Oct. 27, 1952: General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Republican candidate for president in 1952, campaigned in Pittsburgh before the election, taking part in the Presidential Parade that day. President Truman was also in town supporting the Democratic Party’s candidate, Adlai Stevenson. At a rally held at the Syria Mosque, Truman criticized the Republican candidate for his “cheap campaign tactics… false promises…playing politics with the national morale… [and Korean] casualty lists.”
This photograph was published on page 3 of The Pittsburgh Press. The caption read, “Strong winds kept the barrage balloon near the ground at the Gateway Center today. Members of the Citizens for Eisenhower Committee said their silver-colored gas bag ordinarily is flown at 500 feet.”
The launch of the barrage balloon was delayed by a “snarled situation.” A photo accompanying the article showed three men trying to untangle ropes. The caption read, “The balloon handlers discovered that the mooring ropes had become a tangled mass while the big bag was being brought here.”
World War II hero Eisenhower was a popular candidate. Eight days after this picture was taken, he won his first election in a landslide victory over Stevenson.
(Pittsburgh Press photo)
