicted of killing John Kinser.
Barr McClellan points out that Byrd, along with Clint Murchison, H. H. Hunt and Sid Richardson, was part of the "Big Oil" group in Dallas. McClellan argues that "Big Oil would be during the fifties and into the sixties what the OPEC oil cartel was to the United States in the seventies and beyond". One of the main concerns of this group was the preservation of the oil depletion allowance.
In 1961 Byrd joined forces with James Ling and Chance Vought Corporation to form Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV).Byrd expanded into other business areas. For example, he owned a frozen food business in Crystal City. He was a strong opponent of trade unionism and described their activities as a "terrible cancer". In 1963, when the Teamsters' Union began recruiting his employees, he moved his frozen food business to La Pryor.
In November, 1963, Byrd left Texas to go on a two-month safari in Africa. While he was away President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Lee Harvey Oswald, who was accused of being the lone-gunman, worked in Byrd's Texas Book Depository. Soon after his return, President Lyndon Johnson, granted a large defense contract to LTV to build fighter planes. According to Peter Dale Scott, (The Dallas Conspiracy) this was paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Byrd was a member of the Dallas Petroleum Club. It has been argued that it was here that he met George de Mohrenschildt, David Atlee Phillips and George H. W. Bush. Richard Bartholomew suggested in Byrds, Planes, and an Automobile that Byrd knew David Ferrie via the Civil Air Patrol.
Attached Files
MDByrd4.jpg 31.42KB 4 downloads
In November, 1963, Byrd left Texas to go on a two-month safari in Africa. While he was away President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Lee Harvey Oswald, who was accused of being the lone-gunman, worked in Byrd's Texas Book Depository. Soon after his return, President Lyndon Johnson, granted a large defense contract to LTV to build fighter planes. According to Peter Dale Scott, (The Dallas Conspiracy) this was paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Here is some background on this deal. In 1962, United States Navy began preliminary work on VAX (Heavier-than-air, Attack, Experimental), a replacement for the A-4 Skyhawk with greater range and payload. To minimize costs, all proposals had to be based on existing designs. Vought, Douglas Aircraft, Grumman, and North American Aviation responded.
In February, 1964, President Johnson gave the contract to LTV to build the A-7 Corsair II. It was much used during the Vietnam War. This means that four companies linked closely to LBJ and Texas made fantastic profits from war.
For example, the war completely transformed Brown & Root’s fortunes. As Robert Bryce has pointed out: “Before Vietnam, Brown & Root was an arm’s length civilian contractor to the U. S. military. During the war in Vietnam, Brown & Root became part of the military. The war also established Brown & Root as one of the biggest and most important construction companies in America.” (1)
In 1965 Brown & Root joined forces with Raymond International, Morrison-Knudsen and J. A. Jones Corporation to form RMK-BRJ. This consortium was awarded government contracts worth nearly $2 billion during the Vietnam War. Brown & Root obtained revenues from this deal of over $380 million ($2.2 billion in 2006 dollars). George Brown was also able to negotiate a cost-plus contract. Whatever it spent doing each project, the government guaranteed that it would pay the company a profit on top of its costs. Brown & Root expanded the harbours at Saigon, Cam Rahn Bay and Da Nang. It also built the Phan Rang Air Force Base. (2)
By 1966 RMK-BRJ had 52,000 employees working in South Vietnam. This included construction and engineering jobs normally done by soldiers from the Army Corps of Engineers. It was the Vietnam War that began the mass privatization of military duties.
Writing in the New York Times, Hanson Baldwin claimed that around 40 percent of the money being spent in Vietnam was being stolen, used in bribes or being wasted. (3) Abraham Ribicoff claimed that federal money was “being squandered because of inefficiency, dishonesty, corruption and foolishness.” The U.S. General Accounting Office agreed with Ribicoff and in 1967 it published a report criticizing RMK-BRJ, saying that the consortium “could not account for the whereabouts of approximately $120 million worth of materials which had been shipped to Vietnam from the United States.” (4)
As Dan Briody explained in The Halliburton Agenda: “The public impression was that Brown & Root was part of a war-profiteering machine that monopolized work in Vietnam, mistreated workers, and wasted millions of taxpayers’ dollars.” (5). Despite this negative image, by 1969 Brown & Root had become the biggest construction company in America. (6)
It was not the only company in Texas to experience rapid growth as a result of the Vietnam War. Bell Helicopter Corporation, based in Fort Worth, also made a great deal of money during the conflict. Johnson had enjoyed a long and profitable relationship with the company. Lawrence Bell had provided money for Johnson’s 1948 election campaign. In fact, Bell supplied Johnson with free use of a 47-B helicopter. As Robert Bryce has pointed out: "With a helicopter, Johnson could land right in the centre of town and give a speech right on the landing spot, eliminating the need for time-wasting car trips and from the airstrip." (7)
At this time, Bell Helicopter Corporation was based in California. However, with encouragement from Johnson, Bell moved the helicopter plant to Fort Worth and joined the Suite 8F Group. (8) In the late 1950s and early 1960s the Bell Helicopter Corporation was in serious financial difficulties. However, during the Vietnam War, the company’s fortunes were transformed.
The UH-1 (Huey) was used extensively by the U.S. military during the war. By 1967 the Fort Worth plant was employing 11,000 workers who were producing 200 helicopters a month. 160 of which were for the American military. (9)
General Dynamics, also based in Texas, and like the Bell Helicopter Corporation, had been close to bankruptcy in 1960. Once again the Vietnam War helped to increase profits. In 1967 some 83 percent of its sales were to the government. (10). When the F-111 proved to be a complete disaster, the company was given the FB-111, the bomber version of the TFX, instead. This contract alone was estimated to be worth $24 billion. (11) In 1968 General Dynamics was awarded with contracts worth $2,200 million. (12)
These figures reveal a serious problem faced by the arms industry. What happens when the Vietnam War came to an end? In 1967 the Electronics Industries Association commissioned a report into the future of US military spending. It concluded that the future looked good as arms control agreements “during the next decade are unlikely”. (13) It would seem that the arms industry no longer feared the negotiated deals favoured by John F. Kennedy.
This was confirmed by Samuel F. Downer, vice-president of the LTV Aerospace Corporation based in Texas. In an interview with Bernard D. Nossiter of the Washington Post, Downer argued that Johnson was committed to increasing military spending: “If you’re the President… you can’t sell Harlem and Watts but you can sell self-preservation…We’re going to increase defence budgets as long as those bastards in Russia are ahead of us. The American people understand this.” (14) The real task, as always, was to convince the American public that the Soviet Union was ahead in the arms race and provided a significant threat to the security of the United States.
Notes
1. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 105)
2. Joseph A. Pratt & Christopher J. Castaneda, Builders: Herman and George R. Brown, 1999 (page 243)
3. Hanson Baldwin, New York Times (10th December, 1967)
4. General Accounting Office, Report on United States Construction Activities in the Republic of Vietnam, 1965-1966 (67-11159)
5. Kirkpatrick Sale, Power Shift, 1975 (42-43)
6. Dan Briody, The Halliburton Agenda: The Politics of Oil and Money, 2004 (page 166)
7. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 59)
8. Joseph A. Pratt & Christopher J. Castaneda, Builders: Herman and George R. Brown, 1999 (pages 158-59)
9. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 107)
10. I. F. Stone, I. F. Weekly, 1st January, 1969
11. I. F. Stone, I. F. Weekly, 5th June, 1969
12. B. Pyadyshev, The Military-Industrial Complex of the USA, 1977 (page 66)
13. Sidney Lens, The Military Industrial Complex, 1970 (page 55)
14. Bernard D. Nossiter, Washington Post (8th December, 1968)
I have put what I have on David Harold Byrd here:
http://www.spartacus...uk/MDbyrdDH.htm
There is very little on Byrd on the web. However, I would highly recommend this article written by forum member, Richard Bartholomew:
http://www.acorn.net...e/rambler3.html
http://www.bartholoviews.com/Bio.htm
It includes the following passage:
Byrd prepared well for the trip: Temco, Inc. was an aircraft company founded by D.H. Byrd and which later merged with his friend James Ling's electronics company (1960), and aircraft manufacturer Chance Vought Corporation (1961) to form Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV). Byrd became a director of LTV and bought, along with Ling, 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. Byrd then left the country to go on his two-month safari in central Africa. He returned in January to find his good friend Lyndon Johnson president of the United States, his building famous, and a large defense contract awarded to LTV to build fighter planes - to be paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Mac Wallace, who received a five-year suspended sentence in the shooting death of John Douglas Kiner in Austin on October 22, 1951, went to work for Temco, Inc. of Garland, Texas five months after his trial. He remained in that position until February 1961, four months before Henry Marshall's mysterious death on June 3, 1961, when he transferred to the Anaheim, California offices of LTV.
The transfer required a background check by the Navy. "The most intriguing part of the Wallace case was how a convicted murderer was able to get a job with defense contractors. Better yet, how was he able to get a security clearance? Clinton Peoples [the Texas Ranger Captain who investigated the Marshall and Kiner murders] reported that when the original security clearance was granted, he asked the Naval intelligence officer handling the case how such a person could get the clearance. 'Politics,' the man replied. When Peoples asked who would have that much power, the simple answer was, `the vice president,' who at the time was Lyndon Johnson. Years later, after the story broke [of Billie Sol Estes' March 20, 1984 testimony that implicated Lyndon Johnson, Malcom Wallace, and Clifton Carter in the death of Henry Marshall], that investigator could not recall the conversation with Peoples but he did say no one forced him to write a favorable report. He also added that he wasn't the one that made the decision to grant the clearance. The whole matter might have been solved with a peek at that original report but unfortunately, when the files were checked, that particular report was suspiciously missing. It has never been seen since."
Wallace was transferred and given clearance in February 1961. "In January 1961, the very month Johnson was sworn in as vice president, and the month Henry Marshall was in Dallas discussing how to combat Estes-like scams, Billie Sol Estes learned through his contacts that the USDA was investigating the allotment scheme and that Henry Marshall might end up testifying. The situation was supposedly discussed by Estes, Johnson, and Carter in the backyard of LBJ's Washington home. Johnson was, according to Estes, alarmed that if Marshall started talking it might result in an investigation that would implicate the vice president. At first it was decided to have Marshall transferred to Washington, but when told Marshall had already refused such a relocation, LBJ, according to Estes, said simply, 'Then we'll have to get rid of him.'"
According to Craig Zirbel, author of The Texas Connection, in May 1962, "...Johnson flew to Dallas aboard a military jet to privately meet with Estes and his lawyers on a plane parked away from the terminal.... This incident would probably have remained secret except that LBJ's plane suffered a mishap in landing at Dallas. When investigative reporters attempted to obtain the tower records for the flight mishap the records were "sealed by government order."
Still more LTV intrigues were revealed by Peter Dale Scott: "A fellow-director of [Jack Alston] Crichton's firm of Dorchester Gas Producing was D.H. Byrd, an oil associate of Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison, and the LTV director who teamed up with James Ling to buy 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. While waiting to be sworn in as President in Dallas on November 22, Johnson spoke by telephone with J.W. Bullion, a member of the Dallas law firm (Thompson, Wright, Knight, and Simmons) which had the legal account for Dorchester Gas Producing and was represented on its board. The senior partner of the law firm, Dwight L. Simmons, had until 1960 sat on the board of Chance Vought Aircraft, a predecessor of Ling-Temco-Vought. One week after the assassination, Johnson named Bullion, who has been described as his 'business friend and lawyer,' to be one of the two trustees handling the affairs of the former LBJ Co. while its owner was President."
There is very little on Byrd on the web. However, I would highly recommend this article written by forum member, Richard Bartholomew:
http://www.acorn.net...e/rambler3.html
http://www.bartholoviews.com/Bio.htm
It includes the following passage:
Still more LTV intrigues were revealed by Peter Dale Scott: "A fellow-director of [Jack Alston] Crichton's firm of Dorchester Gas Producing was D.H. Byrd, an oil associate of Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison, and the LTV director who teamed up with James Ling to buy 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. While waiting to be sworn in as President in Dallas on November 22, Johnson spoke by telephone with J.W. Bullion, a member of the Dallas law firm (Thompson, Wright, Knight, and Simmons) which had the legal account for Dorchester Gas Producing and was represented on its board. The senior partner of the law firm, Dwight L. Simmons, had until 1960 sat on the board of Chance Vought Aircraft, a predecessor of Ling-Temco-Vought. One week after the assassination, Johnson named Bullion, who has been described as his 'business friend and lawyer,' to be one of the two trustees handling the affairs of the former LBJ Co. while its owner was President."
This article by Paul Kangas, The Realist (1990) is interesting about Jack Crichton, George Bush and the Bay of Pigs:
Nixon told Pepsi, Standard Oil and other corporations who lost property given back to the farmers of Cuba, that if they would help him win, he would authorize an invasion to remove Castro. To further impress contributors to his campaign, then Vice-President Nixon asked the CIA to create Operation 40, a secret plan to invade Cuba, just as soon as he won.
The CIA put Texas millionaire and CIA agent George Bush in charge of recruiting Cuban exiles into the CIA's invasion army. Bush was working with another Texas oilman, Jack Crichton, to help him with the invasion. A fellow Texan, Air Force General Charles Cabel, was asked to coordinate the air cover for the invasion.
Most of the CIA leadership around the invasion of Cuba seems to have been people from Texas. A whole Texan branch of the CIA is based in the oil business. If we trace Bush's background in the Texas oil business we discover his two partners in the oil-barge leasing business: Texan Robert Mosbacher and Texan James Baker. Mosbacher is now Secretary of Commerce and Baker is Secretary of State, the same job Dulles held when JFK was killed. (Source: Common Cause magazine, 3-4/90).
On pages 43/44 of Fabian Escalante's CIA Covert Operations 1959-1962: The Cuba Project (2004), he claims that in 1960 Richard Nixon recruited an "important group of businessmen headed by George Bush (Snr.) and Jack Crichton, both Texas oilmen, to gather the necessary funds for the operation". He is talking about Operation 40, the group that Warren Hinckle and William Turner described in Deadly Secrets, as the “assassins-for-hire” organization.
In 1957, a three day conference of CAP executives and national boards was held at the Republic National Bank utilizing their executive dining facilities.
General Walter Agee, General Carl Spaatz and General Nathan Twining were all honored. Twining of course being a most interesting character and a close associate of Byrd.
The image below shows D.H. Byrd on the left, Agee in the middle and Spaatz on the right.
FWIW.
http://www.tsha.utex...s/BB/fby13.html
Although D. H. Byrd was by no means poor, his wealth was perhaps more along the lines of "pocket change" when compared to that which his wife, Martha Caruth, inherited.
http://www.tsha.utex...es/BB/kbb6.html
http://www.tambcd.ed...car_history.htm
I do believe that this was where Marina Oswald got her teeth fixed.
http://aolsearch.aol.....ion of Texas"
http://www.cftexas.org/history.htm
In 1974, W.W. "Will" Caruth Jr. established the W.W. Caruth Jr. Foundation as a supporting organization at Communities Foundation of Texas, adding a new chapter to the Caruth family's historic legacy. Through the years, Will Caruth shared much of his fortune with others through the foundation and helped CFT improve the Dallas community where his family had lived since 1848. He had preferences for bold giving in the areas of education, public safety, medical and scientific research, and "bootstrapping" social assistance initiatives. CFT has been diligent to honor these. His wife, the late Mabel Peters Caruth, continued his tradition with an inspiring $34 million bequest to build the new CFT headquarters.
Lastly, it was through marriage into the Caruth family to D. H. Byrd achieved his "prestige" in which he could run with and associate with the most notable of society.
The Caruth family were members of an extremely elite society which was the :
http://www.magnacharta.org/Default.htm
The National Society
Magna Charta Dames and Barons
Lastly, among those members of this elite society was included;
John W. Sims
SPECIALTY BARGES, INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/19/1957): JOHN W. SIMS, 420 HIBERNIA BK BD, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/19/1957): LOUIS B. CLAVERIE, 420 HIBERNIA BK BD, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
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Registered Name: PHELPS, DUNBAR, MARKS, CLAVERIE & SIMS
Applicant: PHELPS DUNBAR, 365 CANAL STREET, STE 2000, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70130-0000
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It would be remiss to not also point out the fact:
MARINE EQUIPMENT INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): JOHN W SIMS, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): EDWARD D FINLEY JR, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): W. B. SPENCER, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
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Name: JUNIOR MUSICIANS OF AMERICA, INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): WALKER B. SPENCER, 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): ESMOND PHELPS, 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): CHAS. E. DUNBAR, JR., 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
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Hope that you are following this Mr. Shinley
#7 John Simkin
A photograph of David Byrd with another of his victims. The other man in the photograph is General Doolittle.
Attached Files
MDByrd3.gpg.jpg 62.54KB 12 downloads
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Thanks,
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Bill , I think it was one of the 'docent' guides at the Sixth Floor, who told us that the original window had indeed been removed, " by a previous owner". Don't know if he was refering to Byrd or not, but I got the impression that it was soon after 11-22. Seems Marrs or Larry Howard told me that as well. Now, I write these things down!
Stained Glass
by Ann Zimmerman
Article Published Nov 27, 1997
From
http://www.dallasobs...27/feature.html
The man on the phone speaks in conspiratorial tones. His name is Martin Barkley, a 40-something divorced father of two who has devoted so much of his life to a single purpose--proving that Lee Harvey Oswald did not kill John Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository on November 22, 1963.
His research qualifications amount to having worked security for several large companies and spent time in Army intelligence. His personal link to the assassination was that his uncle was the longest-serving Dallas police officer when Kennedy was shot--and, of course, he whispered something conspiratorial at Thanksgiving dinner days after the assassination.
Barkley is a true believer, and he talks in elliptical phrases and vague pronouncements. On this day, he says he wants to share his theory that Dallas' powers-that-be are perverting the information presented in the Sixth Floor Museum, Oswald's alleged sniper's perch--and this city's biggest tourist attraction. Barkley argues that those in charge of the museum are toadies for the Warren Commission.
"The way to control an issue is to manage information on both sides so nothing gets out of control," he says, espousing a typically muddy slogan.
He says he will prove this all with a guided tour of the Sixth Floor, where he used to work as a security guard. Barkley was a seasonal hire two years ago and was laid off--ostensibly when tourist traffic slowed down, he explains. But he's convinced that he was, in fact, terminated because he answered visitors' probing conspiracy questions too honestly, too carefully, too knowledgeably. Of course, he can't prove it.
Barkley insists we meet late on a Sunday, when we would arouse the least amount of suspicion.
When he arrives that afternoon, he wears an overcoat over his tall frame and a fedora that doesn't obscure piercing blue eyes. Still, the disguise doesn't work: Two minutes after we step inside the building, security guards surround him and want to know why he's there.
"See what I mean," he whispers, as the guards escort us up in the elevator.
He reels off an enormous list of ways the museum subtly controls the mind of the visitor. He is suspicious of a sign that directs visitors to begin the tour with the panels and videos highlighting Kennedy's early years; Barkley believes the "flow" of the exhibit--which winds through Kennedy's all-too-brief presidency, his fateful visit to Texas, then the assassination--is intentionally misleading and exhausting.
"By the time the visitor gets to the end," Barkley insists, "he's too tired to read about conspiracies."
Barkley's rant is a fairly predictable and obvious one. Indeed, place a museum on the sixth floor of the old School Book Depository, and you're pretty much admitting you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. It's not like the county opened a Grassy Knoll Museum.
Yet Barkley is not all hushed whispers and vague hypotheses.
Displayed halfway through the tour in the Sixth Floor Museum is one of the most famous windows in the world--the perch from which Oswald allegedly killed Kennedy with a cheap Italian mail-order rifle. Behind a thick wall of Plexiglass, the window has been exhibited here since 1995, and since then, more than a million visitors have scrutinized it, studied it, even venerated its tragic place in history.
The window, located in the southeast corner of the museum, sits only a few feet from where Oswald killed Kennedy--allegedly, of course. It bears the caption "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch."
But is it?
Barkley believes the infamous perch that hangs in the museum is a fake...a fraud.
He may be right.
Just a cursory look at the window on display reveals that it differs significantly from pictures taken of the window moments after the assassination.
For instance, the window on display has a thick smudge of paint and putty on a pane of glass at its top half. But there is no such smudge on any pictures of the original sniper's perch. Also, old photos of the window--photos that are on display at the museum--show markings on the green wooden sash along the bottom portion of the window. The window encased in the Plexiglass exhibit has no such markings.
Of course, conspiracy theorists say they never believed it was the real window all along.
So here's one more riddle for the theorists to solve: If this isn't the real window, and it likely isn't, then where is it--and how did this impostor wind up enshrined in this museum? We're through the looking glass, as Kevin Costner's Jim Garrison drawled in JFK, where every answer spawns a dozen more questions.
"There is just no end to this," says Robert Groden, a prominent local conspiracy theorist who served as a photo analyst on the 1978 U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations. "It's just mystery after mystery."
For more than two decades, the window--or what one man believed was the famous sniper's perch window--hung like a trophy, or a deer's head, in the banquet room of one of the wealthiest men in Dallas.
Col. D. Harold Byrd kept it in his University Park home as a souvenir, a tragic keepsake he ordered removed from the building on Elm and Houston streets that he owned and leased to the Texas School Book Depository. Byrd kept it there until his death in 1986, at which time it fell into the hands of his son Caruth--who, the story goes, kept the window out of public view for almost a decade.
Caruth Byrd wanted to keep the window buried, forgotten about. He rejected enormous financial offers from those who collect such morbid artifacts, and refused the requests from those who wanted to place the window in a Dallas museum commemorating the assassination--fearing the museum would be an embarrassment to the city. He preferred to keep hidden this reminder of Dallas' shame...until one day, in 1994, he had a change of heart and turned the window over to the Sixth Floor Museum.
On February 21, 1995--President's Day--more than 100 elected officials, members of the Dallas County Historical Foundation, and assassination eyewitnesses gathered at the Sixth Floor Museum for the window's dramatic unveiling.
"I thought and thought about what to do with it," the garrulous, barrel-chested Byrd told the assembled crowd during the unveiling ceremonies. "I've had offers for a lot of money for it, but I decided the best thing to do was bring it home where it belongs."
The window has remained on display here ever since, an authentic piece of history that offers its own special peek into a tragic day in this city's history.
At least, that's what half a million visitors a year believe.
There are those who doubt Byrd's tale--those who have photographic evidence right in the museum that proves the window on display is not the real sniper's perch, those who have spent months studying the discrepancies.
And there is at least one man who claims to own the window itself.
First, there is Barkley and his band of conspiracy theorists, including James Bagby, another former security guard at the museum. After overhearing some museum visitors question the authenticity of the window last March, Bagby studied the window for himself. He first noticed that the one-inch thick, salmon-colored smudge of paint and putty on the display window isn't apparent on an old picture of the real window.
The smudge, which is on what would have been the outside of the glass, matches the color of the wooden trim on the outside of the window. A note on the exhibit points out that the "paint on the exterior trim is original to the time of the assassination."
After studying pictures of the real window taken the day of the assassination, Bagby also noticed the distinct markings on the wooden sash along the bottom of the window that do not appear on the window on exhibit.
Bagby first brought these discrepancies to the attention of museum archivist Gary Mack eight months ago.
"'What you've discovered is quite important,'" Bagby says Mack told him. "'But I wouldn't be telling anyone about this.'"
Jeff West, executive director of the Sixth Floor, and Mack now admit they have questions about the authenticity of the window--no, make that doubts.
"We have concerns," West says. "It definitely bears scrutiny."
"It's a corner window," Mack adds. "Whether it's the window where shots were fired, we're not sure."
What makes all this speculation significantly more intriguing is that Conover Hunt, the museum consultant who helped put the Sixth Floor Museum together, knew from the beginning that there was someone else out there who claimed to own the real window.
His name is Aubrey Mayhew, a music producer from Nashville who may be the one person who can repair this jagged puzzle--or bust the whole thing into a million pieces.
The tale of the sniper's perch is not only a whodunit, but a whogotit. And with any mystery, perhaps it's easier to begin at the beginning, during those moments just as the echo of gunfire began fading in Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963, and Dallas police ran inside the brick building at the corner of Elm and Houston.
They were directed there by witnesses who thought they saw what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle jutting out of a half-opened window on the sixth floor of the building, which housed the Texas School Book Depository, one of two textbook distribution sites for the state.
On the cavernous sixth floor, filled with stacks of book-filled boxes, police said they found three shell casings in front of the open window in the southeastern-most corner of the building. They also claimed to find a rifle, which Oswald was said to have bought through mail order, stashed under boxes diagonally across from the window.
Until the end of the 1960s, the Texas School Book Depository Company remained in the building, which was owned by Col. D. Harold Byrd. Byrd was an oil millionaire and husband of Mattie Caruth, whose family once owned most of the land from downtown Dallas to Park Lane. The Caruth family, after whom Caruth Haven Road is named, donated all the land for Southern Methodist University and leased the land for NorthPark Mall.
Afraid that curiosity seekers would carve off pieces of the sniper's-nest window, Byrd instructed his employee, Buddy McCool, to remove the window six weeks after the assassination, according to interviews with McCool and Byrd filmed in the early 1970s.
Whether McCool removed the right window is the question at the heart of this mystery.
The location of the sixth-floor sniper's perch is among the most infamous points of interest in the whole world. Yet it's conceivable that six weeks after the assassination, Byrd's lackey could have been confused about its exact location. There is no one alive who can verify which window McCool took out that day.
Byrd obviously took it on face value that he had the right one. He decorated the bottom half of the window with newspaper clippings of the assassination and postcard pictures of Kennedy, Dealey Plaza, and the book depository; then he had the whole thing framed.
He hung it in the banquet room of his Vassar Street mansion--later bought by oilman T. Boone Pickens--next to photos and mementos of his long, colorful career, which included co-founding the Civil Air Patrol, drilling numerous wildcat oil wells in East Texas, and funding the Antarctic explorations of his cousin, Admiral Richard E. Byrd, who named an Antarctic mountain range after the Texas colonel.
Byrd held onto the former book depository building until 1970, when he auctioned it off to a Nashville music producer named Aubrey Mayhew. Mayhew was a Kennedy memorabilia collector who planned to turn the structure into a commercial museum commemorating Kennedy's life. Still reeling from the fallout of the assassination that branded Dallas as "The City of Hate" and placed the blame for Kennedy's murder on Dallas' hostile environment, local city fathers recoiled at the idea of a museum that would consecrate the town's darkest hour. They also found Mayhew's intention to profit off the tragedy distasteful.
Mayhew tried several times to get city permits to start building his museum, but he was repeatedly turned down. A group called Dallas Onward, formed to protest turning the building into a national Kennedy landmark, helped thwart Mayhew's efforts.
By 1973, Mayhew defaulted on his loan, and Byrd repurchased the building after the bank foreclosed on it. He immediately put it back up for sale, this time asking $1.2 million for it. At the time, he said, he hoped whoever purchased the site "would use the building in a way that would not be a slam on Dallas...that would not blame Dallas for having the right environment for causing Kennedy's death," according to a filmed interview with Byrd.
The city passed an ordinance preventing the building from being torn down. Several city leaders, including real-estate developer Ray Nasher, were conducting their own campaign to create a private, nonprofit museum and monument to Kennedy on the site.
In 1977, Dallas citizens voted to use bond money to purchase the building from Byrd. The first five floors were refurbished for Dallas County administrative offices.
But little did anyone know that before Aubrey Mayhew vacated the premises, he hired two carpenters to remove two windows from the southeast corner of the sixth floor and replace them with windows from the north side of the building. He says he sneaked off with the sniper's-perch window--"the ultimate piece of Kennedy memorabilia"--while no one noticed.
Or so he claims.
If there is anyone to blame for this predicament, perhaps you should look no further than Conover Hunt.
A museum consultant from Marshall, Hunt first got involved with converting the sixth floor into a museum in the early 1980s. Hunt immediately noticed the sniper's-perch window was missing.
The entire casement that contained the two windows on the southeast corner had been replaced with windows from the north side of the building. She wasn't sure she would ever get her hands on the real ones.
Then, in 1987, two men contacted her, both claiming to have possession of the sniper's perch window. Caruth Byrd called Hunt and told her he had inherited the window from his father, who had died the previous year. Caruth said he stashed it behind some drawers in his house on a sprawling ranch in Van, just east of Canton. Hunt says she asked Byrd to send her proof that he had it, but he wasn't forthcoming.
Still, Hunt says she was inclined to believe Caruth, because she knew several people, including Joe Dealey Sr., late publisher of The Dallas Morning News, who had seen the window hanging in Colonel Byrd's house.
Caruth Byrd eventually allowed Hunt to see the window, which he moved to a vault in Inwood Village. But he refused to donate it or loan it to the museum. The Sixth Floor Museum was still two years away from opening, and Byrd, echoing concerns his father had uttered years earlier, was afraid the museum would be tacky and an embarrassment to the city.
Not long after Byrd met with Hunt, Aubrey Mayhew sent Hunt a letter. He, too, said he had the window--both windows, in fact--from the sniper's perch, and he wanted $250,000 for them. Hunt says she asked Mayhew to send her a picture and measurements of the windows.
"He never did," says the whiskey-voiced Hunt. "I was naturally cautious. If someone wants to sell it, the least they can do is send a picture and the exact measurements."
Hunt explains that she never flew to Nashville to see Mayhew's windows because she couldn't justify the expense without first having some proof that Mayhew actually had the windows.
In 1994, Caruth Byrd suddenly changed his mind about burying the past and let the museum know he was willing to loan out the window. Hunt retrieved it from Byrd's ranch and analyzed it. She says the paint color matched the other windows along the southern wall, and the shape led her to believe it was one of the two corner windows that were missing.
"And the provenance--the history of ownership--was excellent," she says. She admits she did not compare Byrd's window with pictures of the original.
Although the window on display touts it as "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch," leading visitors to believe it was the window through which Oswald allegedly shot Kennedy, Hunt also admits that she was never certain of that. "There were two windows missing, so there was a 50-50 shot that this was the one through which the gunman fired."
Now that questions are being raised about the window's authenticity, Hunt defends herself by claiming that both windows are historically significant--even though there's a good chance the museum isn't advertising the truth.
"Until you have both windows together and have them professionally examined, you won't have an answer," she insists. "The fact that people are studying the window, examining the evidence, is healthy. These things happen all the time in my business."
It's now early November 1997, just weeks before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's assassination, and Caruth Byrd has no idea the Sixth Floor Museum has any concerns about the window he loaned them.
A Confederate flag and a flag of John Wayne fly over his 150-acre ranch in Van, the Caruth Byrd Wildlife Compound. A large man with white hair and bulging blue eyes, Byrd divides his time between his private wild kingdom, where more than 3,000 exotic and endangered animals roam, and his Hollywood home next to Gene Autry, where Byrd produces movies and TV specials.
"Watch out for the kangaroo shit," he warns as we approach the front porch of his house, which resembles a huge dude-ranch lodge. He and the kangaroo, he explains, shared a morning doughnut on the porch.
A self-professed mortician, veterinarian, gourmet cook, and "the best organ player in the world," Byrd is a hard man to characterize, at once grandiose and earthy. He describes himself as a man "who was born with a silver spoon up my ass," but who despises the phony airs of the Dallas rich. His main residence on his compound, where he lives alone, is covered with hundreds of pictures of him with such Hollywood notables as Burt Reynolds and Lee Majors.
Among the photos lining the walls is a picture of him donating the window to the Sixth Floor Museum. Byrd launches into the story about how his father ordered an employee to remove it, and he rolls a videotaped interview with the worker that confirms his story.
Byrd says he decided to loan the window to the Sixth Floor after he got a call from The Smithsonian Institute, asking him to donate it to the Washington museum. "I decided if it went anywhere, it should stay in Dallas," Byrd says of his decision.
He has no doubts that his window is the real sniper's perch, and he is shocked to learn that the people running the Sixth Floor now have questions about its authenticity.
The name Aubrey Mayhew makes Byrd bristle. "He's a nut who tried to buy the building from my dad," Byrd says. "If he says he has the window, then where in the hell is it? He can't produce one."
Mayhew is the equivalent of the sniper's-perch second gunman, the man who may or may not hold the answer to the mystery of the missing window. But if he does possess the proof, making him produce it may be impossible.
Mayhew is a bitter fellow who believes a cabal of powerful Dallasites conspired to take away from him the building that houses the Sixth Floor Museum. Mayhew claims he lost everything in pursuit of creating a Kennedy museum here--his livelihood, his wife and two children--and he blames Dallas for those losses.
So it's not surprising that when finally reached in Nashville, Mayhew almost explodes when asked about the authenticity of the window on display in Dallas.
"Of course it's not the real window!" he bellowed over the phone. "I've been telling you people this for 30 years. I'm really a low-profile, non-publicity guy. All I can tell you is that Mr. Caruth Byrd is an idiot, and his father is an idiot and a thief."
Mayhew went on to insist that he still has the real window in storage in Detroit. When asked why he never showed it to the people at the Sixth Floor when they asked, he shot back: "I don't have anything to prove."
A 70-year-old music publisher who once worked with jazz great Charlie Parker and produced and co-wrote songs with outlaw country singer Johnny Paycheck ("Take This Job and Shove It"), Mayhew said over the phone that he was planning to come to Dallas the following week to see some of the songwriters with whom he still works. It was just a coincidence, he said, that it would be the day before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's death, and he promised to call when he got to town.
He phoned a few days later and agreed to meet, but warned he might not have much to say. Three hours into a meal of coffee and apple pie at the Grand Hotel, he was still talking.
A short man in a windbreaker, Mayhew says he is "neither rich nor crazy." He explains that he was a coin and metal collector in the early 1960s when he became fascinated with all the metal objects that were created with Kennedy's likeness after his death. He produced a book on the subject, then went on to collect all manner of Kennedy memorabilia. It's a hobby he likens to a disease.
He was in search of more memorabilia when he came to Dallas in 1970 and attended an auction of 20 parcels of D. Harold Byrd's real estate, including the building leased to the Texas School Book Depository. He wasn't even a registered bidder, he says, but wound up offering $650,000 for the property. He claims he beat out two other bidders, including an entrepreneur who was going to raze the building and sell it off at a dollar a brick.
"It was just a piece of real estate everyone wanted to forget," Mayhew says.
Mayhew explains he wasn't sure what he was going to do with the building--or how he was going to pay for it. At the time, he says, he was making $100,000 yearly working for a music company. He eventually seized on the idea of turning the building into a "first-rate museum."
Shortly after he bought the building, the Texas School Book Depository moved out. But not before one of their employees gave him an affidavit, he says, confirming that D. Harold Byrd had instructed a workman to remove a window from the Sixth Floor. But "he went to the wrong side of the building," Mayhew claims, "and took it from the southwestern corner."
Afraid that a vacant building was more susceptible to vandals, Mayhew says he hired two carpenters to remove the two windows and the surrounding casement that comprised the sniper's nest and replace them with identical windows from the building's north side. Mayhew says he stored the original windows in Dallas for 20 years.
Mayhew insists that several wealthy Dallasites, whom he refuses to name, initially backed his plans for a museum. He quit his job to work on it full-time, spending weeks on end in Dallas and living in the building, where he began housing assassination artifacts. He claims to have spent more than $10,000 on architectural renderings of the proposed museum.
But the city hated his idea. The Dallas Times Herald, he says, ran a full-page cartoon lampooning his idea with a caricature of a museum showing a neon arrow pointing up to the sixth floor sniper's perch. Esquire magazine chided his plans in its annual Dubious Achievement Award issue, asking who was going to get the JFK chicken franchise.
Mayhew says that while the local campaign against him raged, he was also fending off an attempt by the state's Commission to Commemorate JFK to get the Texas Legislature to seize the building from him. Meanwhile, Mayhew recalls that city planners repeatedly rebuffed his attempts to get building permits, once claiming that the building's wooden interior was not fit for refurbishing.
His backers eventually pulled out, and he was hard-pressed to find new ones. He was falling behind on his $6,000-a-month payments, but he claims that the president of Republic National Bank was going to give him an extension. He says he vowed to fight foreclosure on the grounds that the building was his homestead.
"I had no income, a building producing no revenue that was costing me $6,000 a month, and all I ever received was constant blows from the city and state," Mayhew says. "The pressure was mounting."
In the summer of 1972, a small fire broke out in the building. The police charged one of Mayhew's employees, Winfred Anderson, with arson. Anderson pleaded guilty and received probation; he also implicated Mayhew as the person who was behind the fire--which Mayhew vehemently denies. The police, Mayhew insists, let him know that they would arrest him if he set foot in Dallas County again.
Not only does Mayhew profess his innocence, he claims he was framed in a convoluted plot to keep him away from Dallas so he would lose the building. Two weeks after the fire was set, the bank foreclosed on the building, which D. Harold Byrd promptly re-purchased. The city, Mayhew says, confiscated Mayhew's memorabilia left inside the building.
Mayhew says he went back to Nashville a broken man. His wife left him and took his two children to live in New York. He still nursed his idea of building a museum: A year or two later, he hooked up with Gerald Jay Steinberg, a Washington, D.C.-area dentist who claimed to have the largest Kennedy collection in the world. Together they opened an antique store in Georgetown, while they set about cataloging their combined collection for future display. On weekends, Mayhew says, he commuted by bus to New York to try and patch up his marriage--to no avail.
Mayhew's relationship with the dentist soured after just five months. Both men accuse each other of stealing a chunk of their respective collections. Steinberg says that Mayhew claimed to have the sixth-floor window back then, but Steinberg says he never saw it.
Mayhew went back to Nashville to begin rebuilding his music career. He also says he opened a small but classy JFK museum that was eventually burglarized. In 1987, "in a moment of weakness," Mayhew says, he wrote to Conover Hunt, who was organizing the Sixth Floor Museum.
"I told her I had the window and wanted $250,000 for it," Mayhew says. "I just wanted to recoup just some of the money I felt this city owed me."
He is asked why, then, he didn't send Hunt the pictures and dimensions she requested.
Mayhew claims it wasn't that simple. He says Hunt didn't respond to his letter for some time, and that when she first contacted him, she really didn't seem interested. He felt she was just blowing him off.
And maybe she had good reason. After all, he never offered one bit of proof that he has the windows. If there's any reason at all not to dismiss Mayhew, it's the simple fact that the window on display on the Sixth Floor is not the real deal. Maybe, just maybe, Mayhew's telling the truth.
"We know there are two windows, and you've proven that one's not it," he says. "So you take it from there."
For the last decade, Mayhew has had no contact with the Sixth Floor Museum. Then, several months ago, he says he received a letter from the museum's archivist, Gary Mack, a former Dallas television station announcer and JFK researcher--and one of those who isn't sure anymore that the window on display is so authentic. Mayhew says Mack told him he was interested in his collection.
"He said things had changed, and he understood the difficulties I had in the past," Mayhew says. "He said he wanted to come to Nashville and see my collection and that maybe we could join forces." Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
I posted the entire article because these thing's have away of disappearing once it upset's a few people.
Stained Glass
by Ann Zimmerman
Article Published Nov 27, 1997
From
http://www.dallasobs...27/feature.html
The man on the phone speaks in conspiratorial tones. His name is Martin Barkley, a 40-something divorced father of two who has devoted so much of his life to a single purpose--proving that Lee Harvey Oswald did not kill John Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository on November 22, 1963.
His research qualifications amount to having worked security for several large companies and spent time in Army intelligence. His personal link to the assassination was that his uncle was the longest-serving Dallas police officer when Kennedy was shot--and, of course, he whispered something conspiratorial at Thanksgiving dinner days after the assassination.
Barkley is a true believer, and he talks in elliptical phrases and vague pronouncements. On this day, he says he wants to share his theory that Dallas' powers-that-be are perverting the information presented in the Sixth Floor Museum, Oswald's alleged sniper's perch--and this city's biggest tourist attraction. Barkley argues that those in charge of the museum are toadies for the Warren Commission.
"The way to control an issue is to manage information on both sides so nothing gets out of control," he says, espousing a typically muddy slogan.
He says he will prove this all with a guided tour of the Sixth Floor, where he used to work as a security guard. Barkley was a seasonal hire two years ago and was laid off--ostensibly when tourist traffic slowed down, he explains. But he's convinced that he was, in fact, terminated because he answered visitors' probing conspiracy questions too honestly, too carefully, too knowledgeably. Of course, he can't prove it.
Barkley insists we meet late on a Sunday, when we would arouse the least amount of suspicion.
When he arrives that afternoon, he wears an overcoat over his tall frame and a fedora that doesn't obscure piercing blue eyes. Still, the disguise doesn't work: Two minutes after we step inside the building, security guards surround him and want to know why he's there.
"See what I mean," he whispers, as the guards escort us up in the elevator.
He reels off an enormous list of ways the museum subtly controls the mind of the visitor. He is suspicious of a sign that directs visitors to begin the tour with the panels and videos highlighting Kennedy's early years; Barkley believes the "flow" of the exhibit--which winds through Kennedy's all-too-brief presidency, his fateful visit to Texas, then the assassination--is intentionally misleading and exhausting.
"By the time the visitor gets to the end," Barkley insists, "he's too tired to read about conspiracies."
Barkley's rant is a fairly predictable and obvious one. Indeed, place a museum on the sixth floor of the old School Book Depository, and you're pretty much admitting you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. It's not like the county opened a Grassy Knoll Museum.
Yet Barkley is not all hushed whispers and vague hypotheses.
Displayed halfway through the tour in the Sixth Floor Museum is one of the most famous windows in the world--the perch from which Oswald allegedly killed Kennedy with a cheap Italian mail-order rifle. Behind a thick wall of Plexiglass, the window has been exhibited here since 1995, and since then, more than a million visitors have scrutinized it, studied it, even venerated its tragic place in history.
The window, located in the southeast corner of the museum, sits only a few feet from where Oswald killed Kennedy--allegedly, of course. It bears the caption "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch."
But is it?
Barkley believes the infamous perch that hangs in the museum is a fake...a fraud.
He may be right.
Just a cursory look at the window on display reveals that it differs significantly from pictures taken of the window moments after the assassination.
For instance, the window on display has a thick smudge of paint and putty on a pane of glass at its top half. But there is no such smudge on any pictures of the original sniper's perch. Also, old photos of the window--photos that are on display at the museum--show markings on the green wooden sash along the bottom portion of the window. The window encased in the Plexiglass exhibit has no such markings.
Of course, conspiracy theorists say they never believed it was the real window all along.
So here's one more riddle for the theorists to solve: If this isn't the real window, and it likely isn't, then where is it--and how did this impostor wind up enshrined in this museum? We're through the looking glass, as Kevin Costner's Jim Garrison drawled in JFK, where every answer spawns a dozen more questions.
"There is just no end to this," says Robert Groden, a prominent local conspiracy theorist who served as a photo analyst on the 1978 U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations. "It's just mystery after mystery."
For more than two decades, the window--or what one man believed was the famous sniper's perch window--hung like a trophy, or a deer's head, in the banquet room of one of the wealthiest men in Dallas.
Col. D. Harold Byrd kept it in his University Park home as a souvenir, a tragic keepsake he ordered removed from the building on Elm and Houston streets that he owned and leased to the Texas School Book Depository. Byrd kept it there until his death in 1986, at which time it fell into the hands of his son Caruth--who, the story goes, kept the window out of public view for almost a decade.
Caruth Byrd wanted to keep the window buried, forgotten about. He rejected enormous financial offers from those who collect such morbid artifacts, and refused the requests from those who wanted to place the window in a Dallas museum commemorating the assassination--fearing the museum would be an embarrassment to the city. He preferred to keep hidden this reminder of Dallas' shame...until one day, in 1994, he had a change of heart and turned the window over to the Sixth Floor Museum.
On February 21, 1995--President's Day--more than 100 elected officials, members of the Dallas County Historical Foundation, and assassination eyewitnesses gathered at the Sixth Floor Museum for the window's dramatic unveiling.
"I thought and thought about what to do with it," the garrulous, barrel-chested Byrd told the assembled crowd during the unveiling ceremonies. "I've had offers for a lot of money for it, but I decided the best thing to do was bring it home where it belongs."
The window has remained on display here ever since, an authentic piece of history that offers its own special peek into a tragic day in this city's history.
At least, that's what half a million visitors a year believe.
There are those who doubt Byrd's tale--those who have photographic evidence right in the museum that proves the window on display is not the real sniper's perch, those who have spent months studying the discrepancies.
And there is at least one man who claims to own the window itself.
First, there is Barkley and his band of conspiracy theorists, including James Bagby, another former security guard at the museum. After overhearing some museum visitors question the authenticity of the window last March, Bagby studied the window for himself. He first noticed that the one-inch thick, salmon-colored smudge of paint and putty on the display window isn't apparent on an old picture of the real window.
The smudge, which is on what would have been the outside of the glass, matches the color of the wooden trim on the outside of the window. A note on the exhibit points out that the "paint on the exterior trim is original to the time of the assassination."
After studying pictures of the real window taken the day of the assassination, Bagby also noticed the distinct markings on the wooden sash along the bottom of the window that do not appear on the window on exhibit.
Bagby first brought these discrepancies to the attention of museum archivist Gary Mack eight months ago.
"'What you've discovered is quite important,'" Bagby says Mack told him. "'But I wouldn't be telling anyone about this.'"
Jeff West, executive director of the Sixth Floor, and Mack now admit they have questions about the authenticity of the window--no, make that doubts.
"We have concerns," West says. "It definitely bears scrutiny."
"It's a corner window," Mack adds. "Whether it's the window where shots were fired, we're not sure."
What makes all this speculation significantly more intriguing is that Conover Hunt, the museum consultant who helped put the Sixth Floor Museum together, knew from the beginning that there was someone else out there who claimed to own the real window.
His name is Aubrey Mayhew, a music producer from Nashville who may be the one person who can repair this jagged puzzle--or bust the whole thing into a million pieces.
The tale of the sniper's perch is not only a whodunit, but a whogotit. And with any mystery, perhaps it's easier to begin at the beginning, during those moments just as the echo of gunfire began fading in Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963, and Dallas police ran inside the brick building at the corner of Elm and Houston.
They were directed there by witnesses who thought they saw what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle jutting out of a half-opened window on the sixth floor of the building, which housed the Texas School Book Depository, one of two textbook distribution sites for the state.
On the cavernous sixth floor, filled with stacks of book-filled boxes, police said they found three shell casings in front of the open window in the southeastern-most corner of the building. They also claimed to find a rifle, which Oswald was said to have bought through mail order, stashed under boxes diagonally across from the window.
Until the end of the 1960s, the Texas School Book Depository Company remained in the building, which was owned by Col. D. Harold Byrd. Byrd was an oil millionaire and husband of Mattie Caruth, whose family once owned most of the land from downtown Dallas to Park Lane. The Caruth family, after whom Caruth Haven Road is named, donated all the land for Southern Methodist University and leased the land for NorthPark Mall.
Afraid that curiosity seekers would carve off pieces of the sniper's-nest window, Byrd instructed his employee, Buddy McCool, to remove the window six weeks after the assassination, according to interviews with McCool and Byrd filmed in the early 1970s.
Whether McCool removed the right window is the question at the heart of this mystery.
The location of the sixth-floor sniper's perch is among the most infamous points of interest in the whole world. Yet it's conceivable that six weeks after the assassination, Byrd's lackey could have been confused about its exact location. There is no one alive who can verify which window McCool took out that day.
Byrd obviously took it on face value that he had the right one. He decorated the bottom half of the window with newspaper clippings of the assassination and postcard pictures of Kennedy, Dealey Plaza, and the book depository; then he had the whole thing framed.
He hung it in the banquet room of his Vassar Street mansion--later bought by oilman T. Boone Pickens--next to photos and mementos of his long, colorful career, which included co-founding the Civil Air Patrol, drilling numerous wildcat oil wells in East Texas, and funding the Antarctic explorations of his cousin, Admiral Richard E. Byrd, who named an Antarctic mountain range after the Texas colonel.
Byrd held onto the former book depository building until 1970, when he auctioned it off to a Nashville music producer named Aubrey Mayhew. Mayhew was a Kennedy memorabilia collector who planned to turn the structure into a commercial museum commemorating Kennedy's life. Still reeling from the fallout of the assassination that branded Dallas as "The City of Hate" and placed the blame for Kennedy's murder on Dallas' hostile environment, local city fathers recoiled at the idea of a museum that would consecrate the town's darkest hour. They also found Mayhew's intention to profit off the tragedy distasteful.
Mayhew tried several times to get city permits to start building his museum, but he was repeatedly turned down. A group called Dallas Onward, formed to protest turning the building into a national Kennedy landmark, helped thwart Mayhew's efforts.
By 1973, Mayhew defaulted on his loan, and Byrd repurchased the building after the bank foreclosed on it. He immediately put it back up for sale, this time asking $1.2 million for it. At the time, he said, he hoped whoever purchased the site "would use the building in a way that would not be a slam on Dallas...that would not blame Dallas for having the right environment for causing Kennedy's death," according to a filmed interview with Byrd.
The city passed an ordinance preventing the building from being torn down. Several city leaders, including real-estate developer Ray Nasher, were conducting their own campaign to create a private, nonprofit museum and monument to Kennedy on the site.
In 1977, Dallas citizens voted to use bond money to purchase the building from Byrd. The first five floors were refurbished for Dallas County administrative offices.
But little did anyone know that before Aubrey Mayhew vacated the premises, he hired two carpenters to remove two windows from the southeast corner of the sixth floor and replace them with windows from the north side of the building. He says he sneaked off with the sniper's-perch window--"the ultimate piece of Kennedy memorabilia"--while no one noticed.
Or so he claims.
If there is anyone to blame for this predicament, perhaps you should look no further than Conover Hunt.
A museum consultant from Marshall, Hunt first got involved with converting the sixth floor into a museum in the early 1980s. Hunt immediately noticed the sniper's-perch window was missing.
The entire casement that contained the two windows on the southeast corner had been replaced with windows from the north side of the building. She wasn't sure she would ever get her hands on the real ones.
Then, in 1987, two men contacted her, both claiming to have possession of the sniper's perch window. Caruth Byrd called Hunt and told her he had inherited the window from his father, who had died the previous year. Caruth said he stashed it behind some drawers in his house on a sprawling ranch in Van, just east of Canton. Hunt says she asked Byrd to send her proof that he had it, but he wasn't forthcoming.
Still, Hunt says she was inclined to believe Caruth, because she knew several people, including Joe Dealey Sr., late publisher of The Dallas Morning News, who had seen the window hanging in Colonel Byrd's house.
Caruth Byrd eventually allowed Hunt to see the window, which he moved to a vault in Inwood Village. But he refused to donate it or loan it to the museum. The Sixth Floor Museum was still two years away from opening, and Byrd, echoing concerns his father had uttered years earlier, was afraid the museum would be tacky and an embarrassment to the city.
Not long after Byrd met with Hunt, Aubrey Mayhew sent Hunt a letter. He, too, said he had the window--both windows, in fact--from the sniper's perch, and he wanted $250,000 for them. Hunt says she asked Mayhew to send her a picture and measurements of the windows.
"He never did," says the whiskey-voiced Hunt. "I was naturally cautious. If someone wants to sell it, the least they can do is send a picture and the exact measurements."
Hunt explains that she never flew to Nashville to see Mayhew's windows because she couldn't justify the expense without first having some proof that Mayhew actually had the windows.
In 1994, Caruth Byrd suddenly changed his mind about burying the past and let the museum know he was willing to loan out the window. Hunt retrieved it from Byrd's ranch and analyzed it. She says the paint color matched the other windows along the southern wall, and the shape led her to believe it was one of the two corner windows that were missing.
"And the provenance--the history of ownership--was excellent," she says. She admits she did not compare Byrd's window with pictures of the original.
Although the window on display touts it as "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch," leading visitors to believe it was the window through which Oswald allegedly shot Kennedy, Hunt also admits that she was never certain of that. "There were two windows missing, so there was a 50-50 shot that this was the one through which the gunman fired."
Now that questions are being raised about the window's authenticity, Hunt defends herself by claiming that both windows are historically significant--even though there's a good chance the museum isn't advertising the truth.
"Until you have both windows together and have them professionally examined, you won't have an answer," she insists. "The fact that people are studying the window, examining the evidence, is healthy. These things happen all the time in my business."
It's now early November 1997, just weeks before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's assassination, and Caruth Byrd has no idea the Sixth Floor Museum has any concerns about the window he loaned them.
A Confederate flag and a flag of John Wayne fly over his 150-acre ranch in Van, the Caruth Byrd Wildlife Compound. A large man with white hair and bulging blue eyes, Byrd divides his time between his private wild kingdom, where more than 3,000 exotic and endangered animals roam, and his Hollywood home next to Gene Autry, where Byrd produces movies and TV specials.
"Watch out for the kangaroo shit," he warns as we approach the front porch of his house, which resembles a huge dude-ranch lodge. He and the kangaroo, he explains, shared a morning doughnut on the porch.
A self-professed mortician, veterinarian, gourmet cook, and "the best organ player in the world," Byrd is a hard man to characterize, at once grandiose and earthy. He describes himself as a man "who was born with a silver spoon up my ass," but who despises the phony airs of the Dallas rich. His main residence on his compound, where he lives alone, is covered with hundreds of pictures of him with such Hollywood notables as Burt Reynolds and Lee Majors.
Among the photos lining the walls is a picture of him donating the window to the Sixth Floor Museum. Byrd launches into the story about how his father ordered an employee to remove it, and he rolls a videotaped interview with the worker that confirms his story.
Byrd says he decided to loan the window to the Sixth Floor after he got a call from The Smithsonian Institute, asking him to donate it to the Washington museum. "I decided if it went anywhere, it should stay in Dallas," Byrd says of his decision.
He has no doubts that his window is the real sniper's perch, and he is shocked to learn that the people running the Sixth Floor now have questions about its authenticity.
The name Aubrey Mayhew makes Byrd bristle. "He's a nut who tried to buy the building from my dad," Byrd says. "If he says he has the window, then where in the hell is it? He can't produce one."
Mayhew is the equivalent of the sniper's-perch second gunman, the man who may or may not hold the answer to the mystery of the missing window. But if he does possess the proof, making him produce it may be impossible.
Mayhew is a bitter fellow who believes a cabal of powerful Dallasites conspired to take away from him the building that houses the Sixth Floor Museum. Mayhew claims he lost everything in pursuit of creating a Kennedy museum here--his livelihood, his wife and two children--and he blames Dallas for those losses.
So it's not surprising that when finally reached in Nashville, Mayhew almost explodes when asked about the authenticity of the window on display in Dallas.
"Of course it's not the real window!" he bellowed over the phone. "I've been telling you people this for 30 years. I'm really a low-profile, non-publicity guy. All I can tell you is that Mr. Caruth Byrd is an idiot, and his father is an idiot and a thief."
Mayhew went on to insist that he still has the real window in storage in Detroit. When asked why he never showed it to the people at the Sixth Floor when they asked, he shot back: "I don't have anything to prove."
A 70-year-old music publisher who once worked with jazz great Charlie Parker and produced and co-wrote songs with outlaw country singer Johnny Paycheck ("Take This Job and Shove It"), Mayhew said over the phone that he was planning to come to Dallas the following week to see some of the songwriters with whom he still works. It was just a coincidence, he said, that it would be the day before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's death, and he promised to call when he got to town.
He phoned a few days later and agreed to meet, but warned he might not have much to say. Three hours into a meal of coffee and apple pie at the Grand Hotel, he was still talking.
A short man in a windbreaker, Mayhew says he is "neither rich nor crazy." He explains that he was a coin and metal collector in the early 1960s when he became fascinated with all the metal objects that were created with Kennedy's likeness after his death. He produced a book on the subject, then went on to collect all manner of Kennedy memorabilia. It's a hobby he likens to a disease.
He was in search of more memorabilia when he came to Dallas in 1970 and attended an auction of 20 parcels of D. Harold Byrd's real estate, including the building leased to the Texas School Book Depository. He wasn't even a registered bidder, he says, but wound up offering $650,000 for the property. He claims he beat out two other bidders, including an entrepreneur who was going to raze the building and sell it off at a dollar a brick.
"It was just a piece of real estate everyone wanted to forget," Mayhew says.
Mayhew explains he wasn't sure what he was going to do with the building--or how he was going to pay for it. At the time, he says, he was making $100,000 yearly working for a music company. He eventually seized on the idea of turning the building into a "first-rate museum."
Shortly after he bought the building, the Texas School Book Depository moved out. But not before one of their employees gave him an affidavit, he says, confirming that D. Harold Byrd had instructed a workman to remove a window from the Sixth Floor. But "he went to the wrong side of the building," Mayhew claims, "and took it from the southwestern corner."
Afraid that a vacant building was more susceptible to vandals, Mayhew says he hired two carpenters to remove the two windows and the surrounding casement that comprised the sniper's nest and replace them with identical windows from the building's north side. Mayhew says he stored the original windows in Dallas for 20 years.
Mayhew insists that several wealthy Dallasites, whom he refuses to name, initially backed his plans for a museum. He quit his job to work on it full-time, spending weeks on end in Dallas and living in the building, where he began housing assassination artifacts. He claims to have spent more than $10,000 on architectural renderings of the proposed museum.
But the city hated his idea. The Dallas Times Herald, he says, ran a full-page cartoon lampooning his idea with a caricature of a museum showing a neon arrow pointing up to the sixth floor sniper's perch. Esquire magazine chided his plans in its annual Dubious Achievement Award issue, asking who was going to get the JFK chicken franchise.
Mayhew says that while the local campaign against him raged, he was also fending off an attempt by the state's Commission to Commemorate JFK to get the Texas Legislature to seize the building from him. Meanwhile, Mayhew recalls that city planners repeatedly rebuffed his attempts to get building permits, once claiming that the building's wooden interior was not fit for refurbishing.
His backers eventually pulled out, and he was hard-pressed to find new ones. He was falling behind on his $6,000-a-month payments, but he claims that the president of Republic National Bank was going to give him an extension. He says he vowed to fight foreclosure on the grounds that the building was his homestead.
"I had no income, a building producing no revenue that was costing me $6,000 a month, and all I ever received was constant blows from the city and state," Mayhew says. "The pressure was mounting."
In the summer of 1972, a small fire broke out in the building. The police charged one of Mayhew's employees, Winfred Anderson, with arson. Anderson pleaded guilty and received probation; he also implicated Mayhew as the person who was behind the fire--which Mayhew vehemently denies. The police, Mayhew insists, let him know that they would arrest him if he set foot in Dallas County again.
Not only does Mayhew profess his innocence, he claims he was framed in a convoluted plot to keep him away from Dallas so he would lose the building. Two weeks after the fire was set, the bank foreclosed on the building, which D. Harold Byrd promptly re-purchased. The city, Mayhew says, confiscated Mayhew's memorabilia left inside the building.
Mayhew says he went back to Nashville a broken man. His wife left him and took his two children to live in New York. He still nursed his idea of building a museum: A year or two later, he hooked up with Gerald Jay Steinberg, a Washington, D.C.-area dentist who claimed to have the largest Kennedy collection in the world. Together they opened an antique store in Georgetown, while they set about cataloging their combined collection for future display. On weekends, Mayhew says, he commuted by bus to New York to try and patch up his marriage--to no avail.
Mayhew's relationship with the dentist soured after just five months. Both men accuse each other of stealing a chunk of their respective collections. Steinberg says that Mayhew claimed to have the sixth-floor window back then, but Steinberg says he never saw it.
Mayhew went back to Nashville to begin rebuilding his music career. He also says he opened a small but classy JFK museum that was eventually burglarized. In 1987, "in a moment of weakness," Mayhew says, he wrote to Conover Hunt, who was organizing the Sixth Floor Museum.
"I told her I had the window and wanted $250,000 for it," Mayhew says. "I just wanted to recoup just some of the money I felt this city owed me."
He is asked why, then, he didn't send Hunt the pictures and dimensions she requested.
Mayhew claims it wasn't that simple. He says Hunt didn't respond to his letter for some time, and that when she first contacted him, she really didn't seem interested. He felt she was just blowing him off.
And maybe she had good reason. After all, he never offered one bit of proof that he has the windows. If there's any reason at all not to dismiss Mayhew, it's the simple fact that the window on display on the Sixth Floor is not the real deal. Maybe, just maybe, Mayhew's telling the truth.
"We know there are two windows, and you've proven that one's not it," he says. "So you take it from there."
For the last decade, Mayhew has had no contact with the Sixth Floor Museum. Then, several months ago, he says he received a letter from the museum's archivist, Gary Mack, a former Dallas television station announcer and JFK researcher--and one of those who isn't sure anymore that the window on display is so authentic. Mayhew says Mack told him he was interested in his collection.
"He said things had changed, and he understood the difficulties I had in the past," Mayhew says. "He said he wanted to come to Nashville and see my collection and that maybe we could join forces." Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
I posted the entire article because these thing's have away of disappearing once it upset's a few people.
Aubry Mayhew claims to have the actual window, but He wasn't the owner in '63 when Byrd removed the "snipers nest" window and took it to his home. I have heard from individuals who visited Byrd's home in the past and saw the window, proudly displayed in his "trophy" room.
Glen Sample
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Thanks,
BK
Bill, Eldon Byrd was probably related to the Admiral Richard Byrd branch of the family. Eldon Downs is now an equine & boarding facility near the south fork of the Shanandoah River. I think it may have once been part of the Byrd plantation. Adm Byrd was certainly from that area of Virginia.
Eldon was associated with an interesting crowd: Ira Einhorn, Andrija Puharich and Arthur Young among them. His Naval career ended either because of child porn charges (he claimed he was framed by Postal Inspectors, but admitted sex with a minor) or because of security clearance issues - depending on who you believe.
His history includes:
experiments with Uri Geller
Naval Surface Weapons, Office of Non-Lethal Weapons
behaviour control experiments on animals
has written papers on the telemetry of brain waves
dolphin research
#14 William Weston
Member
Members
17 posts
Posted 11 December 2006 - 08:44 PM
John Simkin, on Dec 2 2006, 06:33 PM, said:
I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
Amazon.com has it also.
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
#17 William Kelly
Super Member
Robert,
Many thanks for digging up these gems from the DMN morgue.
I'm sure there's many more interesting bodies burried in there.
I did a simple search on the Dallas Athletic Club at Elm and St. Paul and instantly came up with the Dallas Notre Dame Alumni Association meeting there because of Gordon McLendon, one degree of separation.
They say Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon bet on Dallas Cowboy games together, although I expect to hear from Gary Mack about that.
In any case, the most important thing happening today is the football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Championship.
All I have to say to all my Dallas friends is : Go Eagles! Beat the Boys.
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
Robert,
the Baron's story starts with his family.
His uncle Gustav resigned from the Army and went to Canada in 1904 where he ploughed $10,000,000 in German investment money into real estate. Under suspicion of being a spy, he hightailed it in 1914 to the US dressed as a female. Despite the fact that his Canadian assets were seized by the Custodian of Enemy Property, and the fact that a probable U-Boat base was discovered at one of his coastal holdings in the '30s, he was able to become a US citizen in 1939.
His father; also named Werner, was an Iron Cross winner in WWI. After leaving the army, he joined Gustav in Canada for a short while, before returning to Germany where he became a "background" worker for a movement called "Young Conservatives" (YAF, anyone?) whose mission was to unite all conservative parties under one umbrulla; the same stated aim as that of CUSA, and using similar tactics. With the rise of Hitler, he became entangled in various plots (along with another brother named Bodo) to usurp control of the Nazi Party, and in various other plots against Hitler (Dulles, anyone?). This self-styled master of intrigue did jail time for his troubles. I had originally mistaken Werner, Sr for his son - your Baron - but I'd suspect Jr was jailed because he was working with dad in these plots.
I think it's highly likely that YAF and CUSA modeled themselves after the German Young Conservatives... even down to CUSA meeting in a pub (The German group had held their get-togethers at the Herrenklub).
I hope you realise the possible great significance of your find. Those German Young Conservatives, btw, also called themselves "Neo-Conservatives". Its later usage in the US may well be a tip of the hat to this group, as well.
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
Robert,
the Baron's story starts with his family.
His uncle Gustav resigned from the Army and went to Canada in 1904 where he ploughed $10,000,000 in German investment money into real estate. Under suspicion of being a spy, he hightailed it in 1914 to the US dressed as a female. Despite the fact that his Canadian assets were seized by the Custodian of Enemy Property, and the fact that a probable U-Boat base was discovered at one of his coastal holdings in the '30s, he was able to become a US citizen in 1939.
His father; also named Werner, was an Iron Cross winner in WWI. After leaving the army, he joined Gustav in Canada for a short while, before returning to Germany where he became a "background" worker for a movement called "Young Conservatives" (YAF, anyone?) whose mission was to unite all conservative parties under one umbrulla; the same stated aim as that of CUSA, and using similar tactics. With the rise of Hitler, he became entangled in various plots (along with another brother named Bodo) to usurp control of the Nazi Party, and in various other plots against Hitler (Dulles, anyone?). This self-styled master of intrigue did jail time for his troubles. I had originally mistaken Werner, Sr for his son - your Baron - but I'd suspect Jr was jailed because he was working with dad in these plots.
I think it's highly likely that YAF and CUSA modeled themselves after the German Young Conservatives... even down to CUSA meeting in a pub (The German group had held their get-togethers at the Herrenklub).
I hope you realise the possible great significance of your find. Those German Young Conservatives, btw, also called themselves "Neo-Conservatives". Its later usage in the US may well be a tip of the hat to this group, as well.
While I am not an idle speculator, I do believe that there are ramifications of fascist elements that are intertwined with various types of data which have appeared on the Forum, in many different topics, some which appear to be linked to the area this thread is currently drifting toward
To Elaborate....Jim Root, whom I have an immense amount of respect toward, as do other members of the Forum has expended a great deal of time & effort in analysing the life & times of General Edwin Walker, Walker as we all know, [hopefully] was stationed in Germany before his decision to ostensibly distribute John Birch Society literature to his troops, a decision which led to his troubles with the Kennedy administration, [troubles being an understatement]. So.....we discover that Bernard Weissmann, Larrie Schmidt and William Burley were all "associated with each other" serving in the US Army in......Germany.
See WCE 1052
http://www.maryferre...bsPageId=140705
While some of the readers of this post may have not yet been a gleam in their father's eyes in 1963, posterity
has managed to salvage a "relic from the past" re Gen Edwin Walker, Mayor Earl Cabell & events in Dallas, Texas circa 1962/1963, what I am referencing is the footage showing General Walker being treated like a "cause célèbre" over the aformentioned "troubles," I believe, he is shown being given a cowboy hat from the Lord Mayor, said hat being not unlike the one given to Pres Kennedy "that day"
See The Murder of JFK - A Revisionist History
Additionally, an early Warren Commission document referenced four individuals...those 4 individuals were..... Lee Harvey Oswald, Jack Ruby and Mr. and Mrs "John R. and Minnie Smith." I was never able to figure out who the latter individuals were but suspected [rightly] that hey if they were important enough to be listed in tax records alongside the patsy and the killer of the patsy, they would be 'somewhat important.'
Recently, while I was going thru doc's copied at the Dallas Public Library months ago, I discovered that the "John R. Smith" and the "Schmidt" that was associated with Bernard Weissman are one and the same, or at least the FBI indicated so, according to the document.......
Perhaps?......The above data is what this individual was referencing......
Warren Commission Document 933 is a 15 page memo dated 05/15/64 from J Edgar Hoover to J Lee Rankin, [179-40002-10174] the subject is Paul Carroll. In this document, Hoover is submitting to Rankin, FBI Reports on Mr Paul Carroll. If you believe that fascism died at the end of World War 2, you views may be somewhat challenged after reading the next paragraph
Why, you ask? Read on......CD933a dated May 1, 1964, begins by stating:
"On November 22, 1963 Paul Vottler Carroll appeared at the El Paso office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and advised SA Robert G. Abegglen that he had been active in Republican Party affairs for several years having been chairman of the Young Republican's at the University of Texas in Austin Texas, and having attended several Young Republican National Convention's. He said it was his opinion there was a conspiracy between the John Birch Society and the American Nazi Party in 1961 or early 1962 to take over control of the Republican Party and then to take over the Government of the United States, by force, if necessary. CARROLL stated this "enterprise" was made up of retired Army personnel, but he could not furnish any facts to substantiate this allegation."
Final Thought/Message to those on High: There is an old adage which may come back to haunt people who potentially will soon be "found out" as to their involvement in the assassination of Pres. John F. Kennedy......."We [collectively] may be through with the past, but the past is not
Robert, Many thanks for digging up these gems from the DMN morgue.
I'm sure there's many more interesting bodies burried in there. I did a simple search on the Dallas Athletic Club at Elm and St. Paul and instantly came up with the Dallas Notre Dame Alumni Association meeting there because of Gordon McLendon, one degree of separation.
They say Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon bet on Dallas Cowboy games together, although I expect to hear from Gary Mack about that.
In any case, the most important thing happening today is the football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Championship. All I have to say to all my Dallas friends is : Go Eagles! Beat the Boys. BK
In response to the above post I received the following from Dallas:
Robert Howard wrote:
Hopefully, everyone had a wonderful X'Mas, mine was.....to paraphrase the Limony Snicket movie with Jim Carrey....A series of Unfortunate Events....[of which the Dallas Cowboy's loss to the Eagles on X'Mas Day did not even factor in the equation, [that means it was really really bad]....
Now that I am through whining, I have made some real progress in getting to the bottom of some of this 'unresolved JFK assassination issues.'
First, I have discovered a tie-in of sorts between LBJ & D.H. Byrd in the context of a Corporation known as Capital Cable see attachment
Second, below is a link to a summary on the book about the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, [pretty important, in it's relation however distant to 11-22-63, are either of you familiar with this book? It looks like it is a very credible work, and could be a help in getting one aspect of what was going on in the CIA's world at that time]
http://www.bordersstores.com/search/title_detail.jsp?id=
53044932&srchTerms=Assassination&mediaType
=1&srchType=Keyword
Gary Mack:
Bill, McLendon and Ruby TOGETHER? Documentation please. Did both men bet on the Cowboys separately? Maybe, but as any homegrown Dallasite will tell you, in those days, everyone shunned the Cowboys. They were virtually ignored their first few years. As for McLendon-Ruby connections, what is known is that Ruby looked up to McLendon and respected him. But there was no connection whatsoever. McLendon's radio buddies talked about it over the years. McLendon had nothing to do with Ruby ever, and he regretted very much what Ruby did and it's effect on the city. Gary Mack
Well Robert, I'm glad the Eagles 27 - 7 victory over Tony Romo & TO didn't spoil Christmas.
And Gary, I surprise myself at how I not only can get your reaction by dropping a name but that I can predict it. I didn't even complete the sentence about McLendon and Ruby betting on Cowboy games when I just knew I would get a response, and on Christmas too. I wish that would work at the casino.
For Ruby and McLeondon TOGETHER on the same page, please see the Warren Commission Hearings, where Ruby says that Gordon McLendon is one of his "six best friends;" Ruby's friend Lewis McWillie said Ruby and McLendon were friends; On the night of the assassination Ruby took photos of the "Impeach Earl Warren" billboard, photos he said he took for Gordon McLendon; and Ruby's little black book has Gordon McLendon's home phone number; and please note the fact that Ruby called McLendon's home on day of the assassination and talked at length to his daughter; and that Ruby said McLendon gave his club "a lot of free plugs" on the radio; and the WC document with the KLIF (as in Oak Klif) logo acknowledges that they mentioned Jack Ruby's name on the air (probably for setting up an interview between DA Wade and KLIF DJ Russ Knight "the weird Beard") the day BEFORE he shot LHO; and that for the previous day Ruby was posing as a KLIF reporter while stalking Oswald; and Ruby visted the KLIF studio, delivering sandwiches which he first tried to use as an excuse to give to the cops to get closer to Oswald, and then there's the KLIF program literature found in Ruby's car.
As for gambling on the Cowboys, I'm sure Gary's characterization is accurate of the Cowboys team not being very popular in the early days - ala North Dallas Forty, but at the time they were owned by McLendon's good friend Clint Murchison, and McLendon may have even had a financial interest in the team.
And while I don't have PDS's book beside me to quote directly, Jodey Bateman's review of the Deep Politics says: "Murchinson was the co-owner of the Dallas Cowboys with Gordon McLendon, the owner of radio and TV station KRLD in Dallas. Jack Ruby said that McLendon was one of his six best friends in Dallas. Ruby arranged for illegal gambling games for McLendon and his associates."
As anyone who has studied the syndicate knows, all organized crime in the USA was originally organized, not for booze, but to lay off bets and coordinate the numbers and gambling on sports that required the cooperation of the national wire services, owned and controlled by the syndicate, of which Jack Ruby was a part.
Well there you have it, Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon together.
And that's to say nothing of the Association of Former Intelligence Ops.
And the bottom line is:
Gary says: "McLendon had nothing to do with Ruby, ever."
Perhaps Peter you could post an index of links you would like us all to read to replace this determined campaign of yours to copy and paste all your self sustaining favourites all over the forum?
Perhaps Peter you could post an index of links you would like us all to read to replace this determined campaign of yours to copy and paste all your self sustaining favourites all over the forum?
I'm not a fan of sarcasm. What exactly do you mean by "self sustaining"?
Drivel as usual Peter. All I am requesting is that when you post it is something substantive - not just a copy and paste from of elses words from eleswhere. If you want to advertise links and thereby hurl reading lists at us that's fine - not much point to it but fine. Just spare us from copied material taking up web space. The rest of your latest post is bizarre.
You are free to post within the rules here ( as are incidentally all your odd self flagellating chums at the DPF). You are not being singled out, you are not a target, put simply what you say is not that important to warrant any such special attention.
We have something here with which you may not be familar - free speech.
Your presence here is quite welcome.
JFK
Andy, your desire to pass a thumbs-up or thumbs-down on what should be posted [i.e. coinciding with your prejudices, and a coincidence model of history and politics] is noted. Sorry you don't like my postings or what I feel is important. How 'liberal' of you, however, to tolerate it - even if it comes with pro forma snide remarks about myself and my associates on the Deep Politics Forum. Does the competition and better information on several subjects there irk you? You had a pretty heavy role in driving them away, so in many ways you were a 'father' to that Forum.
It is precisely because I feel we in the 'West' are loosing, rapidly, our democracy and freedoms by the actions [some overt, but most covert - to push their overt agenda] of deep political actors that I post what I post; feel what I feel; research what I research; and fight for what I fight. And I post in the interest of pushing forward debate and information, thought and reflexion on these matters - some call it education. I've heard this is an 'education forum', but perhaps I was misinformed.
No no and no!
'Better information' on the DPF! Now that's really very very funny.
'Coincidence' theory of history? - not sure where you got that idea from - maybe it suits your purposes but it is wholly innaccurate.
'desire to pass a thumbs up thumbs down on what should be posted' - no I merely asked you to stop pasting wholesale articles from other blogs and forums. You are in fact much freer here to post what you like. Even with your tenuous grasp of reality I thought you might be able to acknowledge that. Try disagreeing with the 'toilet-mouthed' Drago over there and you'll soon experience this reality.
'Education'?? You take as biblical truths the propaganda of pseudo historians and proven charlatans and cry 'disinfo, conspiracy and ad hom attack' when FAR better qualified people dare to criticise the source and methodology of your fantasies. Your 'commitment' to your 'cause' is an affectation no more no less. Your commitment to education is non existent.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
FOUND THE INFO \BILL......
This photo was taken at a UT football game in 1973, a few months before LBJ died.
D. Harold Byrd is seen on the left (in cowboy hat) and LBJ is on the right. Byrd was a
longtime friend and financial/political supporter of Johnson. He was also the OWNER
of the Texas School Book Depository Building, from which Oswald was alleged to have fired
the fatal shots.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al]
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
FOUND THE INFO \BILL......
This photo was taken at a UT football game in 1973, a few months before LBJ died.
D. Harold Byrd is seen on the left (in cowboy hat) and LBJ is on the right. Byrd was a
longtime friend and financial/political supporter of Johnson. He was also the OWNER
of the Texas School Book Depository Building, from which Oswald was alleged to have fired
the fatal shots. b
[/quote]
[/quote]
[quote name='Peter Lemkin' post='172234' date='Sep 16 2009, 01:22 AM'][quote name='William Kelly' post='172230' date='Sep 16 2009, 04:26 AM'][quote name='Peter Lemkin' post='172217' date='Sep 15 2009, 11:03 AM'][quote name='William Kelly' post='172205' date='Sep 15 2009, 01:19 AM'][quote name='William Weston' post='84754' date='Dec 11 2006, 09:44 PM'][quote name='John Simkin' post='83468' date='Dec 2 2006, 06:33 PM']I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
[/quote]
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
[/quote]
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill, I agree the 'Yahoos' were only used to sheep-dip Lee, and Ferrie may [may!] have had a role on the day of removing someone(s) from the theater of actions or putting-up some false trails. Interesting the Safari was with some Nazi's - makes me think of Mae Brussell's article! LeMay must have been in the mix, IMO. Collins almost surely provided special communications for the teams in the Plaza - and as you say could have controlled communications of the entire superstructure of the govt. in the first hours. Byrd took a trophy windowframe and had it mounted in his livingroom, or somewhere in his home. It was from the EAST end of the TSBD! Not the 'Oswald window'!.....hmmmmm..... Seems fairly obvious why he wanted to be out of town that day! Thanks Bernice for the info on the photo. Amazing what photos and information you have at your fingertips!!!!
[/quote]
your welcome peter ; always here is a photo and map of the \byrd \dry hole his first and largest\i believe.a1000 barrels a day...from one of the texas books....
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill, I agree the 'Yahoos' were only used to sheep-dip Lee, and Ferrie may [may!] have had a role on the day of removing someone(s) from the theater of actions or putting-up some false trails. Interesting the Safari was with some Nazi's - makes me think of Mae Brussell's article! LeMay must have been in the mix, IMO. Collins almost surely provided special communications for the teams in the Plaza - and as you say could have controlled communications of the entire superstructure of the govt. in the first hours. Byrd took a trophy windowframe and had it mounted in his livingroom, or somewhere in his home. It was from the EAST end of the TSBD! Not the 'Oswald window'!.....hmmmmm..... Seems fairly obvious why he wanted to be out of town that day! Thanks Bernice for the info on the photo. Amazing what photos and information you have at your fingertips!!!!
[/quote]
your welcome peter ; always here is a photo and map of the \byrd \dry hole his first and largest\i believe.or one of a1000 barrels a day...from one of the texas books....
[/quote]
peter here is info about the other window taken found through the m/f site....\FROM PAGE 2
''Six weeks after the assassination of President Kennedy, when Byrd wanted a souvenir of this historical building, he chose the South Westernmost window of the sixth floor, not the window from which Oswald purportedly fired with his creaky rifle with its loose telescopic sight, that was the Southeast. No, Byrd took the window from which a Dealey Plaza witness and his wife told the Warren Commission they saw a man with a gun. It seems D. H. Byrd knew exactly which window was the souvenir, and, by inference, that Oswald was no shooter. ''
="http://www.joanmelle....html">Farewell to Justice
-bryd took another window..
THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION AND THE CURRENT POLITICAL MOMENT, Part 1
From the Education Forum JFK Assassination Debate
Byrd was born in Detroit, Texas, on April 24, 1900. He studied geology at the University of Texas (1917-19) and during his holidays worked on an oil rig in Santa Anna.
After leaving university he worked for H. E. Humphreys. He joined Old Dominion Oil Company of San Antonio in 1924 but the following year he became a freelance geological consultant. During this time he acquired his nickname by drilling fifty-six dry holes. His luck changed when he discovered oil on 5th May, 1928. The Byrd-Daniels oil-field produced 1,000 barrels a day, which sold for three dollars a barrel.
Byrd formed a business partnership with Jack Frost and in 1931 founded Byrd-Frost Incorporated. The new company operated 492 East Texas wells that produced an average of 4,000 barrels a day. In the 1930s he purchased property, including the Texas School Book Depository in Dallas.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Byrd's cousin was Harry F. Byrd, who was described by Alden Hatch (The Byrds of Virginia: An American Dynasty) as "the leader of conservative opinion in the United States." Byrd also had a close relationship with Sam Rayburn, Lyndon Johnson and John Connally. As Byrd pointed out in his autobiography, I'm an Endangered Species: "Another goal was to reach a rapport with the politicians who ran things, especially at the seat of state government in Austin.... Sam Rayburn, Morrie Sheppard, John Connally, and Lyndon Johnson on the national scene were to become men I could go to any time that I wanted action, and so were a succession of Texas governors."
In 1944 Byrd founded Byrd Oil Corporation and B-H Drilling Corporation. In 1952 Byrd established the Three States Natural Gas Company. Byrd later sold Byrd Oil to Mobil and Three States to Delhi-Taylor. Byrd used this money to invest in aircraft production and established Temco. A company that employed Mac Wallace after he was convicted of killing John Kinser.
Barr McClellan points out that Byrd, along with Clint Murchison, H. H. Hunt and Sid Richardson, was part of the "Big Oil" group in Dallas. McClellan argues that "Big Oil would be during the fifties and into the sixties what the OPEC oil cartel was to the United States in the seventies and beyond". One of the main concerns of this group was the preservation of the oil depletion allowance.
In 1961 Byrd joined forces with James Ling and Chance Vought Corporation to form Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV).Byrd expanded into other business areas. For example, he owned a frozen food business in Crystal City. He was a strong opponent of trade unionism and described their activities as a "terrible cancer". In 1963, when the Teamsters' Union began recruiting his employees, he moved his frozen food business to La Pryor.
In November, 1963, Byrd left Texas to go on a two-month safari in Africa. While he was away President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Lee Harvey Oswald, who was accused of being the lone-gunman, worked in Byrd's Texas Book Depository. Soon after his return, President Lyndon Johnson, granted a large defense contract to LTV to build fighter planes. According to Peter Dale Scott, (The Dallas Conspiracy) this was paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Byrd was a member of the Dallas Petroleum Club. It has been argued that it was here that he met George de Mohrenschildt, David Atlee Phillips and George H. W. Bush. Richard Bartholomew suggested in Byrds, Planes, and an Automobile that Byrd knew David Ferrie via the Civil Air Patrol.
Attached Files
MDByrd4.jpg 31.42KB 4 downloads
In November, 1963, Byrd left Texas to go on a two-month safari in Africa. While he was away President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Lee Harvey Oswald, who was accused of being the lone-gunman, worked in Byrd's Texas Book Depository. Soon after his return, President Lyndon Johnson, granted a large defense contract to LTV to build fighter planes. According to Peter Dale Scott, (The Dallas Conspiracy) this was paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Here is some background on this deal. In 1962, United States Navy began preliminary work on VAX (Heavier-than-air, Attack, Experimental), a replacement for the A-4 Skyhawk with greater range and payload. To minimize costs, all proposals had to be based on existing designs. Vought, Douglas Aircraft, Grumman, and North American Aviation responded.
In February, 1964, President Johnson gave the contract to LTV to build the A-7 Corsair II. It was much used during the Vietnam War. This means that four companies linked closely to LBJ and Texas made fantastic profits from war.
For example, the war completely transformed Brown & Root’s fortunes. As Robert Bryce has pointed out: “Before Vietnam, Brown & Root was an arm’s length civilian contractor to the U. S. military. During the war in Vietnam, Brown & Root became part of the military. The war also established Brown & Root as one of the biggest and most important construction companies in America.” (1)
In 1965 Brown & Root joined forces with Raymond International, Morrison-Knudsen and J. A. Jones Corporation to form RMK-BRJ. This consortium was awarded government contracts worth nearly $2 billion during the Vietnam War. Brown & Root obtained revenues from this deal of over $380 million ($2.2 billion in 2006 dollars). George Brown was also able to negotiate a cost-plus contract. Whatever it spent doing each project, the government guaranteed that it would pay the company a profit on top of its costs. Brown & Root expanded the harbours at Saigon, Cam Rahn Bay and Da Nang. It also built the Phan Rang Air Force Base. (2)
By 1966 RMK-BRJ had 52,000 employees working in South Vietnam. This included construction and engineering jobs normally done by soldiers from the Army Corps of Engineers. It was the Vietnam War that began the mass privatization of military duties.
Writing in the New York Times, Hanson Baldwin claimed that around 40 percent of the money being spent in Vietnam was being stolen, used in bribes or being wasted. (3) Abraham Ribicoff claimed that federal money was “being squandered because of inefficiency, dishonesty, corruption and foolishness.” The U.S. General Accounting Office agreed with Ribicoff and in 1967 it published a report criticizing RMK-BRJ, saying that the consortium “could not account for the whereabouts of approximately $120 million worth of materials which had been shipped to Vietnam from the United States.” (4)
As Dan Briody explained in The Halliburton Agenda: “The public impression was that Brown & Root was part of a war-profiteering machine that monopolized work in Vietnam, mistreated workers, and wasted millions of taxpayers’ dollars.” (5). Despite this negative image, by 1969 Brown & Root had become the biggest construction company in America. (6)
It was not the only company in Texas to experience rapid growth as a result of the Vietnam War. Bell Helicopter Corporation, based in Fort Worth, also made a great deal of money during the conflict. Johnson had enjoyed a long and profitable relationship with the company. Lawrence Bell had provided money for Johnson’s 1948 election campaign. In fact, Bell supplied Johnson with free use of a 47-B helicopter. As Robert Bryce has pointed out: "With a helicopter, Johnson could land right in the centre of town and give a speech right on the landing spot, eliminating the need for time-wasting car trips and from the airstrip." (7)
At this time, Bell Helicopter Corporation was based in California. However, with encouragement from Johnson, Bell moved the helicopter plant to Fort Worth and joined the Suite 8F Group. (8) In the late 1950s and early 1960s the Bell Helicopter Corporation was in serious financial difficulties. However, during the Vietnam War, the company’s fortunes were transformed.
The UH-1 (Huey) was used extensively by the U.S. military during the war. By 1967 the Fort Worth plant was employing 11,000 workers who were producing 200 helicopters a month. 160 of which were for the American military. (9)
General Dynamics, also based in Texas, and like the Bell Helicopter Corporation, had been close to bankruptcy in 1960. Once again the Vietnam War helped to increase profits. In 1967 some 83 percent of its sales were to the government. (10). When the F-111 proved to be a complete disaster, the company was given the FB-111, the bomber version of the TFX, instead. This contract alone was estimated to be worth $24 billion. (11) In 1968 General Dynamics was awarded with contracts worth $2,200 million. (12)
These figures reveal a serious problem faced by the arms industry. What happens when the Vietnam War came to an end? In 1967 the Electronics Industries Association commissioned a report into the future of US military spending. It concluded that the future looked good as arms control agreements “during the next decade are unlikely”. (13) It would seem that the arms industry no longer feared the negotiated deals favoured by John F. Kennedy.
This was confirmed by Samuel F. Downer, vice-president of the LTV Aerospace Corporation based in Texas. In an interview with Bernard D. Nossiter of the Washington Post, Downer argued that Johnson was committed to increasing military spending: “If you’re the President… you can’t sell Harlem and Watts but you can sell self-preservation…We’re going to increase defence budgets as long as those bastards in Russia are ahead of us. The American people understand this.” (14) The real task, as always, was to convince the American public that the Soviet Union was ahead in the arms race and provided a significant threat to the security of the United States.
Notes
1. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 105)
2. Joseph A. Pratt & Christopher J. Castaneda, Builders: Herman and George R. Brown, 1999 (page 243)
3. Hanson Baldwin, New York Times (10th December, 1967)
4. General Accounting Office, Report on United States Construction Activities in the Republic of Vietnam, 1965-1966 (67-11159)
5. Kirkpatrick Sale, Power Shift, 1975 (42-43)
6. Dan Briody, The Halliburton Agenda: The Politics of Oil and Money, 2004 (page 166)
7. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 59)
8. Joseph A. Pratt & Christopher J. Castaneda, Builders: Herman and George R. Brown, 1999 (pages 158-59)
9. Robert Bryce, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, 2004 (page 107)
10. I. F. Stone, I. F. Weekly, 1st January, 1969
11. I. F. Stone, I. F. Weekly, 5th June, 1969
12. B. Pyadyshev, The Military-Industrial Complex of the USA, 1977 (page 66)
13. Sidney Lens, The Military Industrial Complex, 1970 (page 55)
14. Bernard D. Nossiter, Washington Post (8th December, 1968)
I have put what I have on David Harold Byrd here:
http://www.spartacus...uk/MDbyrdDH.htm
There is very little on Byrd on the web. However, I would highly recommend this article written by forum member, Richard Bartholomew:
http://www.acorn.net...e/rambler3.html
http://www.bartholoviews.com/Bio.htm
It includes the following passage:
Byrd prepared well for the trip: Temco, Inc. was an aircraft company founded by D.H. Byrd and which later merged with his friend James Ling's electronics company (1960), and aircraft manufacturer Chance Vought Corporation (1961) to form Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV). Byrd became a director of LTV and bought, along with Ling, 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. Byrd then left the country to go on his two-month safari in central Africa. He returned in January to find his good friend Lyndon Johnson president of the United States, his building famous, and a large defense contract awarded to LTV to build fighter planes - to be paid for out of the 1965 budget which had not yet been approved by Congress.
Mac Wallace, who received a five-year suspended sentence in the shooting death of John Douglas Kiner in Austin on October 22, 1951, went to work for Temco, Inc. of Garland, Texas five months after his trial. He remained in that position until February 1961, four months before Henry Marshall's mysterious death on June 3, 1961, when he transferred to the Anaheim, California offices of LTV.
The transfer required a background check by the Navy. "The most intriguing part of the Wallace case was how a convicted murderer was able to get a job with defense contractors. Better yet, how was he able to get a security clearance? Clinton Peoples [the Texas Ranger Captain who investigated the Marshall and Kiner murders] reported that when the original security clearance was granted, he asked the Naval intelligence officer handling the case how such a person could get the clearance. 'Politics,' the man replied. When Peoples asked who would have that much power, the simple answer was, `the vice president,' who at the time was Lyndon Johnson. Years later, after the story broke [of Billie Sol Estes' March 20, 1984 testimony that implicated Lyndon Johnson, Malcom Wallace, and Clifton Carter in the death of Henry Marshall], that investigator could not recall the conversation with Peoples but he did say no one forced him to write a favorable report. He also added that he wasn't the one that made the decision to grant the clearance. The whole matter might have been solved with a peek at that original report but unfortunately, when the files were checked, that particular report was suspiciously missing. It has never been seen since."
Wallace was transferred and given clearance in February 1961. "In January 1961, the very month Johnson was sworn in as vice president, and the month Henry Marshall was in Dallas discussing how to combat Estes-like scams, Billie Sol Estes learned through his contacts that the USDA was investigating the allotment scheme and that Henry Marshall might end up testifying. The situation was supposedly discussed by Estes, Johnson, and Carter in the backyard of LBJ's Washington home. Johnson was, according to Estes, alarmed that if Marshall started talking it might result in an investigation that would implicate the vice president. At first it was decided to have Marshall transferred to Washington, but when told Marshall had already refused such a relocation, LBJ, according to Estes, said simply, 'Then we'll have to get rid of him.'"
According to Craig Zirbel, author of The Texas Connection, in May 1962, "...Johnson flew to Dallas aboard a military jet to privately meet with Estes and his lawyers on a plane parked away from the terminal.... This incident would probably have remained secret except that LBJ's plane suffered a mishap in landing at Dallas. When investigative reporters attempted to obtain the tower records for the flight mishap the records were "sealed by government order."
Still more LTV intrigues were revealed by Peter Dale Scott: "A fellow-director of [Jack Alston] Crichton's firm of Dorchester Gas Producing was D.H. Byrd, an oil associate of Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison, and the LTV director who teamed up with James Ling to buy 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. While waiting to be sworn in as President in Dallas on November 22, Johnson spoke by telephone with J.W. Bullion, a member of the Dallas law firm (Thompson, Wright, Knight, and Simmons) which had the legal account for Dorchester Gas Producing and was represented on its board. The senior partner of the law firm, Dwight L. Simmons, had until 1960 sat on the board of Chance Vought Aircraft, a predecessor of Ling-Temco-Vought. One week after the assassination, Johnson named Bullion, who has been described as his 'business friend and lawyer,' to be one of the two trustees handling the affairs of the former LBJ Co. while its owner was President."
There is very little on Byrd on the web. However, I would highly recommend this article written by forum member, Richard Bartholomew:
http://www.acorn.net...e/rambler3.html
http://www.bartholoviews.com/Bio.htm
It includes the following passage:
Still more LTV intrigues were revealed by Peter Dale Scott: "A fellow-director of [Jack Alston] Crichton's firm of Dorchester Gas Producing was D.H. Byrd, an oil associate of Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison, and the LTV director who teamed up with James Ling to buy 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963. While waiting to be sworn in as President in Dallas on November 22, Johnson spoke by telephone with J.W. Bullion, a member of the Dallas law firm (Thompson, Wright, Knight, and Simmons) which had the legal account for Dorchester Gas Producing and was represented on its board. The senior partner of the law firm, Dwight L. Simmons, had until 1960 sat on the board of Chance Vought Aircraft, a predecessor of Ling-Temco-Vought. One week after the assassination, Johnson named Bullion, who has been described as his 'business friend and lawyer,' to be one of the two trustees handling the affairs of the former LBJ Co. while its owner was President."
This article by Paul Kangas, The Realist (1990) is interesting about Jack Crichton, George Bush and the Bay of Pigs:
Nixon told Pepsi, Standard Oil and other corporations who lost property given back to the farmers of Cuba, that if they would help him win, he would authorize an invasion to remove Castro. To further impress contributors to his campaign, then Vice-President Nixon asked the CIA to create Operation 40, a secret plan to invade Cuba, just as soon as he won.
The CIA put Texas millionaire and CIA agent George Bush in charge of recruiting Cuban exiles into the CIA's invasion army. Bush was working with another Texas oilman, Jack Crichton, to help him with the invasion. A fellow Texan, Air Force General Charles Cabel, was asked to coordinate the air cover for the invasion.
Most of the CIA leadership around the invasion of Cuba seems to have been people from Texas. A whole Texan branch of the CIA is based in the oil business. If we trace Bush's background in the Texas oil business we discover his two partners in the oil-barge leasing business: Texan Robert Mosbacher and Texan James Baker. Mosbacher is now Secretary of Commerce and Baker is Secretary of State, the same job Dulles held when JFK was killed. (Source: Common Cause magazine, 3-4/90).
On pages 43/44 of Fabian Escalante's CIA Covert Operations 1959-1962: The Cuba Project (2004), he claims that in 1960 Richard Nixon recruited an "important group of businessmen headed by George Bush (Snr.) and Jack Crichton, both Texas oilmen, to gather the necessary funds for the operation". He is talking about Operation 40, the group that Warren Hinckle and William Turner described in Deadly Secrets, as the “assassins-for-hire” organization.
In 1957, a three day conference of CAP executives and national boards was held at the Republic National Bank utilizing their executive dining facilities.
General Walter Agee, General Carl Spaatz and General Nathan Twining were all honored. Twining of course being a most interesting character and a close associate of Byrd.
The image below shows D.H. Byrd on the left, Agee in the middle and Spaatz on the right.
FWIW.
http://www.tsha.utex...s/BB/fby13.html
Although D. H. Byrd was by no means poor, his wealth was perhaps more along the lines of "pocket change" when compared to that which his wife, Martha Caruth, inherited.
http://www.tsha.utex...es/BB/kbb6.html
http://www.tambcd.ed...car_history.htm
I do believe that this was where Marina Oswald got her teeth fixed.
http://aolsearch.aol.....ion of Texas"
http://www.cftexas.org/history.htm
In 1974, W.W. "Will" Caruth Jr. established the W.W. Caruth Jr. Foundation as a supporting organization at Communities Foundation of Texas, adding a new chapter to the Caruth family's historic legacy. Through the years, Will Caruth shared much of his fortune with others through the foundation and helped CFT improve the Dallas community where his family had lived since 1848. He had preferences for bold giving in the areas of education, public safety, medical and scientific research, and "bootstrapping" social assistance initiatives. CFT has been diligent to honor these. His wife, the late Mabel Peters Caruth, continued his tradition with an inspiring $34 million bequest to build the new CFT headquarters.
Lastly, it was through marriage into the Caruth family to D. H. Byrd achieved his "prestige" in which he could run with and associate with the most notable of society.
The Caruth family were members of an extremely elite society which was the :
http://www.magnacharta.org/Default.htm
The National Society
Magna Charta Dames and Barons
Lastly, among those members of this elite society was included;
John W. Sims
SPECIALTY BARGES, INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/19/1957): JOHN W. SIMS, 420 HIBERNIA BK BD, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/19/1957): LOUIS B. CLAVERIE, 420 HIBERNIA BK BD, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
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Registered Name: PHELPS, DUNBAR, MARKS, CLAVERIE & SIMS
Applicant: PHELPS DUNBAR, 365 CANAL STREET, STE 2000, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70130-0000
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It would be remiss to not also point out the fact:
MARINE EQUIPMENT INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): JOHN W SIMS, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): EDWARD D FINLEY JR, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
Registered Agent (Appointed 9/05/1952): W. B. SPENCER, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70150
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Name: JUNIOR MUSICIANS OF AMERICA, INC.
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): WALKER B. SPENCER, 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): ESMOND PHELPS, 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
Registered Agent (Appointed 6/12/1937): CHAS. E. DUNBAR, JR., 1300 HIBERNIA BLDG, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70112
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Hope that you are following this Mr. Shinley
#7 John Simkin
A photograph of David Byrd with another of his victims. The other man in the photograph is General Doolittle.
Attached Files
MDByrd3.gpg.jpg 62.54KB 12 downloads
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Thanks,
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Bill , I think it was one of the 'docent' guides at the Sixth Floor, who told us that the original window had indeed been removed, " by a previous owner". Don't know if he was refering to Byrd or not, but I got the impression that it was soon after 11-22. Seems Marrs or Larry Howard told me that as well. Now, I write these things down!
Stained Glass
by Ann Zimmerman
Article Published Nov 27, 1997
From
http://www.dallasobs...27/feature.html
The man on the phone speaks in conspiratorial tones. His name is Martin Barkley, a 40-something divorced father of two who has devoted so much of his life to a single purpose--proving that Lee Harvey Oswald did not kill John Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository on November 22, 1963.
His research qualifications amount to having worked security for several large companies and spent time in Army intelligence. His personal link to the assassination was that his uncle was the longest-serving Dallas police officer when Kennedy was shot--and, of course, he whispered something conspiratorial at Thanksgiving dinner days after the assassination.
Barkley is a true believer, and he talks in elliptical phrases and vague pronouncements. On this day, he says he wants to share his theory that Dallas' powers-that-be are perverting the information presented in the Sixth Floor Museum, Oswald's alleged sniper's perch--and this city's biggest tourist attraction. Barkley argues that those in charge of the museum are toadies for the Warren Commission.
"The way to control an issue is to manage information on both sides so nothing gets out of control," he says, espousing a typically muddy slogan.
He says he will prove this all with a guided tour of the Sixth Floor, where he used to work as a security guard. Barkley was a seasonal hire two years ago and was laid off--ostensibly when tourist traffic slowed down, he explains. But he's convinced that he was, in fact, terminated because he answered visitors' probing conspiracy questions too honestly, too carefully, too knowledgeably. Of course, he can't prove it.
Barkley insists we meet late on a Sunday, when we would arouse the least amount of suspicion.
When he arrives that afternoon, he wears an overcoat over his tall frame and a fedora that doesn't obscure piercing blue eyes. Still, the disguise doesn't work: Two minutes after we step inside the building, security guards surround him and want to know why he's there.
"See what I mean," he whispers, as the guards escort us up in the elevator.
He reels off an enormous list of ways the museum subtly controls the mind of the visitor. He is suspicious of a sign that directs visitors to begin the tour with the panels and videos highlighting Kennedy's early years; Barkley believes the "flow" of the exhibit--which winds through Kennedy's all-too-brief presidency, his fateful visit to Texas, then the assassination--is intentionally misleading and exhausting.
"By the time the visitor gets to the end," Barkley insists, "he's too tired to read about conspiracies."
Barkley's rant is a fairly predictable and obvious one. Indeed, place a museum on the sixth floor of the old School Book Depository, and you're pretty much admitting you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. It's not like the county opened a Grassy Knoll Museum.
Yet Barkley is not all hushed whispers and vague hypotheses.
Displayed halfway through the tour in the Sixth Floor Museum is one of the most famous windows in the world--the perch from which Oswald allegedly killed Kennedy with a cheap Italian mail-order rifle. Behind a thick wall of Plexiglass, the window has been exhibited here since 1995, and since then, more than a million visitors have scrutinized it, studied it, even venerated its tragic place in history.
The window, located in the southeast corner of the museum, sits only a few feet from where Oswald killed Kennedy--allegedly, of course. It bears the caption "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch."
But is it?
Barkley believes the infamous perch that hangs in the museum is a fake...a fraud.
He may be right.
Just a cursory look at the window on display reveals that it differs significantly from pictures taken of the window moments after the assassination.
For instance, the window on display has a thick smudge of paint and putty on a pane of glass at its top half. But there is no such smudge on any pictures of the original sniper's perch. Also, old photos of the window--photos that are on display at the museum--show markings on the green wooden sash along the bottom portion of the window. The window encased in the Plexiglass exhibit has no such markings.
Of course, conspiracy theorists say they never believed it was the real window all along.
So here's one more riddle for the theorists to solve: If this isn't the real window, and it likely isn't, then where is it--and how did this impostor wind up enshrined in this museum? We're through the looking glass, as Kevin Costner's Jim Garrison drawled in JFK, where every answer spawns a dozen more questions.
"There is just no end to this," says Robert Groden, a prominent local conspiracy theorist who served as a photo analyst on the 1978 U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations. "It's just mystery after mystery."
For more than two decades, the window--or what one man believed was the famous sniper's perch window--hung like a trophy, or a deer's head, in the banquet room of one of the wealthiest men in Dallas.
Col. D. Harold Byrd kept it in his University Park home as a souvenir, a tragic keepsake he ordered removed from the building on Elm and Houston streets that he owned and leased to the Texas School Book Depository. Byrd kept it there until his death in 1986, at which time it fell into the hands of his son Caruth--who, the story goes, kept the window out of public view for almost a decade.
Caruth Byrd wanted to keep the window buried, forgotten about. He rejected enormous financial offers from those who collect such morbid artifacts, and refused the requests from those who wanted to place the window in a Dallas museum commemorating the assassination--fearing the museum would be an embarrassment to the city. He preferred to keep hidden this reminder of Dallas' shame...until one day, in 1994, he had a change of heart and turned the window over to the Sixth Floor Museum.
On February 21, 1995--President's Day--more than 100 elected officials, members of the Dallas County Historical Foundation, and assassination eyewitnesses gathered at the Sixth Floor Museum for the window's dramatic unveiling.
"I thought and thought about what to do with it," the garrulous, barrel-chested Byrd told the assembled crowd during the unveiling ceremonies. "I've had offers for a lot of money for it, but I decided the best thing to do was bring it home where it belongs."
The window has remained on display here ever since, an authentic piece of history that offers its own special peek into a tragic day in this city's history.
At least, that's what half a million visitors a year believe.
There are those who doubt Byrd's tale--those who have photographic evidence right in the museum that proves the window on display is not the real sniper's perch, those who have spent months studying the discrepancies.
And there is at least one man who claims to own the window itself.
First, there is Barkley and his band of conspiracy theorists, including James Bagby, another former security guard at the museum. After overhearing some museum visitors question the authenticity of the window last March, Bagby studied the window for himself. He first noticed that the one-inch thick, salmon-colored smudge of paint and putty on the display window isn't apparent on an old picture of the real window.
The smudge, which is on what would have been the outside of the glass, matches the color of the wooden trim on the outside of the window. A note on the exhibit points out that the "paint on the exterior trim is original to the time of the assassination."
After studying pictures of the real window taken the day of the assassination, Bagby also noticed the distinct markings on the wooden sash along the bottom of the window that do not appear on the window on exhibit.
Bagby first brought these discrepancies to the attention of museum archivist Gary Mack eight months ago.
"'What you've discovered is quite important,'" Bagby says Mack told him. "'But I wouldn't be telling anyone about this.'"
Jeff West, executive director of the Sixth Floor, and Mack now admit they have questions about the authenticity of the window--no, make that doubts.
"We have concerns," West says. "It definitely bears scrutiny."
"It's a corner window," Mack adds. "Whether it's the window where shots were fired, we're not sure."
What makes all this speculation significantly more intriguing is that Conover Hunt, the museum consultant who helped put the Sixth Floor Museum together, knew from the beginning that there was someone else out there who claimed to own the real window.
His name is Aubrey Mayhew, a music producer from Nashville who may be the one person who can repair this jagged puzzle--or bust the whole thing into a million pieces.
The tale of the sniper's perch is not only a whodunit, but a whogotit. And with any mystery, perhaps it's easier to begin at the beginning, during those moments just as the echo of gunfire began fading in Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963, and Dallas police ran inside the brick building at the corner of Elm and Houston.
They were directed there by witnesses who thought they saw what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle jutting out of a half-opened window on the sixth floor of the building, which housed the Texas School Book Depository, one of two textbook distribution sites for the state.
On the cavernous sixth floor, filled with stacks of book-filled boxes, police said they found three shell casings in front of the open window in the southeastern-most corner of the building. They also claimed to find a rifle, which Oswald was said to have bought through mail order, stashed under boxes diagonally across from the window.
Until the end of the 1960s, the Texas School Book Depository Company remained in the building, which was owned by Col. D. Harold Byrd. Byrd was an oil millionaire and husband of Mattie Caruth, whose family once owned most of the land from downtown Dallas to Park Lane. The Caruth family, after whom Caruth Haven Road is named, donated all the land for Southern Methodist University and leased the land for NorthPark Mall.
Afraid that curiosity seekers would carve off pieces of the sniper's-nest window, Byrd instructed his employee, Buddy McCool, to remove the window six weeks after the assassination, according to interviews with McCool and Byrd filmed in the early 1970s.
Whether McCool removed the right window is the question at the heart of this mystery.
The location of the sixth-floor sniper's perch is among the most infamous points of interest in the whole world. Yet it's conceivable that six weeks after the assassination, Byrd's lackey could have been confused about its exact location. There is no one alive who can verify which window McCool took out that day.
Byrd obviously took it on face value that he had the right one. He decorated the bottom half of the window with newspaper clippings of the assassination and postcard pictures of Kennedy, Dealey Plaza, and the book depository; then he had the whole thing framed.
He hung it in the banquet room of his Vassar Street mansion--later bought by oilman T. Boone Pickens--next to photos and mementos of his long, colorful career, which included co-founding the Civil Air Patrol, drilling numerous wildcat oil wells in East Texas, and funding the Antarctic explorations of his cousin, Admiral Richard E. Byrd, who named an Antarctic mountain range after the Texas colonel.
Byrd held onto the former book depository building until 1970, when he auctioned it off to a Nashville music producer named Aubrey Mayhew. Mayhew was a Kennedy memorabilia collector who planned to turn the structure into a commercial museum commemorating Kennedy's life. Still reeling from the fallout of the assassination that branded Dallas as "The City of Hate" and placed the blame for Kennedy's murder on Dallas' hostile environment, local city fathers recoiled at the idea of a museum that would consecrate the town's darkest hour. They also found Mayhew's intention to profit off the tragedy distasteful.
Mayhew tried several times to get city permits to start building his museum, but he was repeatedly turned down. A group called Dallas Onward, formed to protest turning the building into a national Kennedy landmark, helped thwart Mayhew's efforts.
By 1973, Mayhew defaulted on his loan, and Byrd repurchased the building after the bank foreclosed on it. He immediately put it back up for sale, this time asking $1.2 million for it. At the time, he said, he hoped whoever purchased the site "would use the building in a way that would not be a slam on Dallas...that would not blame Dallas for having the right environment for causing Kennedy's death," according to a filmed interview with Byrd.
The city passed an ordinance preventing the building from being torn down. Several city leaders, including real-estate developer Ray Nasher, were conducting their own campaign to create a private, nonprofit museum and monument to Kennedy on the site.
In 1977, Dallas citizens voted to use bond money to purchase the building from Byrd. The first five floors were refurbished for Dallas County administrative offices.
But little did anyone know that before Aubrey Mayhew vacated the premises, he hired two carpenters to remove two windows from the southeast corner of the sixth floor and replace them with windows from the north side of the building. He says he sneaked off with the sniper's-perch window--"the ultimate piece of Kennedy memorabilia"--while no one noticed.
Or so he claims.
If there is anyone to blame for this predicament, perhaps you should look no further than Conover Hunt.
A museum consultant from Marshall, Hunt first got involved with converting the sixth floor into a museum in the early 1980s. Hunt immediately noticed the sniper's-perch window was missing.
The entire casement that contained the two windows on the southeast corner had been replaced with windows from the north side of the building. She wasn't sure she would ever get her hands on the real ones.
Then, in 1987, two men contacted her, both claiming to have possession of the sniper's perch window. Caruth Byrd called Hunt and told her he had inherited the window from his father, who had died the previous year. Caruth said he stashed it behind some drawers in his house on a sprawling ranch in Van, just east of Canton. Hunt says she asked Byrd to send her proof that he had it, but he wasn't forthcoming.
Still, Hunt says she was inclined to believe Caruth, because she knew several people, including Joe Dealey Sr., late publisher of The Dallas Morning News, who had seen the window hanging in Colonel Byrd's house.
Caruth Byrd eventually allowed Hunt to see the window, which he moved to a vault in Inwood Village. But he refused to donate it or loan it to the museum. The Sixth Floor Museum was still two years away from opening, and Byrd, echoing concerns his father had uttered years earlier, was afraid the museum would be tacky and an embarrassment to the city.
Not long after Byrd met with Hunt, Aubrey Mayhew sent Hunt a letter. He, too, said he had the window--both windows, in fact--from the sniper's perch, and he wanted $250,000 for them. Hunt says she asked Mayhew to send her a picture and measurements of the windows.
"He never did," says the whiskey-voiced Hunt. "I was naturally cautious. If someone wants to sell it, the least they can do is send a picture and the exact measurements."
Hunt explains that she never flew to Nashville to see Mayhew's windows because she couldn't justify the expense without first having some proof that Mayhew actually had the windows.
In 1994, Caruth Byrd suddenly changed his mind about burying the past and let the museum know he was willing to loan out the window. Hunt retrieved it from Byrd's ranch and analyzed it. She says the paint color matched the other windows along the southern wall, and the shape led her to believe it was one of the two corner windows that were missing.
"And the provenance--the history of ownership--was excellent," she says. She admits she did not compare Byrd's window with pictures of the original.
Although the window on display touts it as "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch," leading visitors to believe it was the window through which Oswald allegedly shot Kennedy, Hunt also admits that she was never certain of that. "There were two windows missing, so there was a 50-50 shot that this was the one through which the gunman fired."
Now that questions are being raised about the window's authenticity, Hunt defends herself by claiming that both windows are historically significant--even though there's a good chance the museum isn't advertising the truth.
"Until you have both windows together and have them professionally examined, you won't have an answer," she insists. "The fact that people are studying the window, examining the evidence, is healthy. These things happen all the time in my business."
It's now early November 1997, just weeks before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's assassination, and Caruth Byrd has no idea the Sixth Floor Museum has any concerns about the window he loaned them.
A Confederate flag and a flag of John Wayne fly over his 150-acre ranch in Van, the Caruth Byrd Wildlife Compound. A large man with white hair and bulging blue eyes, Byrd divides his time between his private wild kingdom, where more than 3,000 exotic and endangered animals roam, and his Hollywood home next to Gene Autry, where Byrd produces movies and TV specials.
"Watch out for the kangaroo shit," he warns as we approach the front porch of his house, which resembles a huge dude-ranch lodge. He and the kangaroo, he explains, shared a morning doughnut on the porch.
A self-professed mortician, veterinarian, gourmet cook, and "the best organ player in the world," Byrd is a hard man to characterize, at once grandiose and earthy. He describes himself as a man "who was born with a silver spoon up my ass," but who despises the phony airs of the Dallas rich. His main residence on his compound, where he lives alone, is covered with hundreds of pictures of him with such Hollywood notables as Burt Reynolds and Lee Majors.
Among the photos lining the walls is a picture of him donating the window to the Sixth Floor Museum. Byrd launches into the story about how his father ordered an employee to remove it, and he rolls a videotaped interview with the worker that confirms his story.
Byrd says he decided to loan the window to the Sixth Floor after he got a call from The Smithsonian Institute, asking him to donate it to the Washington museum. "I decided if it went anywhere, it should stay in Dallas," Byrd says of his decision.
He has no doubts that his window is the real sniper's perch, and he is shocked to learn that the people running the Sixth Floor now have questions about its authenticity.
The name Aubrey Mayhew makes Byrd bristle. "He's a nut who tried to buy the building from my dad," Byrd says. "If he says he has the window, then where in the hell is it? He can't produce one."
Mayhew is the equivalent of the sniper's-perch second gunman, the man who may or may not hold the answer to the mystery of the missing window. But if he does possess the proof, making him produce it may be impossible.
Mayhew is a bitter fellow who believes a cabal of powerful Dallasites conspired to take away from him the building that houses the Sixth Floor Museum. Mayhew claims he lost everything in pursuit of creating a Kennedy museum here--his livelihood, his wife and two children--and he blames Dallas for those losses.
So it's not surprising that when finally reached in Nashville, Mayhew almost explodes when asked about the authenticity of the window on display in Dallas.
"Of course it's not the real window!" he bellowed over the phone. "I've been telling you people this for 30 years. I'm really a low-profile, non-publicity guy. All I can tell you is that Mr. Caruth Byrd is an idiot, and his father is an idiot and a thief."
Mayhew went on to insist that he still has the real window in storage in Detroit. When asked why he never showed it to the people at the Sixth Floor when they asked, he shot back: "I don't have anything to prove."
A 70-year-old music publisher who once worked with jazz great Charlie Parker and produced and co-wrote songs with outlaw country singer Johnny Paycheck ("Take This Job and Shove It"), Mayhew said over the phone that he was planning to come to Dallas the following week to see some of the songwriters with whom he still works. It was just a coincidence, he said, that it would be the day before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's death, and he promised to call when he got to town.
He phoned a few days later and agreed to meet, but warned he might not have much to say. Three hours into a meal of coffee and apple pie at the Grand Hotel, he was still talking.
A short man in a windbreaker, Mayhew says he is "neither rich nor crazy." He explains that he was a coin and metal collector in the early 1960s when he became fascinated with all the metal objects that were created with Kennedy's likeness after his death. He produced a book on the subject, then went on to collect all manner of Kennedy memorabilia. It's a hobby he likens to a disease.
He was in search of more memorabilia when he came to Dallas in 1970 and attended an auction of 20 parcels of D. Harold Byrd's real estate, including the building leased to the Texas School Book Depository. He wasn't even a registered bidder, he says, but wound up offering $650,000 for the property. He claims he beat out two other bidders, including an entrepreneur who was going to raze the building and sell it off at a dollar a brick.
"It was just a piece of real estate everyone wanted to forget," Mayhew says.
Mayhew explains he wasn't sure what he was going to do with the building--or how he was going to pay for it. At the time, he says, he was making $100,000 yearly working for a music company. He eventually seized on the idea of turning the building into a "first-rate museum."
Shortly after he bought the building, the Texas School Book Depository moved out. But not before one of their employees gave him an affidavit, he says, confirming that D. Harold Byrd had instructed a workman to remove a window from the Sixth Floor. But "he went to the wrong side of the building," Mayhew claims, "and took it from the southwestern corner."
Afraid that a vacant building was more susceptible to vandals, Mayhew says he hired two carpenters to remove the two windows and the surrounding casement that comprised the sniper's nest and replace them with identical windows from the building's north side. Mayhew says he stored the original windows in Dallas for 20 years.
Mayhew insists that several wealthy Dallasites, whom he refuses to name, initially backed his plans for a museum. He quit his job to work on it full-time, spending weeks on end in Dallas and living in the building, where he began housing assassination artifacts. He claims to have spent more than $10,000 on architectural renderings of the proposed museum.
But the city hated his idea. The Dallas Times Herald, he says, ran a full-page cartoon lampooning his idea with a caricature of a museum showing a neon arrow pointing up to the sixth floor sniper's perch. Esquire magazine chided his plans in its annual Dubious Achievement Award issue, asking who was going to get the JFK chicken franchise.
Mayhew says that while the local campaign against him raged, he was also fending off an attempt by the state's Commission to Commemorate JFK to get the Texas Legislature to seize the building from him. Meanwhile, Mayhew recalls that city planners repeatedly rebuffed his attempts to get building permits, once claiming that the building's wooden interior was not fit for refurbishing.
His backers eventually pulled out, and he was hard-pressed to find new ones. He was falling behind on his $6,000-a-month payments, but he claims that the president of Republic National Bank was going to give him an extension. He says he vowed to fight foreclosure on the grounds that the building was his homestead.
"I had no income, a building producing no revenue that was costing me $6,000 a month, and all I ever received was constant blows from the city and state," Mayhew says. "The pressure was mounting."
In the summer of 1972, a small fire broke out in the building. The police charged one of Mayhew's employees, Winfred Anderson, with arson. Anderson pleaded guilty and received probation; he also implicated Mayhew as the person who was behind the fire--which Mayhew vehemently denies. The police, Mayhew insists, let him know that they would arrest him if he set foot in Dallas County again.
Not only does Mayhew profess his innocence, he claims he was framed in a convoluted plot to keep him away from Dallas so he would lose the building. Two weeks after the fire was set, the bank foreclosed on the building, which D. Harold Byrd promptly re-purchased. The city, Mayhew says, confiscated Mayhew's memorabilia left inside the building.
Mayhew says he went back to Nashville a broken man. His wife left him and took his two children to live in New York. He still nursed his idea of building a museum: A year or two later, he hooked up with Gerald Jay Steinberg, a Washington, D.C.-area dentist who claimed to have the largest Kennedy collection in the world. Together they opened an antique store in Georgetown, while they set about cataloging their combined collection for future display. On weekends, Mayhew says, he commuted by bus to New York to try and patch up his marriage--to no avail.
Mayhew's relationship with the dentist soured after just five months. Both men accuse each other of stealing a chunk of their respective collections. Steinberg says that Mayhew claimed to have the sixth-floor window back then, but Steinberg says he never saw it.
Mayhew went back to Nashville to begin rebuilding his music career. He also says he opened a small but classy JFK museum that was eventually burglarized. In 1987, "in a moment of weakness," Mayhew says, he wrote to Conover Hunt, who was organizing the Sixth Floor Museum.
"I told her I had the window and wanted $250,000 for it," Mayhew says. "I just wanted to recoup just some of the money I felt this city owed me."
He is asked why, then, he didn't send Hunt the pictures and dimensions she requested.
Mayhew claims it wasn't that simple. He says Hunt didn't respond to his letter for some time, and that when she first contacted him, she really didn't seem interested. He felt she was just blowing him off.
And maybe she had good reason. After all, he never offered one bit of proof that he has the windows. If there's any reason at all not to dismiss Mayhew, it's the simple fact that the window on display on the Sixth Floor is not the real deal. Maybe, just maybe, Mayhew's telling the truth.
"We know there are two windows, and you've proven that one's not it," he says. "So you take it from there."
For the last decade, Mayhew has had no contact with the Sixth Floor Museum. Then, several months ago, he says he received a letter from the museum's archivist, Gary Mack, a former Dallas television station announcer and JFK researcher--and one of those who isn't sure anymore that the window on display is so authentic. Mayhew says Mack told him he was interested in his collection.
"He said things had changed, and he understood the difficulties I had in the past," Mayhew says. "He said he wanted to come to Nashville and see my collection and that maybe we could join forces." Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
I posted the entire article because these thing's have away of disappearing once it upset's a few people.
Stained Glass
by Ann Zimmerman
Article Published Nov 27, 1997
From
http://www.dallasobs...27/feature.html
The man on the phone speaks in conspiratorial tones. His name is Martin Barkley, a 40-something divorced father of two who has devoted so much of his life to a single purpose--proving that Lee Harvey Oswald did not kill John Kennedy from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository on November 22, 1963.
His research qualifications amount to having worked security for several large companies and spent time in Army intelligence. His personal link to the assassination was that his uncle was the longest-serving Dallas police officer when Kennedy was shot--and, of course, he whispered something conspiratorial at Thanksgiving dinner days after the assassination.
Barkley is a true believer, and he talks in elliptical phrases and vague pronouncements. On this day, he says he wants to share his theory that Dallas' powers-that-be are perverting the information presented in the Sixth Floor Museum, Oswald's alleged sniper's perch--and this city's biggest tourist attraction. Barkley argues that those in charge of the museum are toadies for the Warren Commission.
"The way to control an issue is to manage information on both sides so nothing gets out of control," he says, espousing a typically muddy slogan.
He says he will prove this all with a guided tour of the Sixth Floor, where he used to work as a security guard. Barkley was a seasonal hire two years ago and was laid off--ostensibly when tourist traffic slowed down, he explains. But he's convinced that he was, in fact, terminated because he answered visitors' probing conspiracy questions too honestly, too carefully, too knowledgeably. Of course, he can't prove it.
Barkley insists we meet late on a Sunday, when we would arouse the least amount of suspicion.
When he arrives that afternoon, he wears an overcoat over his tall frame and a fedora that doesn't obscure piercing blue eyes. Still, the disguise doesn't work: Two minutes after we step inside the building, security guards surround him and want to know why he's there.
"See what I mean," he whispers, as the guards escort us up in the elevator.
He reels off an enormous list of ways the museum subtly controls the mind of the visitor. He is suspicious of a sign that directs visitors to begin the tour with the panels and videos highlighting Kennedy's early years; Barkley believes the "flow" of the exhibit--which winds through Kennedy's all-too-brief presidency, his fateful visit to Texas, then the assassination--is intentionally misleading and exhausting.
"By the time the visitor gets to the end," Barkley insists, "he's too tired to read about conspiracies."
Barkley's rant is a fairly predictable and obvious one. Indeed, place a museum on the sixth floor of the old School Book Depository, and you're pretty much admitting you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. It's not like the county opened a Grassy Knoll Museum.
Yet Barkley is not all hushed whispers and vague hypotheses.
Displayed halfway through the tour in the Sixth Floor Museum is one of the most famous windows in the world--the perch from which Oswald allegedly killed Kennedy with a cheap Italian mail-order rifle. Behind a thick wall of Plexiglass, the window has been exhibited here since 1995, and since then, more than a million visitors have scrutinized it, studied it, even venerated its tragic place in history.
The window, located in the southeast corner of the museum, sits only a few feet from where Oswald killed Kennedy--allegedly, of course. It bears the caption "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch."
But is it?
Barkley believes the infamous perch that hangs in the museum is a fake...a fraud.
He may be right.
Just a cursory look at the window on display reveals that it differs significantly from pictures taken of the window moments after the assassination.
For instance, the window on display has a thick smudge of paint and putty on a pane of glass at its top half. But there is no such smudge on any pictures of the original sniper's perch. Also, old photos of the window--photos that are on display at the museum--show markings on the green wooden sash along the bottom portion of the window. The window encased in the Plexiglass exhibit has no such markings.
Of course, conspiracy theorists say they never believed it was the real window all along.
So here's one more riddle for the theorists to solve: If this isn't the real window, and it likely isn't, then where is it--and how did this impostor wind up enshrined in this museum? We're through the looking glass, as Kevin Costner's Jim Garrison drawled in JFK, where every answer spawns a dozen more questions.
"There is just no end to this," says Robert Groden, a prominent local conspiracy theorist who served as a photo analyst on the 1978 U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations. "It's just mystery after mystery."
For more than two decades, the window--or what one man believed was the famous sniper's perch window--hung like a trophy, or a deer's head, in the banquet room of one of the wealthiest men in Dallas.
Col. D. Harold Byrd kept it in his University Park home as a souvenir, a tragic keepsake he ordered removed from the building on Elm and Houston streets that he owned and leased to the Texas School Book Depository. Byrd kept it there until his death in 1986, at which time it fell into the hands of his son Caruth--who, the story goes, kept the window out of public view for almost a decade.
Caruth Byrd wanted to keep the window buried, forgotten about. He rejected enormous financial offers from those who collect such morbid artifacts, and refused the requests from those who wanted to place the window in a Dallas museum commemorating the assassination--fearing the museum would be an embarrassment to the city. He preferred to keep hidden this reminder of Dallas' shame...until one day, in 1994, he had a change of heart and turned the window over to the Sixth Floor Museum.
On February 21, 1995--President's Day--more than 100 elected officials, members of the Dallas County Historical Foundation, and assassination eyewitnesses gathered at the Sixth Floor Museum for the window's dramatic unveiling.
"I thought and thought about what to do with it," the garrulous, barrel-chested Byrd told the assembled crowd during the unveiling ceremonies. "I've had offers for a lot of money for it, but I decided the best thing to do was bring it home where it belongs."
The window has remained on display here ever since, an authentic piece of history that offers its own special peek into a tragic day in this city's history.
At least, that's what half a million visitors a year believe.
There are those who doubt Byrd's tale--those who have photographic evidence right in the museum that proves the window on display is not the real sniper's perch, those who have spent months studying the discrepancies.
And there is at least one man who claims to own the window itself.
First, there is Barkley and his band of conspiracy theorists, including James Bagby, another former security guard at the museum. After overhearing some museum visitors question the authenticity of the window last March, Bagby studied the window for himself. He first noticed that the one-inch thick, salmon-colored smudge of paint and putty on the display window isn't apparent on an old picture of the real window.
The smudge, which is on what would have been the outside of the glass, matches the color of the wooden trim on the outside of the window. A note on the exhibit points out that the "paint on the exterior trim is original to the time of the assassination."
After studying pictures of the real window taken the day of the assassination, Bagby also noticed the distinct markings on the wooden sash along the bottom of the window that do not appear on the window on exhibit.
Bagby first brought these discrepancies to the attention of museum archivist Gary Mack eight months ago.
"'What you've discovered is quite important,'" Bagby says Mack told him. "'But I wouldn't be telling anyone about this.'"
Jeff West, executive director of the Sixth Floor, and Mack now admit they have questions about the authenticity of the window--no, make that doubts.
"We have concerns," West says. "It definitely bears scrutiny."
"It's a corner window," Mack adds. "Whether it's the window where shots were fired, we're not sure."
What makes all this speculation significantly more intriguing is that Conover Hunt, the museum consultant who helped put the Sixth Floor Museum together, knew from the beginning that there was someone else out there who claimed to own the real window.
His name is Aubrey Mayhew, a music producer from Nashville who may be the one person who can repair this jagged puzzle--or bust the whole thing into a million pieces.
The tale of the sniper's perch is not only a whodunit, but a whogotit. And with any mystery, perhaps it's easier to begin at the beginning, during those moments just as the echo of gunfire began fading in Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963, and Dallas police ran inside the brick building at the corner of Elm and Houston.
They were directed there by witnesses who thought they saw what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle jutting out of a half-opened window on the sixth floor of the building, which housed the Texas School Book Depository, one of two textbook distribution sites for the state.
On the cavernous sixth floor, filled with stacks of book-filled boxes, police said they found three shell casings in front of the open window in the southeastern-most corner of the building. They also claimed to find a rifle, which Oswald was said to have bought through mail order, stashed under boxes diagonally across from the window.
Until the end of the 1960s, the Texas School Book Depository Company remained in the building, which was owned by Col. D. Harold Byrd. Byrd was an oil millionaire and husband of Mattie Caruth, whose family once owned most of the land from downtown Dallas to Park Lane. The Caruth family, after whom Caruth Haven Road is named, donated all the land for Southern Methodist University and leased the land for NorthPark Mall.
Afraid that curiosity seekers would carve off pieces of the sniper's-nest window, Byrd instructed his employee, Buddy McCool, to remove the window six weeks after the assassination, according to interviews with McCool and Byrd filmed in the early 1970s.
Whether McCool removed the right window is the question at the heart of this mystery.
The location of the sixth-floor sniper's perch is among the most infamous points of interest in the whole world. Yet it's conceivable that six weeks after the assassination, Byrd's lackey could have been confused about its exact location. There is no one alive who can verify which window McCool took out that day.
Byrd obviously took it on face value that he had the right one. He decorated the bottom half of the window with newspaper clippings of the assassination and postcard pictures of Kennedy, Dealey Plaza, and the book depository; then he had the whole thing framed.
He hung it in the banquet room of his Vassar Street mansion--later bought by oilman T. Boone Pickens--next to photos and mementos of his long, colorful career, which included co-founding the Civil Air Patrol, drilling numerous wildcat oil wells in East Texas, and funding the Antarctic explorations of his cousin, Admiral Richard E. Byrd, who named an Antarctic mountain range after the Texas colonel.
Byrd held onto the former book depository building until 1970, when he auctioned it off to a Nashville music producer named Aubrey Mayhew. Mayhew was a Kennedy memorabilia collector who planned to turn the structure into a commercial museum commemorating Kennedy's life. Still reeling from the fallout of the assassination that branded Dallas as "The City of Hate" and placed the blame for Kennedy's murder on Dallas' hostile environment, local city fathers recoiled at the idea of a museum that would consecrate the town's darkest hour. They also found Mayhew's intention to profit off the tragedy distasteful.
Mayhew tried several times to get city permits to start building his museum, but he was repeatedly turned down. A group called Dallas Onward, formed to protest turning the building into a national Kennedy landmark, helped thwart Mayhew's efforts.
By 1973, Mayhew defaulted on his loan, and Byrd repurchased the building after the bank foreclosed on it. He immediately put it back up for sale, this time asking $1.2 million for it. At the time, he said, he hoped whoever purchased the site "would use the building in a way that would not be a slam on Dallas...that would not blame Dallas for having the right environment for causing Kennedy's death," according to a filmed interview with Byrd.
The city passed an ordinance preventing the building from being torn down. Several city leaders, including real-estate developer Ray Nasher, were conducting their own campaign to create a private, nonprofit museum and monument to Kennedy on the site.
In 1977, Dallas citizens voted to use bond money to purchase the building from Byrd. The first five floors were refurbished for Dallas County administrative offices.
But little did anyone know that before Aubrey Mayhew vacated the premises, he hired two carpenters to remove two windows from the southeast corner of the sixth floor and replace them with windows from the north side of the building. He says he sneaked off with the sniper's-perch window--"the ultimate piece of Kennedy memorabilia"--while no one noticed.
Or so he claims.
If there is anyone to blame for this predicament, perhaps you should look no further than Conover Hunt.
A museum consultant from Marshall, Hunt first got involved with converting the sixth floor into a museum in the early 1980s. Hunt immediately noticed the sniper's-perch window was missing.
The entire casement that contained the two windows on the southeast corner had been replaced with windows from the north side of the building. She wasn't sure she would ever get her hands on the real ones.
Then, in 1987, two men contacted her, both claiming to have possession of the sniper's perch window. Caruth Byrd called Hunt and told her he had inherited the window from his father, who had died the previous year. Caruth said he stashed it behind some drawers in his house on a sprawling ranch in Van, just east of Canton. Hunt says she asked Byrd to send her proof that he had it, but he wasn't forthcoming.
Still, Hunt says she was inclined to believe Caruth, because she knew several people, including Joe Dealey Sr., late publisher of The Dallas Morning News, who had seen the window hanging in Colonel Byrd's house.
Caruth Byrd eventually allowed Hunt to see the window, which he moved to a vault in Inwood Village. But he refused to donate it or loan it to the museum. The Sixth Floor Museum was still two years away from opening, and Byrd, echoing concerns his father had uttered years earlier, was afraid the museum would be tacky and an embarrassment to the city.
Not long after Byrd met with Hunt, Aubrey Mayhew sent Hunt a letter. He, too, said he had the window--both windows, in fact--from the sniper's perch, and he wanted $250,000 for them. Hunt says she asked Mayhew to send her a picture and measurements of the windows.
"He never did," says the whiskey-voiced Hunt. "I was naturally cautious. If someone wants to sell it, the least they can do is send a picture and the exact measurements."
Hunt explains that she never flew to Nashville to see Mayhew's windows because she couldn't justify the expense without first having some proof that Mayhew actually had the windows.
In 1994, Caruth Byrd suddenly changed his mind about burying the past and let the museum know he was willing to loan out the window. Hunt retrieved it from Byrd's ranch and analyzed it. She says the paint color matched the other windows along the southern wall, and the shape led her to believe it was one of the two corner windows that were missing.
"And the provenance--the history of ownership--was excellent," she says. She admits she did not compare Byrd's window with pictures of the original.
Although the window on display touts it as "The Original Window from the Sniper's Perch," leading visitors to believe it was the window through which Oswald allegedly shot Kennedy, Hunt also admits that she was never certain of that. "There were two windows missing, so there was a 50-50 shot that this was the one through which the gunman fired."
Now that questions are being raised about the window's authenticity, Hunt defends herself by claiming that both windows are historically significant--even though there's a good chance the museum isn't advertising the truth.
"Until you have both windows together and have them professionally examined, you won't have an answer," she insists. "The fact that people are studying the window, examining the evidence, is healthy. These things happen all the time in my business."
It's now early November 1997, just weeks before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's assassination, and Caruth Byrd has no idea the Sixth Floor Museum has any concerns about the window he loaned them.
A Confederate flag and a flag of John Wayne fly over his 150-acre ranch in Van, the Caruth Byrd Wildlife Compound. A large man with white hair and bulging blue eyes, Byrd divides his time between his private wild kingdom, where more than 3,000 exotic and endangered animals roam, and his Hollywood home next to Gene Autry, where Byrd produces movies and TV specials.
"Watch out for the kangaroo shit," he warns as we approach the front porch of his house, which resembles a huge dude-ranch lodge. He and the kangaroo, he explains, shared a morning doughnut on the porch.
A self-professed mortician, veterinarian, gourmet cook, and "the best organ player in the world," Byrd is a hard man to characterize, at once grandiose and earthy. He describes himself as a man "who was born with a silver spoon up my ass," but who despises the phony airs of the Dallas rich. His main residence on his compound, where he lives alone, is covered with hundreds of pictures of him with such Hollywood notables as Burt Reynolds and Lee Majors.
Among the photos lining the walls is a picture of him donating the window to the Sixth Floor Museum. Byrd launches into the story about how his father ordered an employee to remove it, and he rolls a videotaped interview with the worker that confirms his story.
Byrd says he decided to loan the window to the Sixth Floor after he got a call from The Smithsonian Institute, asking him to donate it to the Washington museum. "I decided if it went anywhere, it should stay in Dallas," Byrd says of his decision.
He has no doubts that his window is the real sniper's perch, and he is shocked to learn that the people running the Sixth Floor now have questions about its authenticity.
The name Aubrey Mayhew makes Byrd bristle. "He's a nut who tried to buy the building from my dad," Byrd says. "If he says he has the window, then where in the hell is it? He can't produce one."
Mayhew is the equivalent of the sniper's-perch second gunman, the man who may or may not hold the answer to the mystery of the missing window. But if he does possess the proof, making him produce it may be impossible.
Mayhew is a bitter fellow who believes a cabal of powerful Dallasites conspired to take away from him the building that houses the Sixth Floor Museum. Mayhew claims he lost everything in pursuit of creating a Kennedy museum here--his livelihood, his wife and two children--and he blames Dallas for those losses.
So it's not surprising that when finally reached in Nashville, Mayhew almost explodes when asked about the authenticity of the window on display in Dallas.
"Of course it's not the real window!" he bellowed over the phone. "I've been telling you people this for 30 years. I'm really a low-profile, non-publicity guy. All I can tell you is that Mr. Caruth Byrd is an idiot, and his father is an idiot and a thief."
Mayhew went on to insist that he still has the real window in storage in Detroit. When asked why he never showed it to the people at the Sixth Floor when they asked, he shot back: "I don't have anything to prove."
A 70-year-old music publisher who once worked with jazz great Charlie Parker and produced and co-wrote songs with outlaw country singer Johnny Paycheck ("Take This Job and Shove It"), Mayhew said over the phone that he was planning to come to Dallas the following week to see some of the songwriters with whom he still works. It was just a coincidence, he said, that it would be the day before the 34th anniversary of Kennedy's death, and he promised to call when he got to town.
He phoned a few days later and agreed to meet, but warned he might not have much to say. Three hours into a meal of coffee and apple pie at the Grand Hotel, he was still talking.
A short man in a windbreaker, Mayhew says he is "neither rich nor crazy." He explains that he was a coin and metal collector in the early 1960s when he became fascinated with all the metal objects that were created with Kennedy's likeness after his death. He produced a book on the subject, then went on to collect all manner of Kennedy memorabilia. It's a hobby he likens to a disease.
He was in search of more memorabilia when he came to Dallas in 1970 and attended an auction of 20 parcels of D. Harold Byrd's real estate, including the building leased to the Texas School Book Depository. He wasn't even a registered bidder, he says, but wound up offering $650,000 for the property. He claims he beat out two other bidders, including an entrepreneur who was going to raze the building and sell it off at a dollar a brick.
"It was just a piece of real estate everyone wanted to forget," Mayhew says.
Mayhew explains he wasn't sure what he was going to do with the building--or how he was going to pay for it. At the time, he says, he was making $100,000 yearly working for a music company. He eventually seized on the idea of turning the building into a "first-rate museum."
Shortly after he bought the building, the Texas School Book Depository moved out. But not before one of their employees gave him an affidavit, he says, confirming that D. Harold Byrd had instructed a workman to remove a window from the Sixth Floor. But "he went to the wrong side of the building," Mayhew claims, "and took it from the southwestern corner."
Afraid that a vacant building was more susceptible to vandals, Mayhew says he hired two carpenters to remove the two windows and the surrounding casement that comprised the sniper's nest and replace them with identical windows from the building's north side. Mayhew says he stored the original windows in Dallas for 20 years.
Mayhew insists that several wealthy Dallasites, whom he refuses to name, initially backed his plans for a museum. He quit his job to work on it full-time, spending weeks on end in Dallas and living in the building, where he began housing assassination artifacts. He claims to have spent more than $10,000 on architectural renderings of the proposed museum.
But the city hated his idea. The Dallas Times Herald, he says, ran a full-page cartoon lampooning his idea with a caricature of a museum showing a neon arrow pointing up to the sixth floor sniper's perch. Esquire magazine chided his plans in its annual Dubious Achievement Award issue, asking who was going to get the JFK chicken franchise.
Mayhew says that while the local campaign against him raged, he was also fending off an attempt by the state's Commission to Commemorate JFK to get the Texas Legislature to seize the building from him. Meanwhile, Mayhew recalls that city planners repeatedly rebuffed his attempts to get building permits, once claiming that the building's wooden interior was not fit for refurbishing.
His backers eventually pulled out, and he was hard-pressed to find new ones. He was falling behind on his $6,000-a-month payments, but he claims that the president of Republic National Bank was going to give him an extension. He says he vowed to fight foreclosure on the grounds that the building was his homestead.
"I had no income, a building producing no revenue that was costing me $6,000 a month, and all I ever received was constant blows from the city and state," Mayhew says. "The pressure was mounting."
In the summer of 1972, a small fire broke out in the building. The police charged one of Mayhew's employees, Winfred Anderson, with arson. Anderson pleaded guilty and received probation; he also implicated Mayhew as the person who was behind the fire--which Mayhew vehemently denies. The police, Mayhew insists, let him know that they would arrest him if he set foot in Dallas County again.
Not only does Mayhew profess his innocence, he claims he was framed in a convoluted plot to keep him away from Dallas so he would lose the building. Two weeks after the fire was set, the bank foreclosed on the building, which D. Harold Byrd promptly re-purchased. The city, Mayhew says, confiscated Mayhew's memorabilia left inside the building.
Mayhew says he went back to Nashville a broken man. His wife left him and took his two children to live in New York. He still nursed his idea of building a museum: A year or two later, he hooked up with Gerald Jay Steinberg, a Washington, D.C.-area dentist who claimed to have the largest Kennedy collection in the world. Together they opened an antique store in Georgetown, while they set about cataloging their combined collection for future display. On weekends, Mayhew says, he commuted by bus to New York to try and patch up his marriage--to no avail.
Mayhew's relationship with the dentist soured after just five months. Both men accuse each other of stealing a chunk of their respective collections. Steinberg says that Mayhew claimed to have the sixth-floor window back then, but Steinberg says he never saw it.
Mayhew went back to Nashville to begin rebuilding his music career. He also says he opened a small but classy JFK museum that was eventually burglarized. In 1987, "in a moment of weakness," Mayhew says, he wrote to Conover Hunt, who was organizing the Sixth Floor Museum.
"I told her I had the window and wanted $250,000 for it," Mayhew says. "I just wanted to recoup just some of the money I felt this city owed me."
He is asked why, then, he didn't send Hunt the pictures and dimensions she requested.
Mayhew claims it wasn't that simple. He says Hunt didn't respond to his letter for some time, and that when she first contacted him, she really didn't seem interested. He felt she was just blowing him off.
And maybe she had good reason. After all, he never offered one bit of proof that he has the windows. If there's any reason at all not to dismiss Mayhew, it's the simple fact that the window on display on the Sixth Floor is not the real deal. Maybe, just maybe, Mayhew's telling the truth.
"We know there are two windows, and you've proven that one's not it," he says. "So you take it from there."
For the last decade, Mayhew has had no contact with the Sixth Floor Museum. Then, several months ago, he says he received a letter from the museum's archivist, Gary Mack, a former Dallas television station announcer and JFK researcher--and one of those who isn't sure anymore that the window on display is so authentic. Mayhew says Mack told him he was interested in his collection.
"He said things had changed, and he understood the difficulties I had in the past," Mayhew says. "He said he wanted to come to Nashville and see my collection and that maybe we could join forces." Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
Mayhew says he eventually responded to Mack's letter, writing that perhaps they would meet if the museum had indeed changed. Mayhew says he wants the museum to acknowledge that he once owned the building: A plaque on the outside of the building only mentions Byrd. He also wants the museum's historical information to mention him and acknowledge that he saved the building from being destroyed. Mayhew believes that had the other bidders gotten the building instead of him, they would have torn it down.
At the bottom of the letter, Mayhew added: "P.S. In case we do join forces, I get the chicken franchise"--a reference to the Esquire Dubious Achievement Award 25 years earlier. Mack never responded to Mayhew's letter.
Marian Ann Montgomery's title at the Sixth Floor Museum is--no kidding--director of interpretation. All that means is that she's the museum's chief curator, but it's still a creepy job description to put on one's resume. Maybe the conspiracy theorists are right; maybe we're not paranoid enough.
As visitors stream into the Sixth Floor Museum, looking at the window they assume is real, Montgomery must now consider that someone has interpreted this relic all wrong.
"Well, obviously there's some difference between the window and pictures of it," Montgomery says. "We're in the process, as museums always are, of checking to see if we need to change the caption."
This included Montgomery phoning Caruth Byrd a few days ago and asking him some pointed questions about the window that once hung in his father's house. Montgomery asked Byrd if he had any explanation for why there were no marks on the bottom of the window.
"Hell, maybe my father had it cleaned up," Byrd says he told her.
During our conversation, I mentioned to him that another concern was that smudge of paint and putty that appears on his window, but is not on the window photographed after the assassination.
"Maybe my dad broke the glass and it was repaired," he offers this time.
Byrd is clearly agitated by this line of inquiry. "Hell, if they don't want it at the museum, I'll take it back," he barks. "I'll sell it to someone. I'll sell it to Michael Jackson."
Montgomery also contacted Mayhew by phone. Montgomery says that Mayhew had "some relations with the museum that were less than friendly before. We have to rebuild that relationship before we can get close to him."
She told him she was coming to Nashville and wanted to see his collection and his window. He told her she couldn't come.
"They just want to use me," Mayhew says. "They don't have anything I want."
But this man from Tennessee might well have something the Sixth Floor folks want--them, and the millions who only think they've seen, and seen through, a little bit of history.
I posted the entire article because these thing's have away of disappearing once it upset's a few people.
Aubry Mayhew claims to have the actual window, but He wasn't the owner in '63 when Byrd removed the "snipers nest" window and took it to his home. I have heard from individuals who visited Byrd's home in the past and saw the window, proudly displayed in his "trophy" room.
Glen Sample
While there isn't very much on D. H. Byrd on the internet, it should be easy enough to answer some basic questions, like did he really remove the sniper's window from the 6th floor of TSBD?
It's a question I've asked Gary Mack, who should know, and I await his response.
1) Did the owner of the TSBD D. H. Byrd have the sniper's window removed for display at his home?
It would certainly be in-character for Byrd having the sniper window in his trophy room (he probably also had the swearing in missle as well), which brings up my next question: who accompanied Byrd on his African safari that took him out of the country on Nov. 22, 1963. I'm sure such an expedition made the local papers, and Byrd & Posse posed for many photos next to their trophies.
2) Who accompanied DHB on the Nov. 1963 safari?
For these men, hunting was a right of passage into their world. Some, like LBJ and I believe Ed Wilson in Virginia, owned private game preserves so they could go hunting anytime. When LBJ got JFK down to the ranch and took him hunting, JFK just didn't get it.
Who accompanied Byrd would be telling, much like Chaney's misshap, that never would have become public if he didn't shoot somebody.
DH Byrd came from a very prolific political family that included powerful political relatives in other states (ie Virginia), and a Bryd family tree would be very helpful. It would also be interesting to know if DH Byrd of CAP/TSBD fame is related to Dr. Eldon Bryd (GWU, Medical Engineer, Polaris, Navy Metal Matrix Composite Program, MAZE, MKULTRA - RIP Dec. 30, 2002) or David H. Byrd, President of Dallas Diebold Electronic election machines?
3) Is D.H. Byrd related to the late Dr. Eldon Bryd or David H. Byrd, Pres of Dallas Diebold?
While I have some other outstanding questions, these are the ones that I have been unable to answer that I think others might have ready figured out.
Thanks,
BK
Bill, Eldon Byrd was probably related to the Admiral Richard Byrd branch of the family. Eldon Downs is now an equine & boarding facility near the south fork of the Shanandoah River. I think it may have once been part of the Byrd plantation. Adm Byrd was certainly from that area of Virginia.
Eldon was associated with an interesting crowd: Ira Einhorn, Andrija Puharich and Arthur Young among them. His Naval career ended either because of child porn charges (he claimed he was framed by Postal Inspectors, but admitted sex with a minor) or because of security clearance issues - depending on who you believe.
His history includes:
experiments with Uri Geller
Naval Surface Weapons, Office of Non-Lethal Weapons
behaviour control experiments on animals
has written papers on the telemetry of brain waves
dolphin research
#14 William Weston
Member
Members
17 posts
Posted 11 December 2006 - 08:44 PM
John Simkin, on Dec 2 2006, 06:33 PM, said:
I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
Amazon.com has it also.
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
#17 William Kelly
Super Member
Robert,
Many thanks for digging up these gems from the DMN morgue.
I'm sure there's many more interesting bodies burried in there.
I did a simple search on the Dallas Athletic Club at Elm and St. Paul and instantly came up with the Dallas Notre Dame Alumni Association meeting there because of Gordon McLendon, one degree of separation.
They say Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon bet on Dallas Cowboy games together, although I expect to hear from Gary Mack about that.
In any case, the most important thing happening today is the football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Championship.
All I have to say to all my Dallas friends is : Go Eagles! Beat the Boys.
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
Robert,
the Baron's story starts with his family.
His uncle Gustav resigned from the Army and went to Canada in 1904 where he ploughed $10,000,000 in German investment money into real estate. Under suspicion of being a spy, he hightailed it in 1914 to the US dressed as a female. Despite the fact that his Canadian assets were seized by the Custodian of Enemy Property, and the fact that a probable U-Boat base was discovered at one of his coastal holdings in the '30s, he was able to become a US citizen in 1939.
His father; also named Werner, was an Iron Cross winner in WWI. After leaving the army, he joined Gustav in Canada for a short while, before returning to Germany where he became a "background" worker for a movement called "Young Conservatives" (YAF, anyone?) whose mission was to unite all conservative parties under one umbrulla; the same stated aim as that of CUSA, and using similar tactics. With the rise of Hitler, he became entangled in various plots (along with another brother named Bodo) to usurp control of the Nazi Party, and in various other plots against Hitler (Dulles, anyone?). This self-styled master of intrigue did jail time for his troubles. I had originally mistaken Werner, Sr for his son - your Baron - but I'd suspect Jr was jailed because he was working with dad in these plots.
I think it's highly likely that YAF and CUSA modeled themselves after the German Young Conservatives... even down to CUSA meeting in a pub (The German group had held their get-togethers at the Herrenklub).
I hope you realise the possible great significance of your find. Those German Young Conservatives, btw, also called themselves "Neo-Conservatives". Its later usage in the US may well be a tip of the hat to this group, as well.
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
Robert,
the Baron's story starts with his family.
His uncle Gustav resigned from the Army and went to Canada in 1904 where he ploughed $10,000,000 in German investment money into real estate. Under suspicion of being a spy, he hightailed it in 1914 to the US dressed as a female. Despite the fact that his Canadian assets were seized by the Custodian of Enemy Property, and the fact that a probable U-Boat base was discovered at one of his coastal holdings in the '30s, he was able to become a US citizen in 1939.
His father; also named Werner, was an Iron Cross winner in WWI. After leaving the army, he joined Gustav in Canada for a short while, before returning to Germany where he became a "background" worker for a movement called "Young Conservatives" (YAF, anyone?) whose mission was to unite all conservative parties under one umbrulla; the same stated aim as that of CUSA, and using similar tactics. With the rise of Hitler, he became entangled in various plots (along with another brother named Bodo) to usurp control of the Nazi Party, and in various other plots against Hitler (Dulles, anyone?). This self-styled master of intrigue did jail time for his troubles. I had originally mistaken Werner, Sr for his son - your Baron - but I'd suspect Jr was jailed because he was working with dad in these plots.
I think it's highly likely that YAF and CUSA modeled themselves after the German Young Conservatives... even down to CUSA meeting in a pub (The German group had held their get-togethers at the Herrenklub).
I hope you realise the possible great significance of your find. Those German Young Conservatives, btw, also called themselves "Neo-Conservatives". Its later usage in the US may well be a tip of the hat to this group, as well.
While I am not an idle speculator, I do believe that there are ramifications of fascist elements that are intertwined with various types of data which have appeared on the Forum, in many different topics, some which appear to be linked to the area this thread is currently drifting toward
To Elaborate....Jim Root, whom I have an immense amount of respect toward, as do other members of the Forum has expended a great deal of time & effort in analysing the life & times of General Edwin Walker, Walker as we all know, [hopefully] was stationed in Germany before his decision to ostensibly distribute John Birch Society literature to his troops, a decision which led to his troubles with the Kennedy administration, [troubles being an understatement]. So.....we discover that Bernard Weissmann, Larrie Schmidt and William Burley were all "associated with each other" serving in the US Army in......Germany.
See WCE 1052
http://www.maryferre...bsPageId=140705
While some of the readers of this post may have not yet been a gleam in their father's eyes in 1963, posterity
has managed to salvage a "relic from the past" re Gen Edwin Walker, Mayor Earl Cabell & events in Dallas, Texas circa 1962/1963, what I am referencing is the footage showing General Walker being treated like a "cause célèbre" over the aformentioned "troubles," I believe, he is shown being given a cowboy hat from the Lord Mayor, said hat being not unlike the one given to Pres Kennedy "that day"
See The Murder of JFK - A Revisionist History
Additionally, an early Warren Commission document referenced four individuals...those 4 individuals were..... Lee Harvey Oswald, Jack Ruby and Mr. and Mrs "John R. and Minnie Smith." I was never able to figure out who the latter individuals were but suspected [rightly] that hey if they were important enough to be listed in tax records alongside the patsy and the killer of the patsy, they would be 'somewhat important.'
Recently, while I was going thru doc's copied at the Dallas Public Library months ago, I discovered that the "John R. Smith" and the "Schmidt" that was associated with Bernard Weissman are one and the same, or at least the FBI indicated so, according to the document.......
Perhaps?......The above data is what this individual was referencing......
Warren Commission Document 933 is a 15 page memo dated 05/15/64 from J Edgar Hoover to J Lee Rankin, [179-40002-10174] the subject is Paul Carroll. In this document, Hoover is submitting to Rankin, FBI Reports on Mr Paul Carroll. If you believe that fascism died at the end of World War 2, you views may be somewhat challenged after reading the next paragraph
Why, you ask? Read on......CD933a dated May 1, 1964, begins by stating:
"On November 22, 1963 Paul Vottler Carroll appeared at the El Paso office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and advised SA Robert G. Abegglen that he had been active in Republican Party affairs for several years having been chairman of the Young Republican's at the University of Texas in Austin Texas, and having attended several Young Republican National Convention's. He said it was his opinion there was a conspiracy between the John Birch Society and the American Nazi Party in 1961 or early 1962 to take over control of the Republican Party and then to take over the Government of the United States, by force, if necessary. CARROLL stated this "enterprise" was made up of retired Army personnel, but he could not furnish any facts to substantiate this allegation."
Final Thought/Message to those on High: There is an old adage which may come back to haunt people who potentially will soon be "found out" as to their involvement in the assassination of Pres. John F. Kennedy......."We [collectively] may be through with the past, but the past is not
Robert, Many thanks for digging up these gems from the DMN morgue.
I'm sure there's many more interesting bodies burried in there. I did a simple search on the Dallas Athletic Club at Elm and St. Paul and instantly came up with the Dallas Notre Dame Alumni Association meeting there because of Gordon McLendon, one degree of separation.
They say Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon bet on Dallas Cowboy games together, although I expect to hear from Gary Mack about that.
In any case, the most important thing happening today is the football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Championship. All I have to say to all my Dallas friends is : Go Eagles! Beat the Boys. BK
In response to the above post I received the following from Dallas:
Robert Howard wrote:
Hopefully, everyone had a wonderful X'Mas, mine was.....to paraphrase the Limony Snicket movie with Jim Carrey....A series of Unfortunate Events....[of which the Dallas Cowboy's loss to the Eagles on X'Mas Day did not even factor in the equation, [that means it was really really bad]....
Now that I am through whining, I have made some real progress in getting to the bottom of some of this 'unresolved JFK assassination issues.'
First, I have discovered a tie-in of sorts between LBJ & D.H. Byrd in the context of a Corporation known as Capital Cable see attachment
Second, below is a link to a summary on the book about the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, [pretty important, in it's relation however distant to 11-22-63, are either of you familiar with this book? It looks like it is a very credible work, and could be a help in getting one aspect of what was going on in the CIA's world at that time]
http://www.bordersstores.com/search/title_detail.jsp?id=
53044932&srchTerms=Assassination&mediaType
=1&srchType=Keyword
Gary Mack:
Bill, McLendon and Ruby TOGETHER? Documentation please. Did both men bet on the Cowboys separately? Maybe, but as any homegrown Dallasite will tell you, in those days, everyone shunned the Cowboys. They were virtually ignored their first few years. As for McLendon-Ruby connections, what is known is that Ruby looked up to McLendon and respected him. But there was no connection whatsoever. McLendon's radio buddies talked about it over the years. McLendon had nothing to do with Ruby ever, and he regretted very much what Ruby did and it's effect on the city. Gary Mack
Well Robert, I'm glad the Eagles 27 - 7 victory over Tony Romo & TO didn't spoil Christmas.
And Gary, I surprise myself at how I not only can get your reaction by dropping a name but that I can predict it. I didn't even complete the sentence about McLendon and Ruby betting on Cowboy games when I just knew I would get a response, and on Christmas too. I wish that would work at the casino.
For Ruby and McLeondon TOGETHER on the same page, please see the Warren Commission Hearings, where Ruby says that Gordon McLendon is one of his "six best friends;" Ruby's friend Lewis McWillie said Ruby and McLendon were friends; On the night of the assassination Ruby took photos of the "Impeach Earl Warren" billboard, photos he said he took for Gordon McLendon; and Ruby's little black book has Gordon McLendon's home phone number; and please note the fact that Ruby called McLendon's home on day of the assassination and talked at length to his daughter; and that Ruby said McLendon gave his club "a lot of free plugs" on the radio; and the WC document with the KLIF (as in Oak Klif) logo acknowledges that they mentioned Jack Ruby's name on the air (probably for setting up an interview between DA Wade and KLIF DJ Russ Knight "the weird Beard") the day BEFORE he shot LHO; and that for the previous day Ruby was posing as a KLIF reporter while stalking Oswald; and Ruby visted the KLIF studio, delivering sandwiches which he first tried to use as an excuse to give to the cops to get closer to Oswald, and then there's the KLIF program literature found in Ruby's car.
As for gambling on the Cowboys, I'm sure Gary's characterization is accurate of the Cowboys team not being very popular in the early days - ala North Dallas Forty, but at the time they were owned by McLendon's good friend Clint Murchison, and McLendon may have even had a financial interest in the team.
And while I don't have PDS's book beside me to quote directly, Jodey Bateman's review of the Deep Politics says: "Murchinson was the co-owner of the Dallas Cowboys with Gordon McLendon, the owner of radio and TV station KRLD in Dallas. Jack Ruby said that McLendon was one of his six best friends in Dallas. Ruby arranged for illegal gambling games for McLendon and his associates."
As anyone who has studied the syndicate knows, all organized crime in the USA was originally organized, not for booze, but to lay off bets and coordinate the numbers and gambling on sports that required the cooperation of the national wire services, owned and controlled by the syndicate, of which Jack Ruby was a part.
Well there you have it, Jack Ruby and Gordon McLendon together.
And that's to say nothing of the Association of Former Intelligence Ops.
And the bottom line is:
Gary says: "McLendon had nothing to do with Ruby, ever."
Perhaps Peter you could post an index of links you would like us all to read to replace this determined campaign of yours to copy and paste all your self sustaining favourites all over the forum?
Perhaps Peter you could post an index of links you would like us all to read to replace this determined campaign of yours to copy and paste all your self sustaining favourites all over the forum?
I'm not a fan of sarcasm. What exactly do you mean by "self sustaining"?
Drivel as usual Peter. All I am requesting is that when you post it is something substantive - not just a copy and paste from of elses words from eleswhere. If you want to advertise links and thereby hurl reading lists at us that's fine - not much point to it but fine. Just spare us from copied material taking up web space. The rest of your latest post is bizarre.
You are free to post within the rules here ( as are incidentally all your odd self flagellating chums at the DPF). You are not being singled out, you are not a target, put simply what you say is not that important to warrant any such special attention.
We have something here with which you may not be familar - free speech.
Your presence here is quite welcome.
JFK
Andy, your desire to pass a thumbs-up or thumbs-down on what should be posted [i.e. coinciding with your prejudices, and a coincidence model of history and politics] is noted. Sorry you don't like my postings or what I feel is important. How 'liberal' of you, however, to tolerate it - even if it comes with pro forma snide remarks about myself and my associates on the Deep Politics Forum. Does the competition and better information on several subjects there irk you? You had a pretty heavy role in driving them away, so in many ways you were a 'father' to that Forum.
It is precisely because I feel we in the 'West' are loosing, rapidly, our democracy and freedoms by the actions [some overt, but most covert - to push their overt agenda] of deep political actors that I post what I post; feel what I feel; research what I research; and fight for what I fight. And I post in the interest of pushing forward debate and information, thought and reflexion on these matters - some call it education. I've heard this is an 'education forum', but perhaps I was misinformed.
No no and no!
'Better information' on the DPF! Now that's really very very funny.
'Coincidence' theory of history? - not sure where you got that idea from - maybe it suits your purposes but it is wholly innaccurate.
'desire to pass a thumbs up thumbs down on what should be posted' - no I merely asked you to stop pasting wholesale articles from other blogs and forums. You are in fact much freer here to post what you like. Even with your tenuous grasp of reality I thought you might be able to acknowledge that. Try disagreeing with the 'toilet-mouthed' Drago over there and you'll soon experience this reality.
'Education'?? You take as biblical truths the propaganda of pseudo historians and proven charlatans and cry 'disinfo, conspiracy and ad hom attack' when FAR better qualified people dare to criticise the source and methodology of your fantasies. Your 'commitment' to your 'cause' is an affectation no more no less. Your commitment to education is non existent.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
FOUND THE INFO \BILL......
This photo was taken at a UT football game in 1973, a few months before LBJ died.
D. Harold Byrd is seen on the left (in cowboy hat) and LBJ is on the right. Byrd was a
longtime friend and financial/political supporter of Johnson. He was also the OWNER
of the Texas School Book Depository Building, from which Oswald was alleged to have fired
the fatal shots.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al]
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill \if I recall Now.....it was taken at a sporting event perhaps a race track.......lf JACK COMES ALONG HE ,MAY RECALL....B
FOUND THE INFO \BILL......
This photo was taken at a UT football game in 1973, a few months before LBJ died.
D. Harold Byrd is seen on the left (in cowboy hat) and LBJ is on the right. Byrd was a
longtime friend and financial/political supporter of Johnson. He was also the OWNER
of the Texas School Book Depository Building, from which Oswald was alleged to have fired
the fatal shots. b
[/quote]
[/quote]
[quote name='Peter Lemkin' post='172234' date='Sep 16 2009, 01:22 AM'][quote name='William Kelly' post='172230' date='Sep 16 2009, 04:26 AM'][quote name='Peter Lemkin' post='172217' date='Sep 15 2009, 11:03 AM'][quote name='William Kelly' post='172205' date='Sep 15 2009, 01:19 AM'][quote name='William Weston' post='84754' date='Dec 11 2006, 09:44 PM'][quote name='John Simkin' post='83468' date='Dec 2 2006, 06:33 PM']I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
[/quote]
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
[/quote]
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill, I agree the 'Yahoos' were only used to sheep-dip Lee, and Ferrie may [may!] have had a role on the day of removing someone(s) from the theater of actions or putting-up some false trails. Interesting the Safari was with some Nazi's - makes me think of Mae Brussell's article! LeMay must have been in the mix, IMO. Collins almost surely provided special communications for the teams in the Plaza - and as you say could have controlled communications of the entire superstructure of the govt. in the first hours. Byrd took a trophy windowframe and had it mounted in his livingroom, or somewhere in his home. It was from the EAST end of the TSBD! Not the 'Oswald window'!.....hmmmmm..... Seems fairly obvious why he wanted to be out of town that day! Thanks Bernice for the info on the photo. Amazing what photos and information you have at your fingertips!!!!
[/quote]
your welcome peter ; always here is a photo and map of the \byrd \dry hole his first and largest\i believe.a1000 barrels a day...from one of the texas books....
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill, I agree the 'Yahoos' were only used to sheep-dip Lee, and Ferrie may [may!] have had a role on the day of removing someone(s) from the theater of actions or putting-up some false trails. Interesting the Safari was with some Nazi's - makes me think of Mae Brussell's article! LeMay must have been in the mix, IMO. Collins almost surely provided special communications for the teams in the Plaza - and as you say could have controlled communications of the entire superstructure of the govt. in the first hours. Byrd took a trophy windowframe and had it mounted in his livingroom, or somewhere in his home. It was from the EAST end of the TSBD! Not the 'Oswald window'!.....hmmmmm..... Seems fairly obvious why he wanted to be out of town that day! Thanks Bernice for the info on the photo. Amazing what photos and information you have at your fingertips!!!!
[/quote]
your welcome peter ; always here is a photo and map of the \byrd \dry hole his first and largest\i believe.or one of a1000 barrels a day...from one of the texas books....
[/quote]
peter here is info about the other window taken found through the m/f site....\FROM PAGE 2
''Six weeks after the assassination of President Kennedy, when Byrd wanted a souvenir of this historical building, he chose the South Westernmost window of the sixth floor, not the window from which Oswald purportedly fired with his creaky rifle with its loose telescopic sight, that was the Southeast. No, Byrd took the window from which a Dealey Plaza witness and his wife told the Warren Commission they saw a man with a gun. It seems D. H. Byrd knew exactly which window was the souvenir, and, by inference, that Oswald was no shooter. ''
="http://www.joanmelle....html">Farewell to Justice
-bryd took another window..
THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION AND THE CURRENT POLITICAL MOMENT, Part 1
Edited by Bernice Moore, 16 September 2009 - 07:29 AM.
#33 Bernice Moore
Super Member
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.[/quote]
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
[/quote]
I just noticed that Will Weston posted on this thread some time ago.
He is the most knowledgeable person on Oswald impersonators and it would be nice to get him back to discuss those incidents, as well as DH Byrd at the Moisant Aiport.
BK
[/quote]
Bill, If you haven't yet, see http://educationforu...h...c=14765&hl= for more info on Byrd and airports, CAP, et al.
[/quote]
Hello Peter,
While the information about Byrd in Florida is new to me, I was aware of Byrd's safari and safari partners, which were discussed in detail in another thread. I think the guys he was on the safari with were Nazis or otherwise connected to something worthwhile pursing, if you are hunting the truth.
That's a great photo of LBJ and Byrd in the stands at a sporting event. Was that a Dallas Cowgirl's football game?
Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza,
though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
When Admiral Byrd was exploring the artic, his radio communications were only picked up by the home made short wave radio of a young kid Art Colllins built his own radio in his garage, which began his association with the Navy and military, so when WWII came along, his small Cedar Rapids, Iowa radio company got military contracts that continued after the war.
Collins Radio had exclusive contracts to provide radios for all Strategic Air Command bombers, Air Force I and all executive aircraft, as well as NASA communications in outer space and the Moon.
With Byrd owning the building, Collins running the AF1 communicaitons and LeMay controlling the Joint Chiefs of Staff, they pretty much had things covered in the first few hours of the coup.
I just can't figure out what Oswald had to do with it? (Ha ha).
BK
[/quote]
Bill, I agree the 'Yahoos' were only used to sheep-dip Lee, and Ferrie may [may!] have had a role on the day of removing someone(s) from the theater of actions or putting-up some false trails. Interesting the Safari was with some Nazi's - makes me think of Mae Brussell's article! LeMay must have been in the mix, IMO. Collins almost surely provided special communications for the teams in the Plaza - and as you say could have controlled communications of the entire superstructure of the govt. in the first hours. Byrd took a trophy windowframe and had it mounted in his livingroom, or somewhere in his home. It was from the EAST end of the TSBD! Not the 'Oswald window'!.....hmmmmm..... Seems fairly obvious why he wanted to be out of town that day! Thanks Bernice for the info on the photo. Amazing what photos and information you have at your fingertips!!!!
[/quote]
your welcome peter ; always here is a photo and map of the \byrd \dry hole his first and largest\i believe.or one of a1000 barrels a day...from one of the texas books....
[/quote]
peter here is info about the other window taken found through the m/f site....\FROM PAGE 2
''Six weeks after the assassination of President Kennedy, when Byrd wanted a souvenir of this historical building, he chose the South Westernmost window of the sixth floor, not the window from which Oswald purportedly fired with his creaky rifle with its loose telescopic sight, that was the Southeast. No, Byrd took the window from which a Dealey Plaza witness and his wife told the Warren Commission they saw a man with a gun. It seems D. H. Byrd knew exactly which window was the souvenir, and, by inference, that Oswald was no shooter. ''
="http://www.joanmelle....html">Farewell to Justice
-bryd took another window..sth west END window WHICH
THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION AND THE CURRENT POLITICAL MOMENT, Part 1
[/quote]
here's a moorman showing sth west end windows open at the time and the dillard B.
I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd.
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont.
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
With Peter's interest in the Safari, I thought I'd reboot this post from RH that details some of those who were on the Safari with Bryd. - BK
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country
Interests:Universally loved and admired for his keen wit, sharp intellect, loathsome egoism, and awe-inspiring self-delusion, Lane studies the JFK assassination from afar, offers few opinions, and generally keeps to himself.
Posted 17 September 2009 - 06:46 PM
John Simkin, on Dec 2 2006, 11:33 AM, said:
I thought it might be worth starting a thread on David Harold Byrd. ...
During this period Byrd became very interested in aviation. In 1938 Governor James Allred appointed him to the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission. In September 1941 he formed the Civil Air Patrol. During the Second World War Byrd commanded an antisubmarine base for the Civil Air Patrol at Beaumont. ...
Richard Bartholomew suggested in Byrds, Planes, and an Automobile that Byrd knew David Ferrie via the Civil Air Patrol.
William Weston, on Dec 11 2006, 02:44 PM, said:
Tony Atzenhoffer was in the Civil Air Patrol in 1955 at the Moisant Airport. He knew David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald. He told me that DH Byrd was in charge of the Lousiana and Texas regions of the Civil Air Patrol. He came to Moissant Airport on special occasions such as orientation meetings for new recruits. Thus Byrd knew Ferrie and was part of that New Orleans Civil Air Patrol milieu.
William Kelly, on Sep 15 2009, 09:26 PM, said:
... Byrd's private national intelligence network - the Civil Air Patrol, and its New Orleans connections certainly tie these people together with Ferrie, Bannister, Shaw, et al., but I don't think those Yahoos were behind what happened at Dealey Plaza, while Byrd's personal relationships with Art Collins, General LeMay and the Joint Chiefs is hotter and closer to the strategic center of the 11/22/63 coup.
It wasn't the Yahoos - Ferrie, Banister and Shaw who put together Oswald and Dealey Plaza, though Byrd was associated with them and their networks via CAP, it was Byrd's connections with Art Collins, LeMay and the JCS at JMWAVE that cuts to the heart of not only the assassination at Dealey Plaza, but the coup that took over the government.
Some of these threads are tenuous at best, at least insofar as the CAP goes. Let me correct a few thoughts based on my own extensive experience with CAP, which will put some things into perspective.
I was associated with CAP from 1964 through 1976, closer to the time period we're discussing that it was to today. My father joined and started a cadet squadron, which he served as commander to while rising to the rank of major. He was thereafter promoted to the wing (state) staff, where he eventually became deputy wing commander. I joined his squadron (coincidentally, the Gen. Curtis E. LeMay Cadet Squadron) and, after he was gone, served as cadet commander and on the wing-level Cadet Advisory Council. Several friends of mine from that era are still active with CAP, and several of them have served as squadron, and three as wing commanders, in different locations. I also worked at HQ CAP while I was in the Air Force.
The actual founders of the CAP were former New York mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, who was then serving as director of the Office of Civilian Defense, and USAAF General John F. Curry, who was its first national commander. The organization was formed over several months before being officially chartered on December 1, 1941, less than a week before Pearl Harbor, as a way to use America's civilian aviation resources to aid the war effort instead of grounding them, with an emphasis on coastal and border states, of which Texas is both. Ultimately, CAP pilots were credited with having sighted over 150 submarines, and having sunk two.
Clearly, more than just LaGuardia and Curry were involved in the formation of the CAP, and from well before its December 1 inauguration date. Byrd, in his capacity with the Texas Civil Aeronautics Commission, was among CAP's "founders," although they are not officially recognized as such; other men (and possibly women) in other states in similar capacities were instrumental in the organizations founding at the same time.
Byrd served as Texas Wing commander from December 1, 1941, to May 28, 1948, and remains the longest-serving wing commander in Texas' 68-year history with CAP, whose national headquarters was located at Ellington Air Force Base near San Antonio for many years. Thereafter, Byrd was the commander of the Southwest Region of CAP, which coordinated and supported the efforts of six states including Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona. He served on CAP's national board from 1954 to 1960, serving as its chairman from April 1959 to April 1960. He was later promoted to Brigadier General after his retirement.
To make a point of all this, to suggest, first, that the CAP is or was anyone's "private national intelligence network" is ludicrous, made up as it was an is of ordinary American citizens, many of whom happen to fly airplanes. That David Ferrie was a member does not paint even a quarter of CAP's members with the same brush.
Second, given my father's position and, to a lesser extent, my own in the CAP, when you consider that the deputy wing commander's son, himself a high-ranking cadet, never met a sitting region commander (I knew one before he was region commander) during his entire CAP career, nor to my knowledge did my father more than maybe once. I don't consider it likely, based on that experience, that Oswald or even Ferrie ever met Byrd either.
Third, "cadet orientations" are routine matters handled at the local (squadron) level. Many or most of those new cadets will not even be members in two years. It is not of such moment that even a wing commander would attend, much less a region commander. Indeed, when you consider that cadets who'd been members five years or longer who received the CAP's highest cadet honor, the Spaatz award, even the wing commander didn't always attend such functions (and in my experience, a region commander never did), it's again much less likely that a region commander went to a cadet orientation.
This perspective is underscored by the vast amount of territory making up Byrd's command, and the large number of squadrons holding monthly or bi-monthly orientations, there wouldn't have been time to attend very many or get to know very many people at the squadron level. That includes Ferrie, even if he was the squadron commander, and much less likely if he was anything lower in rank.
Lastly, as you might gather from much of the above, the region commander (Byrd would have had no reason other than occasional reciprocal official visits to have gone to Louisiana while Texas Wing commander) is in a fairly lofty position, and doesn't often mingle with the rank-and-file. This is true not only of CAP, but of other organizations as well: most Masons have never met their (statewide) Grand Master, Knights of Columbus their Supreme Knight, or Elks or Eagles their state presidents. When they travel, they typically mingle with those now or formerly in leadership positions. One simply does not have the HMFIC "drop in" unannounced at a meeting or function, and protocol demands that he be given special recognitions when there.
Long and short, there may be some connections between some of the people described in these threads, but it is highly unlikely, in my studied opinion, that there was a "CAP connection" between Byrd and anyone involved, directly or peripherally, with the assassination (other than that they belonged to the same organization).
#37 William Kelly
Super Member
When Duke says that NY Mayor LaGuardia was an original founder of CAP, I would venture that his associate Ernest Cuneo had something to do with it too.
I agree that there would not be too much fraternalization between the upper management and the CAP rank and file, I'm sure they kept records and files of members, who they were, where they came from, what they were doing and where they were going, and the upper management had access to these records.
Why then, is it ludacrist to consider the CAP a private intelligence network?
Call it what you want, they kept records on those who were involved in it, and it remains and active network today.
According to Wikipedia (you can only trust about half of its entries), Cuneo worked for LaGuardia only during 1931-32, prior to being admitted to the New York bar. He wrote a book called Life with Fiorello (1955), so my bet would be that if he had anything to do with CAP's founding, it would be in there. He is not recognized as having anything to do with it. He worked with OSS during the war.
That you're "sure" that CAP kept and presumably keeps "records and files of members, who they were, where they came from, what they were doing and where they were going" does not make it so. Indeed, other than their original membership application, which is not very in-depth, awards, promotions, and official SAR exercises and missions, CAP doesn't keep records of much at all, and certainly not their comings and goings, or any other kind of on-going data (other than if they moved and joined another squadron somewhere else).
CAP is not what you seem to think it is by a long stretch. Call it what you want, it's really not much different from the Boy Scouts. Or were they a subversive part of the plot as well?
The word is "ludicrous," by the way.
#39 William Kelly
Super Member
Members
8,745 posts
Gender:Male
Posted 19 September 2009 - 01:26 AM
Duke Lane, on Sep 18 2009, 09:04 PM, said:
According to Wikipedia (you can only trust about half of its entries), Cuneo worked for LaGuardia only during 1931-32, prior to being admitted to the New York bar. He wrote a book called Life with Fiorello (1955), so my bet would be that if he had anything to do with CAP's founding, it would be in there. He is not recognized as having anything to do with it. He worked with OSS during the war.
That you're "sure" that CAP kept and presumably keeps "records and files of members, who they were, where they came from, what they were doing and where they were going" does not make it so. Indeed, other than their original membership application, which is not very in-depth, awards, promotions, and official SAR exercises and missions, CAP doesn't keep records of much at all, and certainly not their comings and goings, or any other kind of on-going data (other than if they moved and joined another squadron somewhere else).
CAP is not what you seem to think it is by a long stretch. Call it what you want, it's really not much different from the Boy Scouts. Or were they a subversive part of the plot as well?
The word is "ludicrous," by the way.
Hey Duke,
Thanks for the details on Cuneo and LaGuardia.
While Cuneo did move on and upwards, into the Roosevelt government, and principle liason between Donovan at OSS and Roosevelt, I'm sure he kept tabs and stayed good buddies with his old pal LaGuardia.
I know, my spell check told me it was wrong, but I let it go because it is so.
Since I view the assassination as an event in a war among intelligence agencies and networks, I'll keep the CAP in that category, though I agree that they are at the same level as the rank and file Yahoos, while those who really ran things - like Byrd, Art Collins and LeMay were poker buddies.
And by the way, the Boy Scouts were founded in England by one of the early intelligence operatives and spies of that era, and are not to be discounted, as Gerald Ford was a Boy Scout.
BK
[quote name='Tom Scully' date='25 November 2010 - 03:44 AM' timestamp='1290653054' post='213113']
[quote]http://www.spartacus...uk/MDbyrdDH.htm
David Harold Byrd...Byrd's cousin was Harry F. Byrd, who was described by Alden Hatch (The Byrds of Virginia: An American Dynasty) as "the leader of conservative opinion in the United States.
http://news.google.c...tall byrd&hl=en
Aug 1, 1948
Miss Emily Saltonstall, daughter of Sen. and Mrs. Leverett Saltonstall, was married today to Richard E. Byrd Jr., son of Adm. and Mrs. Richard E. Byrd...ushers were Leverett, Jr. and William L. Saltonstall, brothers of the bride, and Beverly and Harry Byrd, Jr. cousins of the bridegroom...
http://news.google.c...tall byrd&hl=en
The Times-News - Jan 1, 1966
...For years, (Leverett) Saltonstall and Harry Flood Byrd of Virginia have made a bipartisan patricians' bloc of two...
http://en.wikipedia....ry_F._Byrd,_Jr.
Harry F. Byrd, Jr. - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Harry Flood Byrd, Jr. (born December 20, 1914) is a retired American politician. He represented Virginia in the United States Senate from 1965 to 1983. ..
http://www.masshist....c.cfm?fa=fa0177
This collection consists of letters written to Massachusetts Senator Leverett Saltonstall throughout his political career and into retirement from politicians, politicians' wives, journalists, and television personalities, discussing political opinions, friendship, pending legislation, and campaign support.
Leverett Saltonstall Autograph Collection
1930-1996; bulk: 1930-1979
Guide to the Collection
...Acquisition Information
Most of the letters were removed from the Leverett Saltonstall papers in 1992; some were added by William Saltonstall, 1992-2001...
http://www.highbeam....2-19797920.html
William L. Saltonstall, at 81, former Massachusetts state senator ...
Jan 25, 2009 ... It was William Lawrence Saltonstall who introduced George Bush ... Republican presidential primary. Saltonstall, a former state senator ...
http://boards.ancest...6/mb.ashx?pnt=1
MANCHESTER-BY-THE-SEA — Bill "Salty" Saltonstall, born in Newton, May 14, 1927, passed away quietly at home on Friday, Jan. 23, 2008. He was the fifth of the six children of Senator and Mrs. Leverett Saltonstall. He joined the Navy at the end of World War II. He graduated from Harvard in 1949 and from Harvard Business School in 1951. He served as State Senator for the third Essex district for 13 years. He championed coastal and environmental causes.... Published in The Gloucester Times on 1/28/2009
http://books.google....epage&q&f=false
The Bushes: Portrait of a Dynasty - Google Books Result
Peter Schweizer, Rochelle Schweizer - 2005 - Biography & Autobiography - 624 pages -Page 273
When George arrived, Saltonstall went up to the mike. “Ladies and gentlemen, you've come to hear George Bush, and here he is. ...[/quote]
http://www.google.co...b6b349a02a4ee94
SWEEP IS SCORED BY HARVARD CREWS; All Three Finish First in...
- New York Times - May 8, 1949
JUNIOR VARSITY Harvard--Bow. Charles Rlmmer Jr.: -2. William Saltonstall; 3. George Hewltt: 4. Edwin Bohlen: 5. Robert Taggarl: 6. John Merrlck: 7. Aioert Carter Jr.: Stroke, Arthur Rouner; Coxswain. Alexander Aldrich. ...
[quote name='Tom Scully' date='14 October 2010 - 01:05 PM' timestamp='1287057915' post='208679']
It now seems that Devine was probably brought into "the fold" via his acquaintance with Alexander Aldrich, when they were classmates at M.I.T.
[quote name='Tom Scully' date='26 June 2010 - 07:26 AM' timestamp='1277529980' post='196094']
http://sigmachi.mit....vol1946_no1.pdf
Page 4 of 1946 newspaper from Tom Devine's fraternity at M.I.T. Home address displayed matches 3550 Elmwood Ave. Rochester, NY address in image displayed in earlier post of Devine's father's obituary on this thread. Same lists also contains names, addresses, and military branch and rank of Devine's fraternity brothers.
Left column on page 1, also at the link above, lists the name Thomas Devine and the names of the other fraternity initiates Devine pledged with.
I have seen no other record related to Devine's university attendance. I find no information as to whether he graduated from M.I.T., or that he made later donations as an alumni. It seems as if he does not want his activities of the late 1940's or of his education to be public knowledge...
[quote]http://www.google.co...nG=Search Books
Drugs, oil, and war: the United States in Afghanistan, Colombia, ... - Page 197
Peter Dale Scott - 2003 -
The war conspiracy: the secret road to the second Indochina war
Peter Dale Scott - 1972
"For it is a striking fact that the law firm of Tommy Corcoran, the Washington lawyer for CATCL and [China Lobbyist] T.V. Soong, had its own links to the interlocking worlds of the China Lobby and of organized crime. His partner W.S. Youngman joined the board of U.S. Life and other insurance companies, controlled by C.V. Starr (OSS China) with the help of Philippine and other Asian capital. Youngman's fellow-directors of Starr's companies have included John S. Woodbridge of Pan Am, Francis F. Randolph of J. and W. Seligman, W. Palmer Dixon of Loeb Rhoades, Charles Edison of the postwar China Lobby, and Alfred B. Jones of the Nationalist Chinese government's registered agency, the Universal Trading Corporation. The [Senate] McClellan Committee heard that in 1950 U.S. Life [later part of AIG] (with Edison as a director) and a much smaller company (Union Casualty of New York) were allotted a major Teamsters insurance contract, after a lower bid from a larger and safer company had been rejected, [Jimmy] Hoffa was accused by a fellow trustee, testifying under oath before another committee, of intervening on behalf of US Life and Union Casualty, whose agents were Hoffa's close business associates Paul and Allen Dorfman
"We find the same network linking CIA proprietaries, war lobbies, and organized crime, when we turn our attention from CAT to the other identified supporter of opium activities, Sea Supply, Inc. Sea Supply, Inc. was organized in Miami, Florida, where its counsel, Paul E. Helliwell, doubled after 1951 as the counsel for C.V. Starr insurance interests, and also as the Thai consul in Miami..."[/quote]
All of Beverly Pullman's and Albert Carter's ushers named below, except Thomas Devine, but including Alexander Aldrich, who had transferred from M.I.T., were members of the Harvard class of 1950, and most were members of the Crew team. Devine partner John Train was also Harvard, '50, as was the Rockefeller financed, former intelligence officer, Henry Kissinger, who studied under Arthur Norman Holcombe, who JFK also studied under. Arthur Holcombe and the CIA's Paul Linebarger were advisers to Chiang Kai-shek.
The obituaries of both Albert B. Carter, Jr. and of Andre Rheault state that they were CIA, and we know Thomas Devine was. Edwin Curtis "Buff" Bohlen was accused of being CIA and later worked for John Train's cousin, Russell. Another usher named below, Charles Hubbard, is Charles J. Hubbard, step-son of John McCloy's best man in 1930, Henry Brunie, Jack Crichton's boss at the Empire Trust. Newspaper misprint- Should be Beverly Pullman, not "Barbara":
[quote]http://www.google.co...l=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Diplomats' Kin Usher at Barbara Pullman's Wedding Today
- Chicago Tribune - Oct 1, 1955
... broth ers of the bride Thomas Devine of Midland Tex Andre Rheault and Henry Cabot of Bos ton and Charles Hubbard. Palmer Dixon of New York City will be best man.
http://news.google.c...&um=1&scoring=a
Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver - Oct 2, 1955
... Edwin Bohlen, whose uncle, Charles E. Bohlen, is am- bassador to Russia, ... Tex., Andre Rheault and Henry Cabot of Boston, and Charles Hubbard. ..
http://pqasb.pqarchi...ER&pqatl=google
MISS PULLMAN IS MARRIED TO ALBERT CARTER Oct 2, 1955
The rosepointe lace veil Miss Beverly Pullman wore as part of her bridal ensemble for her marriage to Albert B. Carter Jr. at 5 p. m. yesterday has special sentiment since it has been worn by three generations of brides in her family.
http://www.google.co...l=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Albert B. Carter Jr., 63 Retired SBA administrator
Pay-Per-View - Boston Globe - Jan 26, 1992
Mr Carter leaves his wife BeverlyPullman of Washington a son
http://www.google.co...l=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Albert B. Carter Jr., 63 Retired SBA administrator
- Boston Globe - Jan 26, 1992
Mr Carter was a former Soviet specialist for the Central Intelligence Agency working for the CIA in Munich Germany from 1950 to 1952 and in Washington from
http://www.google.co...l=&oq=&gs_rfai=
MISS SHARP WED TO PALMER DIXON; Church of St. Thomas More...
- New York Times - May 17, 1957
Peter Thorpe Dixon was best man for his brother. The ushers were William T. Wetmore, his stepbrother; Albert B. Carter Jr., John AS Cushman and EI Parker ..
http://www.google.co...l=&oq=&gs_rfai=
MISS SHARP WED TO PALMER DIXON; Church of St. Thomas More...
- New York Times - May 17, 1957
... of Wilton, Conn., became the bride of Palmer Dixon. is the son of W. Palmer Dixon of New York and Mrs. Charles Winn of Southampton, L. L, and London. ...
Paid Notice: Deaths DIXON, PALMER
Published: September 7, 1999
DIXON-Palmer. Died suddenly of a heart attack on the morning of September 3rd at his home in Wilton, CT. He was born July 1, 1928 in New York City, the son of W. Palmer Dixon and Theodora Thorpe Dixon. He attended St. Mark's School, and graduated from Harvard College, Class of 1950. He served as a 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict, participating in the fighting as a forward observer for the artillery. After the Armistice, he returned to the United States in 1953, working at NBC before becoming a Partner at the Wall Street firm of Loeb, Rhoades & Co. He later worked as a Vice President at Moseley, Hallgarten & Estabrook, and then for a number of years at Standard & Poor's as Head of Programming. After retiring, he continued to work as a computer specialist and private consultant. He was a keen Court Tennis player, and was for many years an active member of the New York Racquet and Tennis club....
http://www.rumormill...rames/read/9390
MAKE ROOM FOR MARVIN
by Blake, Rich
Content provided by Institutional Investor Magazine
Published on May 1, 2000
....In May 1981, degree in hand, Marvin Bush went to work as an entry-level trainee at a regional, Boston-based brokerage firm, Moseley, Hallgarten, Estabrook & Weeden. "It was a great way for me to get my feet wet and learn about the industry," he says. .....[/quote]
[quote name='Tom Scully' date='16 August 2009 - 03:14 AM' timestamp='1250388852' post='171230']
This thread is developed from my post, yesterday, in the "Louis Mortimer Bloomfield" thread; http://educationforu...h...st&p=171209
In January 1982, NY Times reporter Raymond Bonner broke this story, simultaneous to it;s publication in the Washington Post:
[quote]http://www.nytimes.c...re-in-1981.html
Salvador Skeletons Confirm Reports of Massacre in 1981
By TIM GOLDEN,
Published: Thursday, October 22, 1992
In a small rectangular plot among the overgrown ruins of a village here, a team of forensic archeologists has opened a window on El Salvador's nightmarish past.
Two feet below the ground, a few tiny skeletons grin up almost intact from what was once the tile floor of the parish house. Other bones are crushed in places and caked with dirt, but they can be identified well enough to determine that they belong to at least 38 bodies.
It is also evident, the forensics experts say, that almost all of the remains are those of children. Nearby are other burial sites still to be unearthed. A Call for Justice
Nearly 11 years after American-trained soldiers were said to have torn through El Mozote and surrounding hamlets on a rampage in which at least 794 people were killed, the bones have emerged as stark evidence that the claims of peasant survivors and the reports of a couple of American journalists were true....
http://www.nytimes.c...-is-buried.html
Abroad at Home; When Truth Is Buried
By ANTHONY LEWIS
Published: Monday, November 23, 1992
The civil war in El Salvador is over now, a political settlement taking hold. Americans hardly remember when the Reagan Administration called the leftist rebels a critical threat to our national security.
But the American role in El Salvador did damage to our institutions and our honor that remains unrepaired. So we are reminded by a recent turn in an appalling piece of history.
On Jan. 27, 1982, correspondents of The New York Times and The Washington Post reported from the remote Salvadoran village of El Mozote that hundreds of civilians had been massacred there. Most were women, children and old men.
Raymond Bonner of The Times wrote that he had seen the skulls and bones of dozens of people buried under burned-out peasant houses. Alma Guillermopietro wrote a similar account for The Post.
A reporter just arrived on the scene could not know who killed them, Mr. Bonner said. But villagers nearby said an elite battalion of government forces had carried out the massacre the previous month. The villagers had a list of 733 victims. The Salvadoran Human Rights Commission put the number of dead at 926.
One woman in El Mozote, Rufina Amaya, said she had survived by hiding in some trees when the soldiers came. They killed her husband, who was blind, and her four children, aged 9, 5, 3 and 8 months.
Those newspaper reports evoked angry denials and denunciations. A Salvadoran military spokesman said the account of a massacre had been fabricated by "subversives."
The Reagan Administration, already embarrassed by Salvadoran death squads, was just as bristling. A week later Thomas Enders, Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs, told Congress:
"There is no evidence to confirm that [ Salvadoran ] Government forces systematically massacred civilians . . . or that the number of civilians killed even remotely approached the 733 or 926 victims cited in the press."
Mr. Enders supposedly based his statement on an investigation by two U.S. Embassy officials in El Salvador. But he did not make their report public, and he misrepresented what they said. They had never reached El Mozote, and they did not reject the report of a massacre.
The Reagan Administration did not rest with disingenuous denials. It did its best to smear the reporters.
Sad to say, this effort at smearing found a voice in the press itself. The editorial page of The Wall Street Journal, ideologically committed to the Reagan Administration and its view of what to do in El Salvador, ran an editorial 36 inches long headed "The Media's War."
The correspondents who reported the El Mozote massacre had been "overly credulous," the editorial suggested, and were taken in by a rebel "propaganda exercise."
"Much of the American media [ in El Salvador ] , it would seem," The Journal said, "was dominated by a style of reporting that grew out of Vietnam -- in which Communist sources were given greater credence than either the U.S. Government or the government it was supporting."
The Journal editorial had a significant effect. Other newspapers worried about looking soft on Communism and toned down their reporting from El Salvador.
The new turn in this story came last month, when a team of forensic archeologists digging in the ruins of El Mozote found dozens of skeletons. Most of them were of children. The archeologists said shell casings and other evidence supported the charge of a massacre by government troops.
The archeologists had to overcome strenuous resistance from the Salvadoran Government to do their investigation. It was only insistence by a three-member Truth Commission set up under the peace agreement that opened the way.
The Truth Commission has also had an extremely hard time getting cooperation from the United States Government. Many U.S. documents on the El Mozote massacre are still being withheld from the commission -- and from us.
Surely the time has come for Americans, like Salvadorans, to know the truth of what was done in our name. Perhaps even Tom Enders and the other officials who covered up horrors could face the truth. And the press could learn again how essential it is to be skeptical of convenient official denials.
http://en.wikipedia....Mozote_massacre
.....Backlash
Seeing the conflict as critical for a right-wing Central America, the Reagan administration was determined to give the Salvadoran government military assistance in defeating the FMLN. This was seriously complicated by the reports from El Mozote which appeared just as a new round of debate over the huge flow of money and arms being sent to El Salvador's armed forces was getting underway. Correspondingly, the reports drew immediate fire from Reagan administration officials and others on the US political right.
Salvadoran army and government leaders said no such massacre had taken place and officials of the Reagan's administration dismissed the reports as "gross exaggerations." The Associated Press reported that "the U.S. Embassy disputed the reports, saying its own investigation had found ... that no more than 300 people had lived in El Mozote."[5]
The conservative press-watch organization Accuracy in Media charged the newspapers and the reporters with conspiring to hold their stories until late January, just before President Reagan was required to certify that El Salvador's military forces were making progress in human rights in order to continue the subsidies. The reporters denied the charge.
Thomas Enders, then Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs, attacked Bonner and Guillermoprieto before a congressional committee, saying that although there had been a firefight between the army and the guerrillas in the area, "no evidence could be found to confirm that government forces systematically massacred civilians."
On February 8, Elliott Abrams, Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs, told a Senate committee that the reports of hundreds of deaths at El Mozote "were not credible", and that "it appears to be an incident that is at least being significantly misused, at the very best, by the guerrillas". Abrams implied that reports of a massacre were simply FMLN propaganda.
In February, in a lengthy editorial titled "The Media's War", the Wall Street Journal critiqued US press coverage of El Salvador, singling out Bonner as being "overly credulous", and accusing the Times of closing ranks "behind a reporter out on a limb". The Journal warned that the debate in Congress was being distorted from reality by Bonner's and Guillermoprieto's "overly credulous" reports of the massacre. It cited Enders' denial and charged that because the two reporters had visited El Mozote under the protection of guerrilla guides, "this was a propaganda exercise".
In Time Magazine, William A. Henry III wrote a month later: "An even more crucial if common oversight is the fact that women and children, generally presumed to be civilians, can be active participants in guerrilla war. New York Times correspondent Raymond Bonner underplayed that possibility, for example, in a much-protested January 27 report of a massacre by the army in and around the village of Mozote."'
Although attacked less vigorously than Bonner, Alma Guillermoprieto was also a target of criticism. A Reagan official wrote a letter to the Post claiming that she had once worked for a communist newspaper in Mexico. Guillermoprieto denied ever having working for any newspaper in Mexico and told that to editor Ben Bradlee when he questioned her in the newsroom.[citation needed]
In June 1982, after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee proposed cutting $100 million in military aid to El Salvador, US Ambassador Deane Hinton traveled to Washington to try to prevent the cutback. While he was there, he went out of his way to attack Bonner, particularly over the reporter's stories about the failure of El Salvador's land-reform program. Hinton denounced Bonner as an "advocate journalist".[6]
In late July, Accuracy in Media devoted an entire edition of its AIM Report to Bonner. Its editor Reed Irvine declared that "Mr. Bonner had been worth a division to the communists in Central America". Irvine made insinuations about Bonner's political sympathies, noting that he had once worked for Ralph Nader, omitting that he had been a Marine Corps officer in Vietnam, and all but calling him a communist agent.[7]
That August, Bonner was ordered to return to New York; he subsequently took a leave of office and left the newspaper shortly thereafter. The Post also recalled Guillermoprieto, promoting her to a staff position, and assigning her to cover suburban Washington. Guillermoprieto left the paper two years later.
In the course of the year, a number of Salvadoran human rights organizations denounced the massacre. The Salvadoran authorities continued to categorically deny that a massacre had taken place. No judicial investigation was launched and there was no word of any investigation by the government or the armed forces. Bonner later published a book on his experiences, Weakness and Deceit: U.S. Policy and El Salvador (1984), but in the intervening years the El Mozote story was slowly buried.
The Atlacatl Battalion went on to commit many more atrocities, including, nine years later, the murder of six Jesuits, their cook and her daughter in November 1989. Among the victims were the scholars Ignacio EllacurÃa, Ignacio MartÃn-Baró and Segundo Montes. Although the perpetrators tried to disguise the murders as the work of left-wing rebels, it soon became obvious that Atlacatl had been behind it, to universal condemnation. [8] After the El Mozote massacre, the Salvadoran army as a whole moved towards less brutal "hearts and minds" strategies in its attempts to undermine support for the FMLN.
[edit] Vindication
On 26 October 1990, a criminal complaint against the Atlacatl Battalion was filed by Pedro Chicas Romero of La Joya who had hidden in a cave above the hamlet as the soldiers killed his family and neighbors, and judicial proceedings were instituted. One of the first witnesses called to give testimony was Rufina Amaya, and the judge ordered remains to be exhumed.
In 1992, as part of the peace settlement established by the Chapultepec Peace Accords signed in Mexico City on January 16 of that year, a United Nations-sanctioned Commission on the Truth for El Salvador investigating human rights abuses committed during the war supervised the exhumations of the El Mozote remains by an Argentinian team of forensic specialists between November 17 and 17, 1992.....[/quote]
The question I ask now is whether news reporter, Raymond Bonner, set the stage for more than vindication against the sabotage of his career by the extreme right, in it's temporarily successful efforts to sabotage his career and to silence him?
I'm asking because I took notice of the names described in this 1955 wedding party, and of the names in this recent book:
[quote]http://news.google.c...w...n&scoring=a
Diplomats' Kin Usher at Barbara Pullman's Wedding Today
Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver - Oct 1, 1955
Others are Edwin Bohlln, whose uncle, Charles E. Bohlen, js- ambassador to ... broth- ers of the bride; Thomas Devine of Midland, Tex., Andre Rhe- ault and ...
http://news.google.c...w...n&scoring=a
Diplomats' Kin Usher at Barbara Pullman's Wedding Today
Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver - Oct 1, 1955
One of the young men is Alexander Aldrich, whose. father, Winthrop Aldrich, Is United States ambassador to Britain. Others are Edwin Bohlln, whose uncle, ...
http://www.nytimes.c...an-century.html
Published: November 2, 1986
THE WISE MEN Six Friends and the World They Made: Acheson, Bohlen, Harriman, Kennan, Lovett,
. By Walter Isaacson and Evan Thomas....
.....THERE are two things America is not supposed to have: an empire and a ruling class. ''The Wise Men'' takes the former for granted as a simple fact of international life, and explains through the lives of six privileged and powerful men how the latter works. The way these lives intertwined - through private schools, corporate board rooms and social clubs - and the way the United States became the inheritor of the postwar world provide the material of a fascinating, informative and ultimately disquieting study....
http://www.nytimes.c...mp;pagewanted=5
.....''The one thing about this group that is important is that they were a group,'' observed Evan Thomas, interviewed by phone from Washington, where he is now Newsweek bureau chief. ''They were friends, they reacted against each other, they shared a common bond of service. The group was greater than the sum of its parts.''
''It's certainly not good to have an elite that is dictating what America's role in the world should be,'' Mr. Isaacson said. ,,,,,,[/quote]
The groom in the 1955 wedding was Albert B. Carter Jr., employed by the CIA. We know that the ushers described above, Thomas Devine, and Andre Rheault were also CIA. Carter, Edwin Bohlen, and Rheault had all been Harvard classmates and fellow crew team members.
What I only suspected, but had no way of documenting, was this information about Edwin Upton Curtis "Buff" Bohlen, nephew of one of the "Six Wise Men," provided by Raymond Bonner in his 1993 book, "The Hand of Man", introduced for us in this description :
[quote]http://books.google....nG=Search Books
Cloak of green - Page 336
by Elaine Dewar - Political Science - 1995 - 497 pages
From 1981 until 1990, for example, WWF US had on its staff one EU Curtis Bohlen.
Bonner said that many years earlier Bohlen had been listed as an employee ...
....and excerpted from Raymond Bonner's - 1993 book, "The Hand of Man":
http://dss.ucsd.edu/...ca Besieged.pdf
THE WHITE MAN'S GAME
AFRICA BESIEGED
(starting from page 115....)
...... At WWF-US, the con
servationists and scientists were still prevailing in their fights with the
fund-raisers and Bohlen, and this pleased the International, where the
sentiment was strongly against a ban. The African Wildlife Foundation's
position was still that people should voluntarily refrain from buying ivory,
but the organization was not calling for a total ban.
The denouement, the shifts of positions, came fast, amidst heavy lob
bying and behind-the-scenes maneuvering. In the West, the outcome
might be viewed as the result of democracy at work, with governments
responding to public pressure. Many of the Mricans involved had never
seen anything quite like the way in which the pro-ban advocates got their
news into the press and lobbied, and they felt powerless to counter it.
They did not have the money or the political experience to engage in
public relations campaigns. To them it also looked like colonialism, the
will of the West being imposed.....
(page 124)
....It is almost certain that AWF
didn't realize what it was admitting-that in the history of conservation,
Mricans had been ignored-and even now it wasn't really prepared to
listen to Africans. At the time AWF called for a ban, no African govern
ment had done so, and never would there be a "will of the continent,"
which remained split over the issue; moreover, when Olindo expressed
views at odds with AWF, the organization would ignore him as well.
Across town, WWF also wanted to convey the image that it wasn't
acting like some latter-day colonial power, but it was not easy to make
the image conform to the reality. "A lot of behind-the-scenes work went
into making sure that Mricans got out front," Curtis Bohlen, the vice
president ofWWF-US, told me. He was unwilling to be more specific.
A massive behind-the-scenes effort was necessary not only to make it
look as if the Africans were out front, however.
It was also needed in order to get WWF-US and then the International to endorse a ban. And
E. U. Curtis Bohlen, whom just about everybody calls "Buff," was behind
it all, playing a role for which he was well suited.
Bohlen was born to a family in which commitment to public service
was ingrained. His own career has been overshadowed by that of his
uncle Charles E. "Chip" Bohlen, one of the "Wise Men" of the American
foreign policy establishment, who was probably best known for his stint
as ambassador to the Soviet Union. After graduating from Harvard and
fulfilling his military obligation in the army during the Korean War,
"Buff" Bohlen also went to work for the State Department. At least his
official biography says he worked for the State Department, from 1955
to 1969. But in fact he was working for the CIA, with the State Depart
ment as his cover; from 1955 to 1958 he was in Kabul, and after a time
back in Washington, he was sent to Cairo in 1960, where he remained
until 1963, according to the Biographic Register, the State Department's
annual publication listing its employees. (The department ceased making
the Register public in the mid-seventies, after journalists and others
discovered how easy it was to use it in order to determine who was
working for CIA.) What Bohlen did for the Agency between 1963 and
1969 is an even deeper, more highly classified secret, for his name
disappears from the Register after 1963; nor does it appear in the State
Department directories for those years, even though his public resume
says he remained at the department until 1969. Bohlen's conservation
career began in 1969, when Russell Train, the AWF founder who had
become Nixon's Under Secretary of the Interior, asked Bohlen to join
him. (Whether or not he had left the Agency is not known.) While at
Interior, Bohlen assisted in drafting the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species.
Bohlen joined WWF-US in 1981, as the director ofgovernment affairs,
a newly created position, which reflected the organization's transition
from one that did research and public education to one that thought it
was also necessary to lobby the government for environmental causes.
Some of the WWF staffobjected to Bohlen's being hired, because of his
CIA background. Many in the Third World have long been convinced
that WWF, both the International and the U.S. chapter, has links to the
CIA and Britain's MI-6.
It would be reasonable for the intelligence
agencies to try to use the conservation organization-after all, their
people get out into remote rural areas-and at least one WWF staff
officer was approached by the agency in the 1980s to provide regular
briefings. He declined. (In the major books about the Agency, nothing
has surfaced linking it to WWF, nor in my own research did I find any
connections other than the overture just noted.)
Bohlen was hired at WWF by Russell Train, who was its preSident.
The men were friends and "class" mates, good Republicans who had their
vacation homes on Maryland's Eastern Shore (along with other wealthy
and powerful folks from Washington, D.C.). At WWF, Bohlen operated
as the consummate inside politician; his door was closed most ofthe time,
and colleagues say he did everything by phone, careful to put almost
nothing in writing. He was a somewhat mysterious figure around WWF,
where colleagues would jokingly ask, "Has anyone seen Buff?" or
"Where's Buff?" He was a diplomat of sorts, steeped in intrigue, but he
knew virtually nothing about animals and less about Africa. "He's like
most of our members, I suppose," a WWF-US conservation officer ob
served ruefully.
If Bohlen had not decided that a ban was an appropriate response to
the poaching, WWF-US would almost certainly not have endorsed it.
And if the U.S. chapter had not, then the International would not have.
As critical as his role was, why Bohlen came to support a ban is not clear.
He is a cordial and gracious man, easy to like, but he is not an individual
who by personality or training is going to reveal the true reasons for his
thinking, particularly if they are likely to be controversial. He says he
supported a ban because of the weight of the scientific evidence-that
is, that without a ban, poaching would continue until the elephants
disappeared. But that is hard to accept, given that the overwhelming
majority of scientists and professional conservationists, including those
in his own organization, didn't reach that conclusion. Bohlen wasn't an
animal rights zealot; in fact, he believed in hunting and in sustainable
utilization, and while at the Interior Department he had opposed a
moratorium on commercial whaling and supported sport hunting ofMon
tana's grizzly bears, for which he was denounced by animal rights mili
tants. Nor did he always side with the fund-raisers at WWF, as, for
example, when he supported the right of Eskimos to continue hunting
fur seals. Even Bohlen's colleagues at WWF say they could not fathom
what was behind his position on the ivory ban. "Did he want to destabilize
Africa?" one asks, then quickly rejects the idea as "farfetched." "Was it
a favor to Janet?" the same colleague goes on. Bohlen's wife, Janet, is
the former public relations director at WWF-US who referred to the
elephant poaching as "genocide." .....[/quote][/quote][/quote][/quote]
[/quote]
Another member of the late '40's Harvard varsity crew was George Cabot Lodge, son of Henry, the 1952 and 1960 political race opponent of JFK. George ran unsuccessfully against Ted Kennedy in the 1962 Massachusetts campaign for U.S. Senate.
Quote
http://www.google.com/#q=harvard+taggart&hl=en&tbs=nws:1,cd_min:1940,cd_max:1949,cdr:1&source=lnt&psj=1&fp=4b6b349a02a4ee94
Harvard Crew Is Favored to Win Tenth in a Row From Yale...
- New York Times - Jun 25, 1948
Gordon C. Aymar Jr. I VARSITY [ Harvard -- Stroke. John C. Hutchinson: 7. R0b-I err D. Taggart: 6. George C. Lodge: 5,..
In a routine homicide investigation, certainly not one run by J. Edgar Hoover, Earl Warren, Gerald Ford, Allen Dulles and John McCloy, high stakes rivals, who also happened to be losers to the Kennedy brothers, would routinely have been questioned in the wake of the murder of JFK and asked to produce alibis. The negelect of investigators to perform even these routine inquiries is even more alarming when one considers that the murder of Kennedy came fresh on the heels of George Cabot's father, Henry's proximity to the murders of the brothers Diem and Nhu in Saigon.
These patricians, and all others, were spared the indignity of any investigative inquiries whatsoever, due to the almost immediate availability of a lone nut, cop killing, movie going, scapegoat whose arrest resulted in the exclusion of all others potentially of interest to the investigation.
George Cabot Lodge's role in the CIA sponsored, early '60s African op referred to in the linked excerpts below is explained more clearly at the bottom of page 4 of this image of the June 7, 1969 issue of the Black Panther party newspaper.:
Quote
http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:DXOoTs09iCwJ:www.itsabouttimebpp.com/BPP_Newspapers/pdf/Vol_III_No7_1969.pdf+george+cabot+Tom+Mboya&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiHlOt8hWHvypsScNUEE04rFoy-OpDcZwo2DpkkWGVTcm8Y35WSRjsOz3a6R9rxHP8utfweQhAk9Vvamrlg4Ya5Zoh03IJ_G9jhJFLlbRU4zaHoyqjeT3YKjeXf7gKrH0aMM_2M&sig=AHIEtbSOiak_RT_I0kP8rV0MCKuimLJn8g
Vol. 3 No. 7, 1969 - It's About Time - Black Panther Party Legacy ...
this Fund, George Cabot Lodge (Henry's son), explained the ... Tom Mboya in my tries to avoid the strike." [v. PEACE wmi rnuooml. NDEIIWRITING MBOYA mo HIS ...
www.itsabouttimebpp.com/BPP_Newspapers/pdf/Vol_III_No7_1969.pdf
Quote
http://www.google.com/search?tbs=bks%3A1&tbo=1&q=george+cabot+spearheads&btnG=Search+Books
The American labor heritage
William L. Abbott - 1967 - 114 pages - Snippet view
George Cabot Lodge said of ICFTU unions: They are frequently the spearhead in the drive for freedom, independence, social justice, reform, education and political liberty throughout the developing world... The obscure unionist of today ...
http://www.google.co...2222e274e2b1ccf
Dirty work 2: the CIA in Africa
Ellen Ray - 1979 - 523 pages - Snippet view
Relations study group which brought labor experts together with Cord Meyer Jr., the chief of the CIA's covert funding program. Speaking for the group, Lodge wrote: "The obscure trade unionist of today may well be the president or prime ...
Edited by Tom Scully, 27 November 2010 - 05:43 AM.
#42 Robert Howard
Super Member
Members
2,656 posts
Gender:Male
Posted 29 November 2011 - 01:11 AM
It seems there are some genealogy issues regarding Baron von Albensleben, so I am reposting an earlier post from this thread:
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
#43 William Kelly
Super Member
It seems there are some genealogy issues regarding Baron von Albensleben, so I am reposting an earlier post from this thread:
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
'Robert Howard', on 28 Nov 2011 - 8:11 PM, said:
It seems there are some genealogy issues regarding Baron von Albensleben, so I am reposting an earlier post from this thread:
Forum members might find the following post assassination news stories interesting, as they pertain to D.H. Byrd's safari.
From the Dallas Morning News January 9, 1964 Sec 3 Page 1
YOUNG HUNTRESS
Storybook Adventures Real
By Ann Donaldson
Society Editor of the News
Hollywood could not have picked the script: A German baron who attends safaris on a concession larger than the country of Belgium; his beautiful wife, a native African with the background of a famous old Portuguese family.
But Baron and Baroness W.V. Alvensleben of Lourenco Marques, Mozambique, are for real, and are in Dallas as guests of Col. D. Harold Byrd. Col. Byrd returned to Dallas three weeks ago from a hunt on the huge concession 1,000 kilometers north of the seaport
city of Lourenco Marques. THE CONCESSION, rented from the Portuguese government, can be reached by "bumpy roads that are agony to travel," or "charter plane---- there are two airstrips," says the olive-skinned baroness.
Clients are mostly American and have included Dr. Vander Davidson of Dallas and two Wichita Falls couples, Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Vincent and Mr. and Mrs. Steve Gose.
The baroness' father arrived in Mozambique in 1914 to practice law. He was married by proxy, and his wife came to Mozambique later. "My mother's parents had a fit says the former de Sousa Costa. Going to Africa was like going to the end of the world in those days."
Educated in Lourenco Marques and in Portugal, the baroness speaks perfect English she learned at a Portuguese convent and from tutors at her grandparents estate. She married Baron Alvensleben, former manager of a gold mine in Rhodesia, 18 years ago, often accompanies him on safaris.
THE FIRST ANIMAL she shot was the "sweet, harmless impala." and she has gotten to the stage where "I shoot, but feel sorry to kill. To satisfy a caprice of mine I'd, still like to shoot an elephant."
To hunt, the baroness wears khaki clothes, "so the animals won't see." Khaki hats, comfortable boots and sweaters for mornings and evenings during the cool months of June, July and August. Even though it's a sport, it's hard work, explains the tall, slender, brunette. "We rise at 4:00 A.M., because my husband likes it that way. It is a beauty to see the sun rise and the animals come out from under the trees. The fauna is the wealth of our nation"
Baron Alvensleben has also reached the stage where he prefers looking to shooting. The only animal they have mounted is the buffalo. You cant just put those heads anywhere. Anyway, when you are in contact with the animals you don't care about mounting them." The concession is closed during the hot rainy months, from Dec. 1 to April, and the Alvensleben's have been in the United States since the close of the season. Baroness Alvensleben, who speaks six languages (German, French, English, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese), has traveled all over the world but claims that "here in the United States is the largest quantity of beautiful girl's and women."
The baroness and baron accompanied Col and Mrs. Byrd to the ball Mr and Mrs N. J. DeSanders gave Saturday night for his debutante daughters Sue and Janet DeSanders.
"Above all, I am a woman," says the chic baroness. And I enjoyed seeing the elegant decorations, and the beautiful gowns.
From Dallas they will go to Wichita Falls. They were also in Las Vegas for the presentation of the Weatherby Trophy, to the best hunter of the year, presented December 7. "We are enchanted with our American friends and the kind hospitality they have shown us." says the baroness. "We have been to so many parties, that I have gained several pounds and lost much sleep."
When the baron and baroness return to Mozambique at the end of January, she will rest and "restore my energies."
From the January 19, 1964 Dallas Morning News
Baron Takes Look at Texas Hunters
By Kenneth Fores
Outdoor Editor of the News
He was tall enough to have been a basketball player, he had a scar on the left side of his face that ran from
his mouth to his ear and about which he volunteered nothing but he furnished a view of American hunters from the other side of the fence. From the white hunters side of the fence, that is, the men who take the American's hunting, who live with them for weeks, who often face death with then when they go up against mighty beasts.
He was Baron Werner Von Alvensleben, and although he used the broad A of the English, and last was lost and grass was gross, that von indicated Prussian descent and that long wicked scar could have come from a saber in a schoolboy fight. "Did that scar come from a African spear?" he was asked by this columnist. "No," he answered and began talking about American hunters, and the man was qualified for such, for Baron Von Alvensleben ("Just call me Werner," he said when Col. Harold D. Byrd introduced
him) arranged Byrd's recent African safari as director of Safarilandia had arranged many more and had watched many an American hunter. From a distant little or big corner, depending on how you look at it, of the world he came from Portuguese East Africa also curiously named Mozambique and from a beautiful and very modern city named Lourenco Marques Lo RAN soo Mer KASH in case your Portuguese aint grade A. Mozambique isn't a little corner of the world, being longer than Texas, 1,300 miles though only 400 miles wide, and in it there is an area, the Save Hunting Concession,leased to Mozambique Safari-
landia, Lda., of 34,000 square miles, or as big as Switzerland, said red-faced sandy-haired Baron Just-Call-Me-Werner. To spot Mozambique, it is that eastern coast of Africa just opposite Mozambique, which is
longer than Texas, too. In that Save Hunting Concession, where less than 10 per cent of the game is shot annually, being considerably under the natural increase and must be given the natives, Col Byrd and Dr. V.A. Davidson of Dallas shot 26 different species in a couple of weeks. Dr. Davidson got a 62-inch kudo, near the world record, and Byrd a 60-incher which is quite high,plus a 43-inch buffalo and a 41-inch sable which is in the record class.
Most of Mozambique Hunters Texan
But down to the interesting comments on how the tall Mozambique baron, who married a Portuguese lady of the first family, sees the men from this country who come wagging cannons. Firstly the Baron seemed quite qualified to speak of the Texas variety of American's, for he said "80 per cent of our hunters are Texans. Fifteen percent come from California and five per cent from the rest of the world." Then the baron added a slant. "One of my hunters George Gedek, speaks with a Texan drawl. He doesent knoaw anything else. He's only hunted with Texans you see." The he got onto the Texans. "Americans who come to our place are all sportsmen. All save one mon. There must be one bad egg everywhere, it seems but the great majority of Americans are good sportsmen. Then they are different from the hunters of other nations. They are much tougher. Most are used to rugged conditions. They have hunted Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alaska, where you have got to be able to take it. Such people find Africa comparatively easy." Then the man from Mozambique, where a three week safari costs $3,500 and a for week safari costs $ 4,100 in addition to transportation there, got onto guns. "American's believe in high powered rifles. Your American rifle, the Weatherby and the Winchester, are fine rifles. Europeans cawnt do as well, they dont have the rifles, or they dont have time, or the opportunity to practice. So Americans are much better shots. Your Herb Klein is a grond example."
And what do these American hunters want to shoot? "Texan's want a lion and leopard first," replied the Baron then a kudu, lostly the elephant. There is a tremendous argument as to the most dangerous onimal in Africa, No not the buff," he said to Byrd. "You can see him, the wounded lion or leopard is on you like lightning. The wounded leopard is the more dangerous of the two. Invariably it will attack. But I count the elephont as the most dangerous. An elephant is able to reason. My greatest friend and co-hunter Horst Rohe was killed by an elephant in 1952. Quite a few of my friends have been killed by them. Mechanized man is the only enemy the elephont has.
"Wally Johnson, Harold's white hunter, who has killed over 1,000 elephants, shot one six times last year, and it escaped into the bush. He was back there six months ago. That elephant attacked him. The wound scars proved it." It was but natural to ask a man who has lived in Mozambique for 17 years, or since the end of World War II, what his closest call has been.
"My narrowest escape," he replied was at Elm and St. Paul yesterday in front of the Athletic Club. This town is much more dangerous than the bush. Onimals dont do you any harm unless you or someone has wounded them. You cawnt say thot for Dallas drivers. Then he got back to American hunters
"American women are great sports and good shots. Mrs. Marty Gose of Wichita Falls killed everything with one shot. Mrs Jack O' Connor, wife of the Outdoor Life gun editor mostly, did the same. I have seen American women outshoot their husbands. "But there is one thing we do note. The only things Americans are afraid of are bugs. But by God they disinfect themselves with the amount of whiskey they drink. No mosquito would have a chance with them. They swerve off from them."
So, George deMohrenschildt wasn't the only Baron who shows up in the JFK saga. Whether there is any other interesting material from this 'peripheral to the assassination' aspect remains to be seen. A word of warning.....beware of assuming anything about the Baron, especially his political affiliations. In World War 2, the Baron apparently was imprisoned by the Nazi's, from what I understand....
But....... I do not have the book....But it is readily available.
See
It is said in one of Capstick's safari related books, that Albensleben recieved the lengthy scar "fencing in Heidelberg,"
http://www.booktrail...ica/baronin.asp
I wonder if the Alvensleben's were familiar with the Baron von Tscheppe-Weidenbach family, in the old country?
Robert,
Just as in the investigation of Oswald, I do not think the WC intended to make it plain what the actual political sentiments and commitments of DeMohrenschildt were. I think the proof of this is the omission of the name of the best man in the Pierson wedding, as the inclusion of it and questions about the man and DeMohrenschildt's relationship with him, most likely would have revealed too much about DeMohrenschildt's activities during WWII.
http://books.google....encies*"&f=true
New York Magazine - Mar 6, 1978 - Google Books Result
...Vol. 11, No. 10 - 88 pages - Magazine
He admitted to having worked for French counterintelligence, and had contacts in Polish, Finnish, and German intelligence agencies. He had also been ... I never found out who he was really working for.
DeMohrenschildt's best man, Wrede, was considered a member of a hostile Finnish legation:
http://educationforu...ndpost&p=172405
Quote
http://digicoll.libr...F...&isize=text
United States Department of State / Foreign relations of the United States diplomatic papers, 1942. Europe
Volume II (1942)
Finland, pp. 21-122
I took the opportunity then to inquire of Mr. Solanko as to the present whereabouts
of Mr. Wrede, an Attaché
Page 23
of the Legation, who, so far as I knew, has spent very few days in Washington
since his arrival in the United States. Mr. Solanko said that the Legation
had already gotten in touch with Mr. Wrede who was in New York and had instructed
him to return to Washington immediately. I did not suggest that the Legation
might countermand this instruction so as to permit Mr. Wrede to return at
a later date as in the case of Mr. Mikkola.
Mr. Solanko inquired whether we are acquainted with the precise details
of Finnish restrictions upon the movements of American consular and diplomatic
personnel in Finland. I said that I was not but that from what I knew of
those restrictions they were similar in effect to those communicated to the
Finnish Legation in its note under reference. We did not discuss this matter
further.....
What influence would make a woman so partisan she could not support her own son-in-law's campaign for the office of U.S. president? You should be able to discern quite a lot about any person by learning more about the friends they have chosen. In this sense, Oswald, DeMohrenschildt and JFK were all riddles in the most elaborate charade in U.S. history of criminal investigations.
You've been fed leading and softball questions all day by Accardo/Crown stooge Albert Jenner and you write that you are weary from it, so what better way to relax that evening (with no complaint), than by cooperating in an unethical Q&A with a WC commissioner, Allen Dulles?
Quote
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:1efcipXi_U0J:www.aarclibrary.org/publib/jfk/hsca/reportvols/vol12/pdf/HSCA_Vol12_deMohren.pdf+&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
HSCA Volume XII: George de Mohrenschildt
Page 176
222
We wondered why the Committee paid so much attention to the testimonies
of people who had known Lee and Marina in Dallas, long before the assassi-
nation or others who had known him long before that? And the answer was -
just to fill uo the pages and tranquillized American populace.
Jeanne dispute with Mrs. Hugh Auchincloss, Jacqueline Kennedy's mother
in the evening when we finished our deposition . .9eanne asked her:"why don'},
you, the relatives of our beloved President, you who so wealthy, why don't
you conduct a real investigation as to who was the rat who killed him?"
"But the rat was your friend Lee Harvey Oavald," was the cold answer.
Thus the mind of not only the membefs of the Committee but of President'
family were all made up.
Jenner kept asking me constantly - "why did Oavald like you and didn't
like anybody else?" As if there was some homosexual likk between us....
"I don't have the slightest idea, maybe because I liked him.. ."
"Maybe he liked you because you were a strong person?" Jenner asked
agaiq intimating that maybe a was a "wolf" or a devil influencing him to
do evil."Maybe he identified you as an internationalist?" Intimating again
some dark connections I might have.
"Maybe," I answered . "I am no admirer of any particular flag."
"You and your wife were the only ones who remained his friends? Con-
Page 177
tinued Jenner his line of inquiry.
This question was akked of both of us. And we answered both in about
the same terms:"to us they were warm, open, young people, responsive to
our hospitality ."
223
Albert Jenner the brought to my attention part of a letter I wrote
to Mrs. Auchincloss from Haiti. He used this as my admission of Lee's
guilt, and I had explained already under what circumstances this letter
was written. "since we lived in Dallas we had the misfortune to have met
Lee Harvey Osvald and his wife Marina. I do hope that Marina and her
children (now she has two by Lee) will not suffer too badly through life
d tha
the s
gma of the assassination will not affect her and the innocent
children ."
This was my foolish letter and my speculation, not Jeanne's.
And again, after the impact of this letter read to me, Jenner very
cleverly mamboozled me into a possible motive of Lee's guilt. "The only
reason for Lee's criminal act," I continued, "would be that he might have
been jealous of a young, rich, attractive presidentwho had a beautiful
wife and was a world figure . Lee was just the opposite ; his wife was
bitchy and he was a failure."
Page 178
224
Now, away from the pressures of the Committee, I consider this state-
ment of mine most unfair. It would not have made him a here to have shot
a liberal and beloved president, especially beloved by the minorities,
and Marina was not such a bitch, while Jacqueline was not so beautiful .
Especially she was not beautiful inside when she married that gangster of
international shippin Aristotle Onessis .
If you read the Warren Report, there is another leading question by
Jenner:"as a humanitarian person you cannot imagine anyone murdering ano-
ther person?" A childish, naive question, m f course .
"I cannot imagine doing it myself," I answered equally supidly, but at
least I did not express opinion about Lee's guilt.
Lee, an ex-Marine, trained for organized murder, was capable of killing)
but for a very strong ideological motive or in self-derence.
But a few more words about my letter to Mrs . Auchinclosa, Mrs. Kenne-
dy's mother . The copies of these letters were given Warren Committee by
Allen Dulles, her close friend, as well as the copies of her letters to
me. On January 29, 1964 she wrote to me :"it seems extraordinary,that you
knew Lee Harvey Osvald and Jacqueline as a child . It ceitainly is a strange
world . And I hope, like you do, that Lee Harvey Osvald's innocent children
Page 179
....Very tired by our testimonies, we were invited after our ordeal to
the luxurious house of Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her step-father,
Mr. Hugh Auchincloss. This luxurious home was located in Georgetown and
Auchlncloss' money originated of somm association of Hugh's family with
John D. Rockefeller, Sr, of the oil fame. We spoke about another coinci-
dence in our lives. I flew one day from Dallas to Washington and Mrs.
Hu3h Auchincloss happened to be on the same plane. She was flying from
some health-farm in Phenix, Arizona, where rich women stay on a diet, ex-
ercie and put themselves in an acceptable shape Again. This was the year
of presidential election and Mrs. Auchincloss, a staunch republican was
for Nixon and was sure than her son-in-law, JFK, did not have the slight-
est chance to win the elections.
I, on the other side, was sure that Kennedy would win the elections
and was going to vote democratic for the first time.
I told her that the mood of the country was for her charming son-in-
law, and she answered that I did not tnmderstand American politics ...
Eventually, we had to talk sadly about the assassination. Allan Dulles
was there also and he asked me a few astute questions about Lee.
One of them was, I remember, did Lee have a reason of hating President
Kennedy? However, when I answered that he was rather an admirer of the
dead President, everyone took my answer with a grain of salt . Again the
overwhelming opinion was that Lee was the sole assassin.
I was still thinking of poor Lee, comparing his life with the life of
these multi-millionnaires . I tried to reason - to no avail . It seemed to
me that I was facing a conspiracy, a conspiracy of stubborness and si-
lence....
Werner Von Alvensleben's father was imprisoned in 1934 and nearly executed by the Nazis. The Werner Von Alvensleben who hosted Byrd in Africa, died in Portugal in 1998. It is said he was briefly a prisoner of war, but escaped by digging under an electrified fence.
It is also written that the younger von Alvensleben was an OSS agent. He died in Portugal in 1998.
http://en.wikipedia....von_Alvensleben
...In 1909 he married Alexandra Gräfin von Einsiedel (1888-1947). Three daughters, Alexandra, Armgard and Anna Caroline Harriet were born to this marriage, as well as a son named Werner....
https://www.google.c...80&bih=781&bs=1
The SS, alibi of a nation, 1922-1945 - Page 68
books.google.com Gerald Reitlinger - 1989 - 528 pages - Preview
Schleicher used the same intermediary to approach Roehm as he had used to approach the army for a coup against Hitler in January 1933, a certain Werner von Alvensleben, whom Hitler referred to as 'Herr von A'. .
http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/1571570675
Baron in Africa: The Remarkable Adventures of an ...
www.amazon.com › Books › Biographies & Memoirs
Werner von Alvensleben came from a long line of German aristocrats, yet far ...Imprisoned in Zimbabwe during World War II, he escaped by digging underneath an electric fence in the rain and made his way ...
http://books.google....e ends.&f=false
Fragments of our time: memoirs of a diplomat - Page 46
books.google.com Martin Joseph Hillenbrand - 1998 - 414 pages - Preview
I obviously needed help and was fortunate to be able to enlist the services of Werner von Alvensleben, a white hunter and political refugee from Nazi Germany, who had been condemned to death in absentia. He had been working on dangerous missions for the OSS during the war and was now at loose ends. It turned out to be an association that was to lead us, when we arrived in postwar Germany, to some of the best and most enduring friendships of our lives. Werner worked untiringly, going through the archives of the consulate general, categorizing the various documents, and separating the wheat from the chaff. Some identified individuals and organizations with Nazi affiliations, both in Mozambique and in South Africa. I dutifully sent the interesting items back to Washington, but I never found out if they had served any useful purpose. I could not be surprised at the degree of South African involvement; many Boers seemed to have a natural affinity for the German cause. Our association with Werner and his lovely Portuguese wife, Bibla, caused some problems with the English and South African community in Lourenijo Marques. After all, he was a German, and no matter what his wartime record, it was not cricket to use him as we were doing. At first, the consul general joined us in efforts to rehabilitate him and his wife socially, but when the protests started, he quickly retreated, leaving Faith and me to take the flack. In any event, our time in Africa was coming to an ...
http://books.google....ortugal&f=false
The winds of havoc: a memoir of adventure and destruction in ... - Page 105
books.google.comAdelino Serras Pires, Fiona Claire Capstick - 2001 - 265 pages - Preview
over the entire field management of a company called Safarilandia from the controversial Werner von Alvensleben, the "Baron" who ... German-born Von Alvensleben, who died in Portugal in 1998, arrived in Mozambique under highly dramatic
Just as in the investigation of Oswald, I do not think the WC intended to make it plain what the actual political sentiments and commitments of DeMohrenschildt were. I think the proof of this is the omission of the name of the best man in the Pierson wedding, as the inclusion of it and questions about the man and DeMohrenschildt's relationship with him, most likely would have revealed too much about DeMohrenschildt's activities during WWII.
http://books.google....encies*"&f=true
New York Magazine - Mar 6, 1978 - Google Books Result
...Vol. 11, No. 10 - 88 pages - Magazine
He admitted to having worked for French counterintelligence, and had contacts in Polish, Finnish, and German intelligence agencies. He had also been ... I never found out who he was really working for.
DeMohrenschildt's best man, Wrede, was considered a member of a hostile Finnish legation:
http://educationforu...ndpost&p=172405
Quote
http://digicoll.libr...F...&isize=text
United States Department of State / Foreign relations of the United States diplomatic papers, 1942. Europe
Volume II (1942)
Finland, pp. 21-122
I took the opportunity then to inquire of Mr. Solanko as to the present whereabouts
of Mr. Wrede, an Attaché
Page 23
of the Legation, who, so far as I knew, has spent very few days in Washington
since his arrival in the United States. Mr. Solanko said that the Legation
had already gotten in touch with Mr. Wrede who was in New York and had instructed
him to return to Washington immediately. I did not suggest that the Legation
might countermand this instruction so as to permit Mr. Wrede to return at
a later date as in the case of Mr. Mikkola.
Mr. Solanko inquired whether we are acquainted with the precise details
of Finnish restrictions upon the movements of American consular and diplomatic
personnel in Finland. I said that I was not but that from what I knew of
those restrictions they were similar in effect to those communicated to the
Finnish Legation in its note under reference. We did not discuss this matter
further.....
What influence would make a woman so partisan she could not support her own son-in-law's campaign for the office of U.S. president? You should be able to discern quite a lot about any person by learning more about the friends they have chosen. In this sense, Oswald, DeMohrenschildt and JFK were all riddles in the most elaborate charade in U.S. history of criminal investigations.
You've been fed leading and softball questions all day by Accardo/Crown stooge Albert Jenner and you write that you are weary from it, so what better way to relax that evening (with no complaint), than by cooperating in an unethical Q&A with a WC commissioner, Allen Dulles?
Quote
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:1efcipXi_U0J:www.aarclibrary.org/publib/jfk/hsca/reportvols/vol12/pdf/HSCA_Vol12_deMohren.pdf+&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
HSCA Volume XII: George de Mohrenschildt
Page 176
222
We wondered why the Committee paid so much attention to the testimonies
of people who had known Lee and Marina in Dallas, long before the assassi-
nation or others who had known him long before that? And the answer was -
just to fill uo the pages and tranquillized American populace.
Jeanne dispute with Mrs. Hugh Auchincloss, Jacqueline Kennedy's mother
in the evening when we finished our deposition . .9eanne asked her:"why don'},
you, the relatives of our beloved President, you who so wealthy, why don't
you conduct a real investigation as to who was the rat who killed him?"
"But the rat was your friend Lee Harvey Oavald," was the cold answer.
Thus the mind of not only the membefs of the Committee but of President'
family were all made up.
Jenner kept asking me constantly - "why did Oavald like you and didn't
like anybody else?" As if there was some homosexual likk between us....
"I don't have the slightest idea, maybe because I liked him.. ."
"Maybe he liked you because you were a strong person?" Jenner asked
agaiq intimating that maybe a was a "wolf" or a devil influencing him to
do evil."Maybe he identified you as an internationalist?" Intimating again
some dark connections I might have.
"Maybe," I answered . "I am no admirer of any particular flag."
"You and your wife were the only ones who remained his friends? Con-
Page 177
tinued Jenner his line of inquiry.
This question was akked of both of us. And we answered both in about
the same terms:"to us they were warm, open, young people, responsive to
our hospitality ."
223
Albert Jenner the brought to my attention part of a letter I wrote
to Mrs. Auchincloss from Haiti. He used this as my admission of Lee's
guilt, and I had explained already under what circumstances this letter
was written. "since we lived in Dallas we had the misfortune to have met
Lee Harvey Osvald and his wife Marina. I do hope that Marina and her
children (now she has two by Lee) will not suffer too badly through life
d tha
the s
gma of the assassination will not affect her and the innocent
children ."
This was my foolish letter and my speculation, not Jeanne's.
And again, after the impact of this letter read to me, Jenner very
cleverly mamboozled me into a possible motive of Lee's guilt. "The only
reason for Lee's criminal act," I continued, "would be that he might have
been jealous of a young, rich, attractive presidentwho had a beautiful
wife and was a world figure . Lee was just the opposite ; his wife was
bitchy and he was a failure."
Page 178
224
Now, away from the pressures of the Committee, I consider this state-
ment of mine most unfair. It would not have made him a here to have shot
a liberal and beloved president, especially beloved by the minorities,
and Marina was not such a bitch, while Jacqueline was not so beautiful .
Especially she was not beautiful inside when she married that gangster of
international shippin Aristotle Onessis .
If you read the Warren Report, there is another leading question by
Jenner:"as a humanitarian person you cannot imagine anyone murdering ano-
ther person?" A childish, naive question, m f course .
"I cannot imagine doing it myself," I answered equally supidly, but at
least I did not express opinion about Lee's guilt.
Lee, an ex-Marine, trained for organized murder, was capable of killing)
but for a very strong ideological motive or in self-derence.
But a few more words about my letter to Mrs . Auchinclosa, Mrs. Kenne-
dy's mother . The copies of these letters were given Warren Committee by
Allen Dulles, her close friend, as well as the copies of her letters to
me. On January 29, 1964 she wrote to me :"it seems extraordinary,that you
knew Lee Harvey Osvald and Jacqueline as a child . It ceitainly is a strange
world . And I hope, like you do, that Lee Harvey Osvald's innocent children
Page 179
....Very tired by our testimonies, we were invited after our ordeal to
the luxurious house of Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her step-father,
Mr. Hugh Auchincloss. This luxurious home was located in Georgetown and
Auchlncloss' money originated of somm association of Hugh's family with
John D. Rockefeller, Sr, of the oil fame. We spoke about another coinci-
dence in our lives. I flew one day from Dallas to Washington and Mrs.
Hu3h Auchincloss happened to be on the same plane. She was flying from
some health-farm in Phenix, Arizona, where rich women stay on a diet, ex-
ercie and put themselves in an acceptable shape Again. This was the year
of presidential election and Mrs. Auchincloss, a staunch republican was
for Nixon and was sure than her son-in-law, JFK, did not have the slight-
est chance to win the elections.
I, on the other side, was sure that Kennedy would win the elections
and was going to vote democratic for the first time.
I told her that the mood of the country was for her charming son-in-
law, and she answered that I did not tnmderstand American politics ...
Eventually, we had to talk sadly about the assassination. Allan Dulles
was there also and he asked me a few astute questions about Lee.
One of them was, I remember, did Lee have a reason of hating President
Kennedy? However, when I answered that he was rather an admirer of the
dead President, everyone took my answer with a grain of salt . Again the
overwhelming opinion was that Lee was the sole assassin.
I was still thinking of poor Lee, comparing his life with the life of
these multi-millionnaires . I tried to reason - to no avail . It seemed to
me that I was facing a conspiracy, a conspiracy of stubborness and si-
lence....
Werner Von Alvensleben's father was imprisoned in 1934 and nearly executed by the Nazis. The Werner Von Alvensleben who hosted Byrd in Africa, died in Portugal in 1998. It is said he was briefly a prisoner of war, but escaped by digging under an electrified fence.
It is also written that the younger von Alvensleben was an OSS agent. He died in Portugal in 1998.
http://en.wikipedia....von_Alvensleben
...In 1909 he married Alexandra Gräfin von Einsiedel (1888-1947). Three daughters, Alexandra, Armgard and Anna Caroline Harriet were born to this marriage, as well as a son named Werner....
https://www.google.c...80&bih=781&bs=1
The SS, alibi of a nation, 1922-1945 - Page 68
books.google.com Gerald Reitlinger - 1989 - 528 pages - Preview
Schleicher used the same intermediary to approach Roehm as he had used to approach the army for a coup against Hitler in January 1933, a certain Werner von Alvensleben, whom Hitler referred to as 'Herr von A'. .
http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/1571570675
Baron in Africa: The Remarkable Adventures of an ...
www.amazon.com › Books › Biographies & Memoirs
Werner von Alvensleben came from a long line of German aristocrats, yet far ...Imprisoned in Zimbabwe during World War II, he escaped by digging underneath an electric fence in the rain and made his way ...
http://books.google....e ends.&f=false
Fragments of our time: memoirs of a diplomat - Page 46
books.google.com Martin Joseph Hillenbrand - 1998 - 414 pages - Preview
I obviously needed help and was fortunate to be able to enlist the services of Werner von Alvensleben, a white hunter and political refugee from Nazi Germany, who had been condemned to death in absentia. He had been working on dangerous missions for the OSS during the war and was now at loose ends. It turned out to be an association that was to lead us, when we arrived in postwar Germany, to some of the best and most enduring friendships of our lives. Werner worked untiringly, going through the archives of the consulate general, categorizing the various documents, and separating the wheat from the chaff. Some identified individuals and organizations with Nazi affiliations, both in Mozambique and in South Africa. I dutifully sent the interesting items back to Washington, but I never found out if they had served any useful purpose. I could not be surprised at the degree of South African involvement; many Boers seemed to have a natural affinity for the German cause. Our association with Werner and his lovely Portuguese wife, Bibla, caused some problems with the English and South African community in Lourenijo Marques. After all, he was a German, and no matter what his wartime record, it was not cricket to use him as we were doing. At first, the consul general joined us in efforts to rehabilitate him and his wife socially, but when the protests started, he quickly retreated, leaving Faith and me to take the flack. In any event, our time in Africa was coming to an ...
http://books.google....ortugal&f=false
The winds of havoc: a memoir of adventure and destruction in ... - Page 105
books.google.comAdelino Serras Pires, Fiona Claire Capstick - 2001 - 265 pages - Preview
over the entire field management of a company called Safarilandia from the controversial Werner von Alvensleben, the "Baron" who ... German-born Von Alvensleben, who died in Portugal in 1998, arrived in Mozambique under highly dramatic
Nemesis: The True Story of Aristotle Onassis, Jackie O, and the ... - Page 138
At the end of his testimony to the Warren Commisssion, de Mohrenschildt had received an extraordinary invitation from, as he put it in the book he was writing at the time of his death in 1977, “Jacqueline Kennedy’s mother and her stepfather, Mr Hugh Auchincloss,” to dine at their home in Georgetown. Apart from the Auchinclosses and de Mohrenschildt's wife, Jeanne, the only other known guest was the former CIA chief Allen Dulles.
They talked about the assassination; at one point, Janet Auchincloss wept and embraced Jeanne de Mohrenschildt; later
Dulles asked him a few astute questions about Lee (Harvey Oswald).” But as he was leaving that evening, Janet dropped
her hostess’s charm and told him coldly: “Incidentally, my daughter Jacqueline never wants to see you again because you were close to her husband’s assassin.”
I haven't mustered the enthusiasm to comment on the Archives of Willem Oltmans, I wouldn't believe a damn thing he
said, so why would I be interested in what he wrote? Read what Dick Russell wrote about GDM's trip to Europe with Willem,and you might see what I am getting at.....
BTW Has anyone looked into Oswald's subscription to Time Magazine, it expired in early December 1963....
The WC was so interested in.....how much money he was in possession of at the time, or some other reason
that there are a couple of WC Documents where Time Magazine was contacted regarding this.....
He wasn't making much money to be subscribing to Time Magazine, what with Marina and the kids and all.....
What would a poor ex-Marine be doing reading Time Magazine, and why would it matter how much money he was
making in July 1962?
I'm asking for a reason
#47 William Kelly
Super Member
Members
8,745 posts
Gender:Male
Posted 30 November 2011 - 02:32 AM
'Robert Howard', on 29 Nov 2011 - 7:26 PM, said:
'Tom Scully', on 29 Nov 2011 - 6:35 PM, said:
Robert,
Just as in the investigation of Oswald, I do not think the WC intended to make it plain what the actual political sentiments and commitments of DeMohrenschildt were. I think the proof of this is the omission of the name of the best man in the Pierson wedding, as the inclusion of it and questions about the man and DeMohrenschildt's relationship with him, most likely would have revealed too much about DeMohrenschildt's activities during WWII.
http://books.google......cies*"&f=true
New York Magazine - Mar 6, 1978 - Google Books Result
...Vol. 11, No. 10 - 88 pages - Magazine
He admitted to having worked for French counterintelligence, and had contacts in Polish, Finnish, and German intelligence agencies. He had also been ... I never found out who he was really working for.
DeMohrenschildt's best man, Wrede, was considered a member of a hostile Finnish legation:
http://educationforu...ndpost&p=172405
Quote
http://digicoll.libr...F...&isize=text
United States Department of State / Foreign relations of the United States diplomatic papers, 1942. Europe
Volume II (1942)
Finland, pp. 21-122
I took the opportunity then to inquire of Mr. Solanko as to the present whereabouts
of Mr. Wrede, an Attaché
Page 23
of the Legation, who, so far as I knew, has spent very few days in Washington
since his arrival in the United States. Mr. Solanko said that the Legation
had already gotten in touch with Mr. Wrede who was in New York and had instructed
him to return to Washington immediately. I did not suggest that the Legation
might countermand this instruction so as to permit Mr. Wrede to return at
a later date as in the case of Mr. Mikkola.
Mr. Solanko inquired whether we are acquainted with the precise details
of Finnish restrictions upon the movements of American consular and diplomatic
personnel in Finland. I said that I was not but that from what I knew of
those restrictions they were similar in effect to those communicated to the
Finnish Legation in its note under reference. We did not discuss this matter
further.....
What influence would make a woman so partisan she could not support her own son-in-law's campaign for the office of U.S. president? You should be able to discern quite a lot about any person by learning more about the friends they have chosen. In this sense, Oswald, DeMohrenschildt and JFK were all riddles in the most elaborate charade in U.S. history of criminal investigations.
You've been fed leading and softball questions all day by Accardo/Crown stooge Albert Jenner and you write that you are weary from it, so what better way to relax that evening (with no complaint), than by cooperating in an unethical Q&A with a WC commissioner, Allen Dulles?
Quote
http://webcache.goog...n&ct=clnk&gl=us
HSCA Volume XII: George de Mohrenschildt
Page 176
222
We wondered why the Committee paid so much attention to the testimonies
of people who had known Lee and Marina in Dallas, long before the assassi-
nation or others who had known him long before that? And the answer was -
just to fill uo the pages and tranquillized American populace.
Jeanne dispute with Mrs. Hugh Auchincloss, Jacqueline Kennedy's mother
in the evening when we finished our deposition . .9eanne asked her:"why don'},
you, the relatives of our beloved President, you who so wealthy, why don't
you conduct a real investigation as to who was the rat who killed him?"
"But the rat was your friend Lee Harvey Oavald," was the cold answer.
Thus the mind of not only the membefs of the Committee but of President'
family were all made up.
Jenner kept asking me constantly - "why did Oavald like you and didn't
like anybody else?" As if there was some homosexual likk between us....
"I don't have the slightest idea, maybe because I liked him.. ."
"Maybe he liked you because you were a strong person?" Jenner asked
agaiq intimating that maybe a was a "wolf" or a devil influencing him to
do evil."Maybe he identified you as an internationalist?" Intimating again
some dark connections I might have.
"Maybe," I answered . "I am no admirer of any particular flag."
"You and your wife were the only ones who remained his friends? Con-
Page 177
tinued Jenner his line of inquiry.
This question was akked of both of us. And we answered both in about
the same terms:"to us they were warm, open, young people, responsive to
our hospitality ."
223
Albert Jenner the brought to my attention part of a letter I wrote
to Mrs. Auchincloss from Haiti. He used this as my admission of Lee's
guilt, and I had explained already under what circumstances this letter
was written. "since we lived in Dallas we had the misfortune to have met
Lee Harvey Osvald and his wife Marina. I do hope that Marina and her
children (now she has two by Lee) will not suffer too badly through life
d tha
the s
gma of the assassination will not affect her and the innocent
children ."
This was my foolish letter and my speculation, not Jeanne's.
And again, after the impact of this letter read to me, Jenner very
cleverly mamboozled me into a possible motive of Lee's guilt. "The only
reason for Lee's criminal act," I continued, "would be that he might have
been jealous of a young, rich, attractive presidentwho had a beautiful
wife and was a world figure . Lee was just the opposite ; his wife was
bitchy and he was a failure."
Page 178
224
Now, away from the pressures of the Committee, I consider this state-
ment of mine most unfair. It would not have made him a here to have shot
a liberal and beloved president, especially beloved by the minorities,
and Marina was not such a bitch, while Jacqueline was not so beautiful .
Especially she was not beautiful inside when she married that gangster of
international shippin Aristotle Onessis .
If you read the Warren Report, there is another leading question by
Jenner:"as a humanitarian person you cannot imagine anyone murdering ano-
ther person?" A childish, naive question, m f course .
"I cannot imagine doing it myself," I answered equally supidly, but at
least I did not express opinion about Lee's guilt.
Lee, an ex-Marine, trained for organized murder, was capable of killing)
but for a very strong ideological motive or in self-derence.
But a few more words about my letter to Mrs . Auchinclosa, Mrs. Kenne-
dy's mother . The copies of these letters were given Warren Committee by
Allen Dulles, her close friend, as well as the copies of her letters to
me. On January 29, 1964 she wrote to me :"it seems extraordinary,that you
knew Lee Harvey Osvald and Jacqueline as a child . It ceitainly is a strange
world . And I hope, like you do, that Lee Harvey Osvald's innocent children
Page 179
....Very tired by our testimonies, we were invited after our ordeal to
the luxurious house of Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her step-father,
Mr. Hugh Auchincloss. This luxurious home was located in Georgetown and
Auchlncloss' money originated of somm association of Hugh's family with
John D. Rockefeller, Sr, of the oil fame. We spoke about another coinci-
dence in our lives. I flew one day from Dallas to Washington and Mrs.
Hu3h Auchincloss happened to be on the same plane. She was flying from
some health-farm in Phenix, Arizona, where rich women stay on a diet, ex-
ercie and put themselves in an acceptable shape Again. This was the year
of presidential election and Mrs. Auchincloss, a staunch republican was
for Nixon and was sure than her son-in-law, JFK, did not have the slight-
est chance to win the elections.
I, on the other side, was sure that Kennedy would win the elections
and was going to vote democratic for the first time.
I told her that the mood of the country was for her charming son-in-
law, and she answered that I did not tnmderstand American politics ...
Eventually, we had to talk sadly about the assassination. Allan Dulles
was there also and he asked me a few astute questions about Lee.
One of them was, I remember, did Lee have a reason of hating President
Kennedy? However, when I answered that he was rather an admirer of the
dead President, everyone took my answer with a grain of salt . Again the
overwhelming opinion was that Lee was the sole assassin.
I was still thinking of poor Lee, comparing his life with the life of
these multi-millionnaires . I tried to reason - to no avail . It seemed to
me that I was facing a conspiracy, a conspiracy of stubborness and si-
lence....
Werner Von Alvensleben's father was imprisoned in 1934 and nearly executed by the Nazis. The Werner Von Alvensleben who hosted Byrd in Africa, died in Portugal in 1998. It is said he was briefly a prisoner of war, but escaped by digging under an electrified fence.
It is also written that the younger von Alvensleben was an OSS agent. He died in Portugal in 1998.
http://en.wikipedia....von_Alvensleben
...In 1909 he married Alexandra Gräfin von Einsiedel (1888-1947). Three daughters, Alexandra, Armgard and Anna Caroline Harriet were born to this marriage, as well as a son named Werner....
https://www.google.c...80&bih=781&bs=1
The SS, alibi of a nation, 1922-1945 - Page 68
books.google.com Gerald Reitlinger - 1989 - 528 pages - Preview
Schleicher used the same intermediary to approach Roehm as he had used to approach the army for a coup against Hitler in January 1933, a certain Werner von Alvensleben, whom Hitler referred to as 'Herr von A'. .
http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/1571570675
Baron in Africa: The Remarkable Adventures of an ...
www.amazon.com › Books › Biographies & Memoirs
Werner von Alvensleben came from a long line of German aristocrats, yet far ...Imprisoned in Zimbabwe during World War II, he escaped by digging underneath an electric fence in the rain and made his way ...
http://books.google....20ends.&f=false
Fragments of our time: memoirs of a diplomat - Page 46
books.google.com Martin Joseph Hillenbrand - 1998 - 414 pages - Preview
I obviously needed help and was fortunate to be able to enlist the services of Werner von Alvensleben, a white hunter and political refugee from Nazi Germany, who had been condemned to death in absentia. He had been working on dangerous missions for the OSS during the war and was now at loose ends. It turned out to be an association that was to lead us, when we arrived in postwar Germany, to some of the best and most enduring friendships of our lives. Werner worked untiringly, going through the archives of the consulate general, categorizing the various documents, and separating the wheat from the chaff. Some identified individuals and organizations with Nazi affiliations, both in Mozambique and in South Africa. I dutifully sent the interesting items back to Washington, but I never found out if they had served any useful purpose. I could not be surprised at the degree of South African involvement; many Boers seemed to have a natural affinity for the German cause. Our association with Werner and his lovely Portuguese wife, Bibla, caused some problems with the English and South African community in Lourenijo Marques. After all, he was a German, and no matter what his wartime record, it was not cricket to use him as we were doing. At first, the consul general joined us in efforts to rehabilitate him and his wife socially, but when the protests started, he quickly retreated, leaving Faith and me to take the flack. In any event, our time in Africa was coming to an ...
http://books.google....ortugal&f=false
The winds of havoc: a memoir of adventure and destruction in ... - Page 105
books.google.comAdelino Serras Pires, Fiona Claire Capstick - 2001 - 265 pages - Preview
over the entire field management of a company called Safarilandia from the controversial Werner von Alvensleben, the "Baron" who ... German-born Von Alvensleben, who died in Portugal in 1998, arrived in Mozambique under highly dramatic
Nemesis: The True Story of Aristotle Onassis, Jackie O, and the ... - Page 138
At the end of his testimony to the Warren Commisssion, de Mohrenschildt had received an extraordinary invitation from, as he put it in the book he was writing at the time of his death in 1977, "Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her stepfather, Mr Hugh Auchincloss," to dine at their home in Georgetown. Apart from the Auchinclosses and de Mohrenschildt's wife, Jeanne, the only other known guest was the former CIA chief Allen Dulles.
They talked about the assassination; at one point, Janet Auchincloss wept and embraced Jeanne de Mohrenschildt; later
Dulles asked him a few astute questions about Lee (Harvey Oswald)." But as he was leaving that evening, Janet dropped
her hostess's charm and told him coldly: "Incidentally, my daughter Jacqueline never wants to see you again because you were close to her husband's assassin."
I haven't mustered the enthusiasm to comment on the Archives of Willem Oltmans, I wouldn't believe a damn thing he
said, so why would I be interested in what he wrote? Read what Dick Russell wrote about GDM's trip to Europe with Willem,and you might see what I am getting at.....
BTW Has anyone looked into Oswald's subscription to Time Magazine, it expired in early December 1963....
The WC was so interested in.....how much money he was in possession of at the time, or some other reason
that there are a couple of WC Documents where Time Magazine was contacted regarding this.....
He wasn't making much money to be subscribing to Time Magazine, what with Marina and the kids and all.....
What would a poor ex-Marine be doing reading Time Magazine, and why would it matter how much money he was
making in July 1962?
I'm asking for a reason
One reason to subscribe to Time was so that they - Time-Life - Luce et al - had his address.
Just as in the investigation of Oswald, I do not think the WC intended to make it plain what the actual political sentiments and commitments of DeMohrenschildt were. I think the proof of this is the omission of the name of the best man in the Pierson wedding, as the inclusion of it and questions about the man and DeMohrenschildt's relationship with him, most likely would have revealed too much about DeMohrenschildt's activities during WWII.
http://books.google......cies*"&f=true
New York Magazine - Mar 6, 1978 - Google Books Result
...Vol. 11, No. 10 - 88 pages - Magazine
He admitted to having worked for French counterintelligence, and had contacts in Polish, Finnish, and German intelligence agencies. He had also been ... I never found out who he was really working for.
DeMohrenschildt's best man, Wrede, was considered a member of a hostile Finnish legation:
http://educationforu...ndpost&p=172405
Quote
http://digicoll.libr...F...&isize=text
United States Department of State / Foreign relations of the United States diplomatic papers, 1942. Europe
Volume II (1942)
Finland, pp. 21-122
I took the opportunity then to inquire of Mr. Solanko as to the present whereabouts
of Mr. Wrede, an Attaché
Page 23
of the Legation, who, so far as I knew, has spent very few days in Washington
since his arrival in the United States. Mr. Solanko said that the Legation
had already gotten in touch with Mr. Wrede who was in New York and had instructed
him to return to Washington immediately. I did not suggest that the Legation
might countermand this instruction so as to permit Mr. Wrede to return at
a later date as in the case of Mr. Mikkola.
Mr. Solanko inquired whether we are acquainted with the precise details
of Finnish restrictions upon the movements of American consular and diplomatic
personnel in Finland. I said that I was not but that from what I knew of
those restrictions they were similar in effect to those communicated to the
Finnish Legation in its note under reference. We did not discuss this matter
further.....
What influence would make a woman so partisan she could not support her own son-in-law's campaign for the office of U.S. president? You should be able to discern quite a lot about any person by learning more about the friends they have chosen. In this sense, Oswald, DeMohrenschildt and JFK were all riddles in the most elaborate charade in U.S. history of criminal investigations.
You've been fed leading and softball questions all day by Accardo/Crown stooge Albert Jenner and you write that you are weary from it, so what better way to relax that evening (with no complaint), than by cooperating in an unethical Q&A with a WC commissioner, Allen Dulles?
Quote
http://webcache.goog...n&ct=clnk&gl=us
HSCA Volume XII: George de Mohrenschildt
Page 176
222
We wondered why the Committee paid so much attention to the testimonies
of people who had known Lee and Marina in Dallas, long before the assassi-
nation or others who had known him long before that? And the answer was -
just to fill uo the pages and tranquillized American populace.
Jeanne dispute with Mrs. Hugh Auchincloss, Jacqueline Kennedy's mother
in the evening when we finished our deposition . .9eanne asked her:"why don'},
you, the relatives of our beloved President, you who so wealthy, why don't
you conduct a real investigation as to who was the rat who killed him?"
"But the rat was your friend Lee Harvey Oavald," was the cold answer.
Thus the mind of not only the membefs of the Committee but of President'
family were all made up.
Jenner kept asking me constantly - "why did Oavald like you and didn't
like anybody else?" As if there was some homosexual likk between us....
"I don't have the slightest idea, maybe because I liked him.. ."
"Maybe he liked you because you were a strong person?" Jenner asked
agaiq intimating that maybe a was a "wolf" or a devil influencing him to
do evil."Maybe he identified you as an internationalist?" Intimating again
some dark connections I might have.
"Maybe," I answered . "I am no admirer of any particular flag."
"You and your wife were the only ones who remained his friends? Con-
Page 177
tinued Jenner his line of inquiry.
This question was akked of both of us. And we answered both in about
the same terms:"to us they were warm, open, young people, responsive to
our hospitality ."
223
Albert Jenner the brought to my attention part of a letter I wrote
to Mrs. Auchincloss from Haiti. He used this as my admission of Lee's
guilt, and I had explained already under what circumstances this letter
was written. "since we lived in Dallas we had the misfortune to have met
Lee Harvey Osvald and his wife Marina. I do hope that Marina and her
children (now she has two by Lee) will not suffer too badly through life
d tha
the s
gma of the assassination will not affect her and the innocent
children ."
This was my foolish letter and my speculation, not Jeanne's.
And again, after the impact of this letter read to me, Jenner very
cleverly mamboozled me into a possible motive of Lee's guilt. "The only
reason for Lee's criminal act," I continued, "would be that he might have
been jealous of a young, rich, attractive presidentwho had a beautiful
wife and was a world figure . Lee was just the opposite ; his wife was
bitchy and he was a failure."
Page 178
224
Now, away from the pressures of the Committee, I consider this state-
ment of mine most unfair. It would not have made him a here to have shot
a liberal and beloved president, especially beloved by the minorities,
and Marina was not such a bitch, while Jacqueline was not so beautiful .
Especially she was not beautiful inside when she married that gangster of
international shippin Aristotle Onessis .
If you read the Warren Report, there is another leading question by
Jenner:"as a humanitarian person you cannot imagine anyone murdering ano-
ther person?" A childish, naive question, m f course .
"I cannot imagine doing it myself," I answered equally supidly, but at
least I did not express opinion about Lee's guilt.
Lee, an ex-Marine, trained for organized murder, was capable of killing)
but for a very strong ideological motive or in self-derence.
But a few more words about my letter to Mrs . Auchinclosa, Mrs. Kenne-
dy's mother . The copies of these letters were given Warren Committee by
Allen Dulles, her close friend, as well as the copies of her letters to
me. On January 29, 1964 she wrote to me :"it seems extraordinary,that you
knew Lee Harvey Osvald and Jacqueline as a child . It ceitainly is a strange
world . And I hope, like you do, that Lee Harvey Osvald's innocent children
Page 179
....Very tired by our testimonies, we were invited after our ordeal to
the luxurious house of Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her step-father,
Mr. Hugh Auchincloss. This luxurious home was located in Georgetown and
Auchlncloss' money originated of somm association of Hugh's family with
John D. Rockefeller, Sr, of the oil fame. We spoke about another coinci-
dence in our lives. I flew one day from Dallas to Washington and Mrs.
Hu3h Auchincloss happened to be on the same plane. She was flying from
some health-farm in Phenix, Arizona, where rich women stay on a diet, ex-
ercie and put themselves in an acceptable shape Again. This was the year
of presidential election and Mrs. Auchincloss, a staunch republican was
for Nixon and was sure than her son-in-law, JFK, did not have the slight-
est chance to win the elections.
I, on the other side, was sure that Kennedy would win the elections
and was going to vote democratic for the first time.
I told her that the mood of the country was for her charming son-in-
law, and she answered that I did not tnmderstand American politics ...
Eventually, we had to talk sadly about the assassination. Allan Dulles
was there also and he asked me a few astute questions about Lee.
One of them was, I remember, did Lee have a reason of hating President
Kennedy? However, when I answered that he was rather an admirer of the
dead President, everyone took my answer with a grain of salt . Again the
overwhelming opinion was that Lee was the sole assassin.
I was still thinking of poor Lee, comparing his life with the life of
these multi-millionnaires . I tried to reason - to no avail . It seemed to
me that I was facing a conspiracy, a conspiracy of stubborness and si-
lence....
Werner Von Alvensleben's father was imprisoned in 1934 and nearly executed by the Nazis. The Werner Von Alvensleben who hosted Byrd in Africa, died in Portugal in 1998. It is said he was briefly a prisoner of war, but escaped by digging under an electrified fence.
It is also written that the younger von Alvensleben was an OSS agent. He died in Portugal in 1998.
http://en.wikipedia....von_Alvensleben
...In 1909 he married Alexandra Gräfin von Einsiedel (1888-1947). Three daughters, Alexandra, Armgard and Anna Caroline Harriet were born to this marriage, as well as a son named Werner....
https://www.google.c...80&bih=781&bs=1
The SS, alibi of a nation, 1922-1945 - Page 68
books.google.com Gerald Reitlinger - 1989 - 528 pages - Preview
Schleicher used the same intermediary to approach Roehm as he had used to approach the army for a coup against Hitler in January 1933, a certain Werner von Alvensleben, whom Hitler referred to as 'Herr von A'. .
http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/1571570675
Baron in Africa: The Remarkable Adventures of an ...
www.amazon.com › Books › Biographies & Memoirs
Werner von Alvensleben came from a long line of German aristocrats, yet far ...Imprisoned in Zimbabwe during World War II, he escaped by digging underneath an electric fence in the rain and made his way ...
http://books.google....20ends.&f=false
Fragments of our time: memoirs of a diplomat - Page 46
books.google.com Martin Joseph Hillenbrand - 1998 - 414 pages - Preview
I obviously needed help and was fortunate to be able to enlist the services of Werner von Alvensleben, a white hunter and political refugee from Nazi Germany, who had been condemned to death in absentia. He had been working on dangerous missions for the OSS during the war and was now at loose ends. It turned out to be an association that was to lead us, when we arrived in postwar Germany, to some of the best and most enduring friendships of our lives. Werner worked untiringly, going through the archives of the consulate general, categorizing the various documents, and separating the wheat from the chaff. Some identified individuals and organizations with Nazi affiliations, both in Mozambique and in South Africa. I dutifully sent the interesting items back to Washington, but I never found out if they had served any useful purpose. I could not be surprised at the degree of South African involvement; many Boers seemed to have a natural affinity for the German cause. Our association with Werner and his lovely Portuguese wife, Bibla, caused some problems with the English and South African community in Lourenijo Marques. After all, he was a German, and no matter what his wartime record, it was not cricket to use him as we were doing. At first, the consul general joined us in efforts to rehabilitate him and his wife socially, but when the protests started, he quickly retreated, leaving Faith and me to take the flack. In any event, our time in Africa was coming to an ...
http://books.google....ortugal&f=false
The winds of havoc: a memoir of adventure and destruction in ... - Page 105
books.google.com Adelino Serras Pires, Fiona Claire Capstick - 2001 - 265 pages - Preview
over the entire field management of a company called Safarilandia from the controversial Werner von Alvensleben, the "Baron" who ... German-born Von Alvensleben, who died in Portugal in 1998, arrived in Mozambique under highly dramatic
Nemesis: The True Story of Aristotle Onassis, Jackie O, and the ... - Page 138
At the end of his testimony to the Warren Commisssion, de Mohrenschildt had received an extraordinary invitation from, as he put it in the book he was writing at the time of his death in 1977, "Jacqueline Kennedy's mother and her stepfather, Mr Hugh Auchincloss," to dine at their home in Georgetown. Apart from the Auchinclosses and de Mohrenschildt's wife, Jeanne, the only other known guest was the former CIA chief Allen Dulles.
They talked about the assassination; at one point, Janet Auchincloss wept and embraced Jeanne de Mohrenschildt; later
Dulles asked him a few astute questions about Lee (Harvey Oswald)." But as he was leaving that evening, Janet dropped
her hostess's charm and told him coldly: "Incidentally, my daughter Jacqueline never wants to see you again because you were close to her husband's assassin."
I haven't mustered the enthusiasm to comment on the Archives of Willem Oltmans, I wouldn't believe a damn thing he
said, so why would I be interested in what he wrote? Read what Dick Russell wrote about GDM's trip to Europe with Willem,and you might see what I am getting at.....
BTW Has anyone looked into Oswald's subscription to Time Magazine, it expired in early December 1963....
The WC was so interested in.....how much money he was in possession of at the time, or some other reason
that there are a couple of WC Documents where Time Magazine was contacted regarding this.....
He wasn't making much money to be subscribing to Time Magazine, what with Marina and the kids and all.....
What would a poor ex-Marine be doing reading Time Magazine, and why would it matter how much money he was
making in July 1962?
I'm asking for a reason
Robert,
One reason to subscribe to Time was so that they - Time-Life - Luce et al - had his address.
BK
#49 David Andrews
Super Member
One reason to subscribe to Time was so that they - Time-Life - Luce et al - had his address.
It's just cynical enough to be possible, with Oz smirking at the free subscription as a job perk. Tempting.
Just found this. D. H. Byrd in his CAP uniform:
David Harold Byrd CAP.jpg
Thanks stephen, good one, here are a few, showing some re info mentioned within John's post.fwtaw...take care b...
Joan Mellen, professor of English, Tulane University,on the role of Big Texas Oil and the career of one George Herbert Walker Poppy Doc CIA Head MoFo in Dallas on 22 November 1963 Bush
"Among those who benefited immediately from the removal of President Kennedy and the ascendancy of Lyndon Johnson was a fabulously successful wildcatter named David Harold, also known as D.H. for “dry hole” Byrd. (Not all the holes, of course, were dry). Byrd's company LTV was about to go under. In early November, 1963, Byrd and a partner, James Ling, bought a sizable amount of outstanding LTV stock. Then LTV received the first defense contract from the Pentagon – for a fighter plane – accompanying the escalation of the war in Vietnam that was the direct result of the Kennedy assassination. Although that airplane was not ultimately built, LTV stock soared. As Byrd writes in his autobiography, “I've run fifty-two companies, many of them in no way connected with oil.” The man who brought George H. W. Bush west from Connecticut to Texas was named Neil Mallon, another of Byrd's partners.
Other Texas companies saved by the Vietnam War were Halliburton and Brown and Root, which Halliburton had purchased in – 1962. The Browns, even Herman, who began by hating Lyndon's New Deal tendencies, were Johnson's primary financial benefactors, as Robert Caro has shown. It was through my own research into Jim Garrison's New Orleans investigation that I found a 1967 CIA document revealing that George Brown was a CIA asset, and none of the historians have noticed that.
SOURCE:
http://www.commongroundcommonsense.org/forums/lofiversi...
This may be redundant, but I will post it in case there are some extra nuggets: http://www.washingto...6-3519r/?page=2
Famed ‘Oswald window’
DALLAS
They congregate here, almost every day, at Dealey Plaza -- pointing, squinting and photographing that window.
Hundreds of thousands annually, from all over the world, want and get a personal memento of that tragic November 1963 day.
"He was right there," said a young tourist from Japan last weekend, aiming his digital camera at the sixth-floor window on the southeast side of what used to be called the Texas School Book Depository building.
"Right there, in that window, with his rifle resting on the window sill," said 16-year-old Ochi Taguchi to several travel companions, adding convincingly, "You can almost feel the presence."
What sort of presence emanates from that building -- now the home of Dallas County government, its top two floors a museum -- it isn't because that is "the" window.
The window that today depicts the spot where Lee Harvey Oswald sat poised with his cheap Mannlicher-Carcano rifle on Nov. 22, 1963, is, not the same one that Oswald leaned against to line up the deadly shots that killed President Kennedy.
In fact, none of the original windows remain in the building -- once said to be more photographed than the Wall of China, the Eiffel Tower or other such attractions. All are gone, replaced with modern, more weather-friendly windows.
Many windows were switched several years after the assassination as the building lay empty and dormant. After many tourists and JFK aficionados slipped inside and scraped off chunks or strips of several window frames, some from the rear of the building were switched to the front. Nobody ever kept a record of which windows ended up where.
So if that isn't the window, where is the actual one?
"It's either in Nashville with Aubrey Mayhew, or it's the one owned by the D. Harold Byrd family," said Gary Mack, curator of the acclaimed Sixth Floor Museum in Dealey Plaza. "We're not sure, because we haven't been able to scientifically examine what Mr. Mayhew has."
Told of rumors that a third "Oswald window" might be out there, Mr. Mack replied: "Well, I hadn't heard about that before."
The question of what happened to the Texas School Book Depository (TSBD) windows is entwined in the building's history and the attitudes held by many civic leaders of Dallas after the JFK assassination.
D. Harold Byrd, a wealthy oilman whose family accumulated a large portion of downtown Dallas property in the early 1900s, was heavily involved in behind-the-scenes Dallas politics.
Among his other vast holdings, he owned the TSBD, buying it at auction in 1939 for $35,000. In 1963, he was leasing out most of it to publishing houses.
After Kennedy's murder, many Dallas leaders hoped the nation and world would forget what happened here. More than one civic leader suggested the building be torn down. "If they don't show it on TV all the time, it won't be reminding everybody. Demolish it," cried one city council member.
Finally, tired of the public squabbling, Mr. Byrd sold the building for $460,000 to Mr. Mayhew, a Nashville, Tenn., music producer.
Mr. Mayhew came to town, promising that eventually his new building would house a JFK museum. He already had collected considerable Kennedy memorabilia and had others who wanted to co-sponsor the museum, he said.
The Tennessean's ideas didn't set well with many locals, who shunned the new businessman and publicly berated his plans. He said the Dallas business establishment pressured a bank to foreclose on the deal, handing the building back to Mr. Byrd.
Mr. Byrd told friends, including the president of the Dallas Morning News at the time, that he had quietly removed the southeast corner window and briefly stored it. Later he displayed it in his home, where it became the centerpiece of many social gatherings.
Mr. Byrd's son, Caruth, took control of that window after his father's death. And it has been on display for years at the Sixth Floor Museum.
But Mr. Mayhew, after abandoning his Dallas plans, announced from Nashville that he had had the window removed and had it stored safely in Nashville. Mr. Mayhew claims he still has his window in Tennessee.
Recently, however, a third person has claimed that he has the "real" corner window from the book depository, stored in a local warehouse since he hired a crew to salvage it when the building's windows were replaced years ago.
Farris Rookstool III, 45, a former FBI employee, said when he got word new windows were going to be installed, he contacted Dallas County officials -- the county had since bought the building from Mr. Byrd -- and was told he could have them all, if he would pay to have them hauled away.
Aware that some of the windows had been switched over the years, Mr. Rookstool ordered his workers to gather all the windows from the building and deliver them to a Dallas warehouse.
"I thought if I had them all, we could determine later scientifically, which was the specific one," he said.
"Today, I couldn't walk in there and pick out the exact one," he added, "but there are many good photographs that will show marks that will make identification precise."
He said he had never tried to sell his "Oswald window."
What about the rival claims of Messrs. Byrd and Mayhew?
The Byrd family had been assured by the colonel that his "Oswald window" had been removed before Mr. Mayhew ever visited Dallas.
Mr. Mayhew isn't talking. He did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Mr. Rookstool said Buddy McCool, the workman sent by Mr. Byrd to remove the Oswald window, removed the wrong one.
"He was told to remove the one on the sixth floor, far right," he said. "Mr. Byrd, of course, meant the one on the right as one stood facing the building. Buddy McCool entered the sixth floor, walked toward the front and removed the one to his right."
Mr. Mack has doubts the "real" window can ever be positively identified. "There are many, many good pictures," he said, "but I have the feeling that several of the windows might have been painted over. That would make identification much harder."
He has been dealing by telephone with Mr. Mayhew over the years and says Mr. Mayhew tentatively agreed to let him travel to Nashville to view the window he claims he took from the TSBD, but he has changed his mind.
"I'd sure like to examine what he has," said Mr. Mack. "I would, also," echoed Mr. Rookstool.
If the actual window were identified, what would it be worth?
Mr. Mack pointed to an article from the Dallas Observer, which quoted Mr. Mayhew in 1997 as saying he once told Sixth Floor officials he would sell them the window for $250,000.
"If a Kennedy rocking chair sells for approximately $500,000 at auction, and there were 12 of them, who knows?" said Mr. Rookstool.
Mack Royal is the son of legendary University of Texas football coach Darrell Royal (UT head coach 1957-1976; 2 national championships). Darrell Royal was personal friends with Lyndon Johnson, Clint Murchison, D.H. Byrd and a slew of other upper crust Texas power elite who were in the Lyndon Johnson inner circle.
His son Mack Royal knew the children of the power elite of Texas. In fact he knew them and their families quite well.
Mack Royal also used to work at the LBJ Library and he has a sharp interest in the JFK assassination. Mack Royal also told me he was there when the LBJ Library was taking steps to "slow Robert Caro down." They literally had meetings about this and that late Robert Hardesty was one of the ringleaders in this effort to subvert Caro and other researchers into LBJ: http://www.nytimes.c...at-82.html?_r=0
Coach Royal and his wife were at the LBJ one time when Johnson was president. They remember D.H. Byrd flying his plane to the LBJ Ranch; LBJ telling them not to land because he was busy and had company, and D.H. Byrd over-riding the president of the USA and landing his plane anyhow.
I guess that one little anecdote tells you a lot about the relationship of Lyndon Johnson and D.H. Byrd.
Here are some excerpts from Mack Royal's book, which is a fascinating collection of his emails to friends.
MACK RoYAL:
I knew D. Harold Byrd..flew on his DC3 (orange and white with a snorting "Bevo" on the tail) and heard this story about him during that time.. My parents were at the LBJ ranch with Lyndon when D. Harold Byrd radioed the ranch and said he was landing. Lyndon told him NOT to land and Byrd replied, "I'm landing." which he did.
Royal, Mack (2010-06-08). Fourteen Years on Fnord-L (Kindle Locations 8906-8911). Bozo Texino Press. Kindle Edition.
This link tells about D. Harold Byrd owning the Texas School Book Depository Building. I knew old D. Harold Byrd. I ate supper at his house and flew on his plane. Later I met partners of Murchison. One of them became my "uncle" Bedford. Later I met the Murchisons. Coke-Anne Murchison is totally gorgeous, by the way. These folks were thick with LBJ. These folks are my folks. I met LBJ too, and drove his car, swam in his pool, visited the White House and got a tour of the FBI. I have a nodding acquaintance with Admiral Inman. So do you suppose I picked up a thing or two along the way? Duh.
Royal, Mack (2010-06-08). Fourteen Years on Fnord-L (Kindle Locations 9120-9130). Bozo Texino Press. Kindle Edition.
More about D. Harold Byrd. His cousins were Senator Harry Flood Byrd and Admiral Byrd of Antarctica fame. He started a company called Tempco which later became part of Ling Temco Vaught, which got a juicy contract out of the Viet Nam war. (TFX fighter plane) He was a conservative Dallas oil man who helped start the Civil Air Patrol. He took the "sniper's window" out of his building (Texas School Book Depository) after the assassination and hung it in his house! One of the panes had been replaced. By the way, Mac Wallace's prints were all over that room called the sniper's nest on the sixth floor. Billy Sol Estes said some stuff about Mac Wallace if you wanna look it up.
Royal, Mack (2010-06-08). Fourteen Years on Fnord-L (Kindle Locations 9153-9165). Bozo Texino Press. Kindle Edition.
When D. H. Byrd maintained an office in the Tower Petroleum Building he had two photographs hung on his wall. They were photographs of a German World War I ace, named Col. Ernst Udet, who was credited with some 62 kills. After World War I ended, he even made it over to the United States to do some stunt-flying. He also was very close to Herman Goering, who swallowed cyanide before the Nuremberg gallows could take him. According to a Dallas Morning News article shortly before Udet's suicide, [D. H. Byrd was interviewed in the same article] where Byrd mentioned he had met Udet circa 1935, where it gets really bizarre. is that Byrd claimed that if it hadn't been for Udet's advice, Byrd would have been stuck in Czechoslovakia when the Nazi's invaded that country. The point, is that the Baron Alvensleben who did the social circuit with D H Byrd after being in Mozambique when JFK was assassinated wasn't the only person Byrd knew with family ties to famous, infamous or surprising persons whom were connected to Deutschland.
In the book "I'm an Endangered Species," Byrd wrote "I agreed with Lindbergh's assessment of the threat represented by Hitler's new Luftwaffe. However, my close friend, Ernst Udet, who was on an intimate basis with many American pilots because of his exploits in the Cleveland Air Races between the two World Wars, but who was now a highly placed official in the Luftwaffe, held a minority position. "You guys are going to win," he said flatly. "The Fuhrer is building an air force
to support the ground forces, but he just doesn't understand the true use of air power, like "Tooey" Spaatz and Eaker. You're going to knock our ears off." pps. 51-52.
More about D. Harold Byrd. His cousins were Senator Harry Flood Byrd and Admiral Byrd of Antarctica fame. He started a company called Tempco which later became part of Ling Temco Vaught, which got a juicy contract out of the Viet Nam war. (TFX fighter plane) He was a conservative Dallas oil man who helped start the Civil Air Patrol. He took the "sniper's window" out of his building (Texas School Book Depository) after the assassination and hung it in his house! One of the panes had been replaced. By the way, Mac Wallace's prints were all over that room called the sniper's nest on the sixth floor. Billy Sol Estes said some stuff about Mac Wallace if you wanna look it up.
Royal, Mack (2010-06-08). Fourteen Years on Fnord-L (Kindle Locations 9153-9165). Bozo Texino Press. Kindle Edition.
GAAL
Peter Dale Scott theorized in Deep Politics and the Death of JFK that the stock transactions of the major stockholders of LTV (Harold Byrd (owner TSBD), Troy Post (financier) and James Ling (businessman) engineer) were made with foreknowledge of the JFK assassination.
see http://educationforu...=16815&p=300521 post # 89
BYRD ONI CONNECTIONS
for link http://educationforu...=20291&p=298381 see 4 below
FERRIE RECRUITED OSWALD FOR ONI (FERRIE'S first CAP base was a NAVY airfield) and then (FERRIE HAD CONTINUED NAVY-ONI CONNECTIONS POST ASSASSINATION)
ONI MONITORED ASSASSINATION per GRAVES ONI man (see post # 149 above)
ONI wanted cremated OSWALD
First of all, Mason Lankford’s father, John Mason Lankford Sr., was an employee of Temco in the early 1950s, suggesting a possible relationship with David Harold Byrd.
POST OFFICE HOLMES ONI CONNECTION SEE POST # 88 above // SEE MOLINA SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOR POST # 78 above tis thread
ONI worked with United fruit since the 1920. (BOOK LINK BELOW)
Marguerite ONI connection via Uncle and husband and also the Amon Carter Family. (THESE CONNECTIONS SEE BELOW)
also see Husband Marguerite link
http://quixoticjoust...rch-ekdahl.html
also see Uncle Marguerite link
http://educationforu...=21136&p=286218
Marguerite Oswald worked as a receptionist for a Standard Fruit Company law firm.Marguerite Oswald's uncle's law partner did work for United Fruit. Marguerite Oswald's Uncle seems to have gotten Marguerite the receptionists job. Odd for Standard Fruit and United Fruit were until around WWIi were at loggerheads against each other. Could Marguerite Oswald been a United Fruit spy ? Marguerite worked in the home of AMON CARTER JR. Carter family connected to ONI via General Dynamics .
Amon Carter SR. bio
Besides American Airlines, he also was instrumental in General Dynamics and Bell Aircraft Corp. establishing plants near Fort Worth. Amon G. Carter Field was named for him in 1950.
SEE United Fruit / ONI connection below
Anthropological Intelligence: The Deployment and Neglect ...
https://books.google...isbn=0822389126
David H. Price - 2008 - Social ScienceThe U.S. O≈ce of Naval Intelligence (oni) secretly trained and deployed a ring of ... along the Gulf of Mexico coastlines of Mexico, British Honduras, and Belize.
The TACA operation of guns to Central American dictators run by the State Department and the mafia predates the creation of the CIA.
To help in the operation the State Department would tap ONI. Bill Weston's Spiders Web contends that the TSBD had a gun running operation.
Ex Navy man Molina TSBD employee may have been part of this.
Harold Byrd (owner TSBD building) was one of the three major owners of LTV. LTV was trying to develop a sea torpedo to air weapon system.
ONI would have been all over any of the LTV owners.
First of all, Mason Lankford’s father, John Mason Lankford Sr., was an employee of Temco in the early 1950s, suggesting a possible relationship with David Harold Byrd.(Lankford Jr ONI)
Harold Bird sat on the board of Dorchester Gas with Jack Crichton of Empire Trust. Empire Trust's private intelligence service had ONI connections.
POST OFFICE HOLMES ONI CONNECTION SEE POST # 88 above this thread
ONI worked with United fruit since the 1920.
Marguerite ONI connection via Uncle , husband and also the Amon Carter Family
It may be that ONI man Holmes is watching/reporting on in real time a CIA assassination operation run out of the ONI/TSBD building. (GAAL)
The shooting out of the TSBD is a classic example of covert operation compartmentalization.
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