JFK Assassination: David Ferrie – FBI, CIA & Investigation Files

Description

David Ferrie and the JFK Assassination Saga

1918:

• David William Ferrie is born.

Early 1960s (prior to 1961):

• David Ferrie flies for Eastern Air Lines (ESL).

1961:

• David Ferrie is fired from Eastern Air Lines (ESL) due to two arrests on “morals charges.”

November 23, 1963:

• FBI New Orleans Field Office begins collecting files on David Ferrie. (This marks the start date for the FBI’s documentation of Ferrie, likely post-JFK assassination).

November 25, 1963:

• David Ferrie is arrested in New Orleans for vagrancy. He is to be held for investigation by the FBI and the Secret Service regarding potential connections to the JFK assassination.

November 26, 1963:

• David Ferrie is released from his vagrancy arrest.

Post-JFK Assassination (undated, but occurring after 1963):

• The FBI questions Ferrie and his associates about any possible connections between him and Lee Harvey Oswald, his contact with pro and anti-Castro Cubans, and later, his contact with Clay Shaw and the Jim Garrison investigation.
• The CIA begins collecting files on David Ferrie.

1967:

• New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison begins his investigation into the death of JFK, alleging Ferrie knew Oswald and was involved in a conspiracy.
• Jim Garrison’s investigation creates or gathers documents related to Ferrie, including information from his investigators and a purported will and suicide note from Ferrie.

February 22, 1967:

• David Ferrie is found dead in his apartment.
• President Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) has a 6-minute, 14-second phone conversation with Deputy Attorney General Ramsey Clark at 6:40 PM. Clark reports on the investigation into Ferrie’s death and the FBI’s prior investigation of Ferrie after JFK’s assassination.

February 24, 1969:

• The FBI New Orleans Field Office files on David Ferrie conclude.

1992:

• The President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act is passed, creating the Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB). This independent agency is established to re-examine and release JFK assassination-related records.

1993:

• The PBS documentary series Frontline releases a photograph showing cadet Lee Harvey Oswald in a Civil Air Patrol group that includes David Ferrie, contradicting Ferrie’s previous public denials of knowing Oswald.

September 30, 1998:

• The Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB) concludes its work, issues a final report, and transfers all its records to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

Cast of Characters

• David William Ferrie (1918 – 1967): A pilot who flew for Eastern Air Lines until 1961. He was known for his striking appearance due to alopecia areata, which led him to wear a homemade wig and false eyelashes. Ferrie was a central figure in investigations related to the JFK assassination, with some believing he was involved in a conspiracy, which he publicly denied. He denied knowing Lee Harvey Oswald, though a 1993 photograph later showed them together in the Civil Air Patrol. Ferrie was arrested for vagrancy in November 1963 for FBI and Secret Service investigation, and later became a key focus of New Orleans D.A. Jim Garrison’s investigation. He was found dead in his apartment on February 22, 1967, and his death was investigated by the FBI.
• Lee Harvey Oswald: The individual identified as the assassin of President John F. Kennedy. He was a cadet in the Civil Air Patrol in New Orleans, where a photograph later showed him with David Ferrie, despite Ferrie’s denials of knowing him. His potential connections to Ferrie and the broader assassination conspiracy were a major focus of FBI, CIA, and Jim Garrison’s investigations.
• Jim Garrison: The District Attorney of New Orleans who, beginning in 1967, launched an investigation into the JFK assassination. He alleged that David Ferrie knew Oswald and was involved in a conspiracy to kill JFK. His investigation generated a significant collection of documents related to Ferrie.
• President John F. Kennedy (JFK): The 35th President of the United States, whose assassination in 1963 became the subject of extensive investigations, including those involving David Ferrie.
• President Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ): The 36th President of the United States, who succeeded JFK. He was involved in monitoring the investigations related to the JFK assassination and the death of David Ferrie, as evidenced by his phone conversation with Ramsey Clark on the day Ferrie died.
• Ramsey Clark: The United States Deputy Attorney General. He was in direct communication with President LBJ on February 22, 1967, reporting on the investigation into David Ferrie’s death and the FBI’s prior investigations of Ferrie.
• Gordon Dwane Novel: A figure mentioned in CIA files who made accusations of connections between David Ferrie and Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby. He also claimed that both Ferrie and Oswald were working for the CIA.
• Jack Ruby: The individual who assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald. His potential connections to Ferrie were among the allegations made by Gordon Dwane Novel.
• Clay Shaw: An individual mentioned in the FBI’s investigation files as having contact with David Ferrie, a connection that was also explored during the Jim Garrison investigation.