Post-Discharge Return to Fort Worth
After his discharge from the Marines, Oswald went directly to Fort Worth, arriving by September 14, 1959. He told his mother he intended to work on a ship or in the “export-import business,” explaining that a ship would pay “big money” compared to the roughly $30 per week he could earn locally. During his brief stay, Oswald registered his dependency discharge and entry into the Marine Reserve at the Fort Worth Selective Service Board, visited his brother Robert and his family, and gave his mother $100. Three days after arriving, he left for New Orleans.
New Orleans Travel and European Freighter Booking
On September 17, 1959, Oswald visited Travel Consultants, Inc. in New Orleans, where he completed a “Passenger Immigration Questionnaire” listing his occupation as “shipping export agent” and stating he would be abroad for two months on a pleasure trip. He booked passage on the freighter SS Marion Lykes, scheduled to sail September 18 from New Orleans to Le Havre, France, for $220.75. That evening, he registered at the Liberty Hotel.
Voyage Aboard the SS Marion Lykes
The Marion Lykes did not depart until the early morning of September 20. Before sailing, Oswald wrote his mother a letter informing her of his European trip, asking her to remember that his “values are very different” from those of his family, and stating that she “could hardly be expected to understand” his plans. The ship carried only four passengers. Oswald shared a cabin with Billy Joe Lord, a young high school graduate headed to France for further education; Lord recalled amicable religious arguments in which Oswald defended atheism, and noted that Oswald was “standoffish” but discussed his background, mentioning his mother’s low wages and his interest in possibly studying in Sweden or Switzerland. The two other passengers, Lt. Col. and Mrs. George B. Church, Jr., also found Oswald unfriendly and observed some bitterness about his mother’s difficulties. No one aboard suspected that he intended to defect to Russia.
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