Patch of History: Where Were You When President Kennedy Was Shot?

This Friday marks the 50th anniversary of the one of the darkest days in the nation's history - the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas on Nov. 22, 1963.

If you were old enough to read at the time, you may remember the Daily Tribune had two editions on that Friday. The first edition led with the headline "President Shot," the second "President Dead."

People in Royal Oak dashed for the telephone to share their horror and sorrow following news that an assassin's bullets struck the President in Dallas at about 12:30 p.m., reported the newspaper.

At 1:33 p.m. Kennedy was officially pronounced dead.

"Switchboards jammed, the telephone system sagged from an overwhelming search for information," wrote the Daily Tribune.

Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Stanton Dondero immediately adjourned all courts for the day after learning the news.

Even crime seemed to stop, Royal Oak and Ferndale police received only one call each between 12:45 and 3:30 p.m., according to reports.

William Emerson, Oakland Schools superintendent was reported as saying, "I don't know what you do when a president is assassinated. But we've all got to keep going on."

The school play scheduled for Friday night at Dondero High School was postponed until the following Tuesday, while teenagers from St. Mary High School dropped into church on their way home from school to offer prayers. The children of St. Paul's Lutheran School where ushered into the church by Rev. Edward Bekemeyer to sing "God Bless Our Native Land," according to old newspaper clippings.

"Local schools and government were left between the need to carry on normal activities and the general feeling the something ought to be done," reported the Daily Tribune.

Many people seem to remember where they were at and what they were doing.

Where were you? What do you remember?

Tell us in the comments.