JFK’s 1,200 Cigars and the Embargo That Changed History
When people talk about John F. Kennedy’s presidency, they remember the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Bay of Pigs, and the dream of Camelot. But cigar lovers remember something a little different: the night before the United States embargo on Cuban goods went into effect, JFK quietly sent his press secretary out on a mission that would become cigar legend.
The Night Before the Embargo
In early 1962, as tensions with Cuba escalated, Kennedy decided to impose a full trade embargo. Cigars would not be spared. But before signing the order, he asked Pierre Salinger to gather as many of his beloved H. Upmann Petit Coronas as possible.
Salinger scoured Washington tobacconists, returning the next morning with over 1,200 cigars. Only then, Kennedy is said to have pulled out the paperwork and signed the embargo that would make Cuban cigars off-limits to Americans for decades.
The Irony That Endures
The man who loved Cuban cigars became the president who banned them. The embargo reshaped the global cigar industry, pushing production into the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua, while Cuban smokes became the stuff of legend in the U.S.
The story of JFK’s private stash is part fact, part myth, but it captures the human side of power: even as world events swirled, Kennedy made time to protect his own small ritual.
🎙️ Listen to the full story in this week’s episode of Smoke Signals. You’ll hear how cigars became woven into Cold War history, from White House rituals to CIA plots, and why Kennedy’s 1,200 cigars remain one of the most unforgettable footnotes in presidential history.
