How a surprise snowstorm almost spoiled Kennedy's inauguration 60 years ago Kevin Ambrose and Jason Samenow, The Washington Post Jan. 19, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail A member of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer's Inaugural Snow Removal Force prepares to move a car abandoned in the snowstorm on the eve of Kennedy's inauguration in 1961.U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Since presidential inaugurations moved from March to January in 1937, none have stirred up as much weather drama as John F. Kennedy's in 1961, when a surprise snowstorm the day before brought Washington to a standstill. With a little more than 24 hours until the inaugural ceremony, the forecast on Jan. 19, 1961, called for a mix of rain and snow and little accumulation. By late the same night, 8 inches of wind-whipped snow had paralyzed the metropolitan area.