From “Eyewitness to History”, by Howard L. Brenan, page 7:
“Then, looking at the corner of the building, I noticed one man in the window. What drew my attention to him with all the other people in the area, I don’t know. I looked at my watch and it was about 12:22. As I watched him, he went away from the window for a few seconds and then returned. I thought perhaps he was doing a special job and had just broken away from it for a moment to see what was happening outside.
There was nothing about this young man at first glance that seemed unusual. He appeared to be about average height, maybe 5’8’ to 5’10” and of average weight, tending more toward the slender side. I’m not good at guessing ages, but he seemed to be 25-35. He had on light colored clothing. The thing that caught my attention was that he was alone. Most others were sharing this magic moment with someone, but he was a solitary figure who seemed to be in his own little world. After watching him for a while, I turned to look at some of the others and noticed two black men in the window directly underneath the lone man. They were exactly the opposite. They were laughing, smiling, waving to all who could see them and “having the time of their lives.” It was a festive mood which everyone seemed to find contagious.
After looking around at the crown for a few moments, I fastened my attention again on the curious young man who was alone on the sixth floor of the building. The most unusual thing about him, I decided, was his demeanor. It stood out in sharp contrast to that of everyone else. …
…As I looked at the man, it struck me how unsmiling and calm he was. He didn’t seem to feel one bit of excitement. His face was almost expressionless. I couldn’t detect either happiness or hate. Again he left the window for a few seconds, but almost as quickly he resumed his position there. …
…At about 12:26 the word spread that the Presidential motorcade was approaching…
…I looked up at the sixth floor of the Texas Book Depository where that quiet, strange man was hunched. He hadn’t changed his position or expression a bit. He was perfectly calm and his face revealed nothing out of the ordinary. …
…Looking back, I know that the man was too calm, too unconcerned. If one can’t become excited at seeing the President of the United States, I wondered what it would take to move him. But the thought of assassination never entered my mind. During the several minutes I studied him, our eyes never met and he didn’t know I was watching him. I have often wondered since that time what would have happened if he had known. Would he have changed his plan? I doubt it…He seemed not to be looking at anything in particular, rather gazing blankly into space, as if his mind were a thousand miles away. I’ve thought since that he was looking at hthe corner of Houston and Main from where the President would come. He seemed preoccupied. He left the window one last time for just a few seconds and then returned to his lonely vigil. At no time during all these many minutes did I see any rifle or anything that would have led me to believe that he was any kind of threat to the President.
I heard the wail of sirens from cars that were slowly approaching the corner of Main and Houston and swung around in that direction. Everyone around me was trying to do the same thing. …
…When the Presidential car moved just a few feet past where I was sitting, President Kennedy looked back to our side of the street. Just at that moment the whole joy and good will of the day was shattered by the sound of a shot. …
…I looked up then at the Texas Book Depository Building. What I saw made my “blood run cold!”
Poised in the corner window of the sixth floor was the same young man I had noticed several times before the motorcade arrived. There was one difference - this time he held a rifle in his hands, pointing toward the Presidential car. He steadied the rifle against the cornice and while he moved quickly, he didn’t seem to be in any kind of panic. All of this happened in the matter of a second or two. Then came the sickening sound of a second shot and I looked quickly back to the presidential car which had moved only a few feet, still not apparently aware that it was the assassin’s target. …
…Just then a woman close to me screamed in full realization of what was happening. She uttered something like, “oh, my God!” But even as she did my eyes darted back to that solitary figure who was changing history. He was aiming again and I wanted to pray, to beg God to somehow make him miss his target. There wasn’t tome to pray, not even time to think about what I was seeing but the sight became so fixed in my mind that I’ll never forget it for as long as I live. … Then another shot rang out.
All of this took only a few seconds. I didn’t realize at that moment that I was the only person who was actually watching the man firing the rifle.
