Reader asks ‘What to do with Kennedy assassination newspapers?’

Old and sometimes faded and folded copies of newspapers from the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy keep turning up, and I always get questions from readers about how much they are worth.

I’ve even managed to pick up a few from time to time in box lots at auction, but I don’t actively seek them out because usually they are not worth the trouble.

My answer to readers’ questions is the same every time: Depends on the newspaper, who wants it and the condition. This week, I got a question from a reader about some assassination papers surrounding the deaths of President Kennedy and his brother Robert F. The reader had read a blog post I’d written on the value of the assassination newspapers and how to go about disposing of them.

Question:

I bought a house several years ago and found a pile of newspapers from all across the country about the assassinations of both President Kennedy and Robert Kennedy. They are in remarkable condition and still have the original mail delivery tags on them. They range from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, etc. … I kept them in a dark closet on a shelf but have no idea what to do with them.

Answer:

You have two choices: Sell them or toss them. I would suggest trying to sell them since they appear to be newspapers from major cities in the country and are in good condition. Many people hoarded the President Kennedy assassination papers as mementos and reminders of that horrible day.

From my research, big-city newspapers like the New York Times are among the ones that sell – even moreso if the President Kennedy assassination papers are from Dallas (some copies of the Dallas Morning News were selling for $200 and more on eBay). His brother was killed in Los Angeles in June 1968, and his papers are likely not as valuable (his were selling for far less than $50).

How much the President Kennedy papers sell for can also depend on the date of publication. Since you didn’t mention any dates, I wondered if they are all from the day of the assassination – because there were some afternoon publications and some morning newspapers that offered special editions – or the day after or two days later. The day of could perhaps be more valuable. A maid at a Fort Worth, TX, hotel managed to get the president to sign a copy of the Dallas Morning News on the morning of Nov. 22, a few hours before the shooting.

I would suggest you Google your newspapers and the dates to see if any are selling on eBay or on retail sites on the web. If individual copies are selling well in those venues, you may consider selling those individually and the rest as a lot or group. Or to save time, you could try selling them all as a lot on eBay.

Here are some blog posts I’ve written about newspapers and their value:

The value of your JFK and Obama newspapers

Since I’m no expert on newspapers, I found someone who is. Timothy Hughes operates a website called rarenewspapers.com that sells historic newspapers. He’s been collecting them for more than three decades and serves as a consultant to organizations. 

The worth of old newspapers as mementos

We all save them – the newspapers and magazines chronicling historical events in the country. Sept. 11, 2001. World War II and other wars. The assassinations of the Kennedys and Dr. King. The first moon walk (the real thing, not the Michael Jackson one). Obama as the first African American president. I began mulling our penchant for saving these relics after finding a collection of old newspapers and magazines in a box lot at auction recently.

Readers ask about Fred Wesley’s lyrics & Kennedy newspapers

Question: I recently found two newspapers at an estate sale. One is an International NY Times from Paris Nov. 23, 1963. The other is in French. They both talk about JFK’s murder with large photos and they both were in glass frames and well-preserved. No rips, tears, just yellow in color. I found the English one on eBay that sold for $200 and it looked crappy. But I can’t find out anything about the French one.

Answer: I haven’t come across any foreign newspaper accounts of John F. Kennedy’s assassination at my auctions, but the French one sounds intriguing.

Readers ask about Bazooka comics, wheels & newspapers

Question: I have a complete New York Daily News dated August 15, 1945, with its headline announcing the end of WWII in mint condition. Back then, the paper cost 2 cents. I wonder the value of this newspaper today.

Question: I have a New York Times newspaper, complete, excellent condition, dated November 23, 1963, all about Kennedy’s assassination and with all the pictures. … Does anyone know what this might be worth?

Answer:  I’d suggest you always first try eBay to see what your newspapers are selling for or if they are selling at all in that giant flea market.

Readers ask about Coke, newspapers and books

Question: I have a hardcover book of the Philadelphia Public Ledger for the entire month of September 1935. Any idea what this is? 23″ long and 17″ wide and approximately 4″ thick. Haven’t been able to get any info on this.

Answer: Are there any markings or a manufacturer’s name on the cover of the binder or on any inside pages or on the spine? Look very closely to see if there’s anything that might offer a clue as to who bound the papers. That should give you a place to start on the web to find out more about the papers. The bound papers may have belonged to the newspaper’s library or a public library. Before microfilm, newspapers bound old copies for research.

Saving Bin Laden newspapers

I got an email yesterday on the day of the country’s rejoicing over Osama Bin Laden’s demise from a man who had a newspaper with news of the killing. He was thinking strategically: “I have the newspaper from Cincinnati, Ohio, when Barak was made president. Can anyone tell me if it is worth anything. I have also collected the paper for Bin Laden. What will this be worth over time?” When I read the email, my quick response to their value was “not much.” Or “not any more than the 50 cents you paid for each of them.” These two historical events were too new, I said to myself. 

Need to find the value of an item? Try eBay, then Google

Readers often ask me what their items are worth, but I can’t offer them a quick answer because I have none. I often wondered why they didn’t try eBay first, since that’s where millions of transactions occur daily. A friend mentioned to me, though, that most people think of eBay as a place to buy and sell, not to assess value. I hadn’t thought of that, because I use both eBay and Google all the time to determine “market value” – or what someone is willing to pay for an item at a given point in time – not appraisal value for insurance purposes.

Tips on figuring out what your stuff is worth

I got an email recently from a woman who had three watercolors by MC “Five Cent” Jones that her parents had bought 20 years ago. Her mother is 91 years old, and the daughter wanted to sell them to help pay for her expenses. What’s the value of these paintings by Jones, she asked. And how could she go about selling them? I’m starting to get a lot of those kinds of emails, which is good. It tells me that people are being conscientious about determining the value of things they own and not just trashing them with nary a thought. I’m not an appraiser so I didn’t have an answer for them. But I do conduct research on the items I write about in my blog, so I can offer suggestions.