BOSTON — Two collections of World War II era letters written by John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy are being made public for the first time and are set to be auctioned.

The Boston Globe reports the letters from John Kennedy were to the family of Harold Marney, who was killed in 1943 when the PT-109 boat Kennedy had commanded was destroyed by the Japanese. Kennedy sent condolences to Marney’s parents, calling his death a great loss.

The letters Robert Kennedy wrote between 1941 and 1945 were to Peter MacLellan, whom he had befriended at what is now the Portsmouth Abbey School in Rhode Island.

RR Auction said it authenticated the letters. The auction is Sept. 18.

A spokeswoman for the JFK Library said it wasn’t aware of the auction.


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