Sold For: $3,395
*Includes Buyers Premium
TLS as president signed “John Kennedy,” one page, 6.75 x 7.5, White House letterhead, April 19, 1963. Letter of condolence to the widow of Donald Emery Nault, a Commissaryman First Class who was aboard the tragic voyage of the Naval submarine the USS Thresher, in full: “Mrs. Kennedy and I want to express our very deepest sympathy to you in the loss of your husband aboard the USS THRESHER. The loss of THRESHER was a great shock to freedom-loving people around the world. The American people feel deeply this tragic loss. It is a sad fact of history that this price of freedom must be paid again and again, by our best young men in each generation. Your husband has joined the other defenders of this Nation who have given their lives for their country. I want you to know of my personal feeling of loss and to wish for you God's blessing in this time of sorrow.” In fine condition, with a trimmed bottom edge. Encapsulated and graded by PSA/DNA as “MINT 9.” Accompanied by a full letter of authenticity from PSA/DNA.
Nault was one of 129 crew and shipyard personnel who lost their lives when the USS Thresher, a nuclear-powered attack submarine in the United States Navy, sank during deep-diving tests about 220 miles east of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, on April 10, 1963. The loss of the Thresher, the first nuclear submarine lost at sea, was a watershed for the U.S. Navy that led to the implementation of a rigorous submarine safety program known as SUBSAFE.
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