A half-century after the death of United States Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Southern Tier residents are recalling the tragic events that happened in California on June 5, 1968.

Kennedy, a Democratic Senator from New York, was 42 when he was shot in Los Angeles, California, shortly after he addressed supporters following his victory in the California presidential primary. He died nearly 26 hours after the shooting.

At the time of Kennedy's death, Matthew Ryan and John Burns Jr. were 16 years old. They had taken an early interest in politics and had been volunteering for the Kennedy campaign.

Robert Kennedy had visited Johnson City less than three months before he was shot. He was the guest speaker at a testimonial event for New York State Democratic Party state chairman John Burns, a former Binghamton mayor. The photograph above was taken by Ryan as Kennedy spoke to more than 1,400 people at the Fountains Pavilion.

50 years after Senator Kennedy was shot, former Binghamton mayor Matthew Ryan and businessman John Burns Jr. appeared on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program to talk about what happened in 1968.

LISTEN to the Binghamton Now segment as it was broadcast on June 5, 2018.

Matthew Ryan and John Burns Jr. during a radio interview on June 5, 2018. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
Matthew Ryan and John Burns Jr. during a radio interview on June 5, 2018. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)
loading...

Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com

For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

More From KISS 104.1