The 35th president of the United States, and the first Roman Catholic ever to hold that office, John F. Kennedy was also the youngest U.S. president. The son of a wealthy financier, Kennedy graduated from Harvard and returned from the war a decorated hero. He became a congressman in 1946 and a senator in 1952. In 1960 he won a narrow victory over Richard Nixon to become president. His New Frontier administration fostered the space program and civil rights legislation. He was assassinated in Dallas in 1963.
