The Bloody Pillow Case

[Jim Garrett]

The striped pillow is at the NPS storage facility in Landover Md and indeed very fragile. That is the pillow upon which the President's head was lying on at the time of death. To say the least, it is iconic. Everyone who has seen that pillow remembers it and without exception, everyday, a visitor will ask about it.

For years and years, it was displayed in the Petersen House on the bed (not THE bed) in the death room. The Petersen House for most of it's 160+ years has not had any modern HVAC, or climate control system. The pillow was long displayed under a pexiglass case, long before we understood the necessity of proper modern display techniques.

I'm glad to hear that it may travel. I think the Reagan Museum would be a fitting spot for the pillow to visit.