Several railroad workers, notably Holland and Bowers
The best-known witnesses who reported smoke or a puff near the grassy knoll fence in Dealey Plaza on 22 November 1963 are railroad employees Sam M. Holland and Lee E. Bowers Jr. Several other railroad workers on the Triple Underpass also reported it, including Austin Miller, James L. Simmons, Richard C. Dodd and Frank Reilly. Accounts differ, and a smoke sighting is not proof of a shooter.
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The question asks for names, so the answer is a list. The most frequently cited witnesses are Holland and Bowers, with a handful of fellow railroad workers who also reported smoke or a puff near the fence. These accounts were given decades ago, and some were recalled or recorded differently over time. Smoke sightings are contested and are not accepted as proof of a shot from the knoll, because the official findings and later reviews point to other conclusions. Check the Warren Commission testimony and hearings for each person's exact words.
- Sam Holland watched from the Triple Underpass and told the Warren Commission he saw a puff of smoke under the trees by the fence.
- Lee Bowers was in the railroad tower behind the fence. He described a flash of light or smoke near the knoll area at the time of the shots.
- Other Triple Underpass workers, including Austin Miller, James Simmons, Richard Dodd and Frank Reilly, gave similar statements. I'm listing these from memory, and the exact wording of each account varies.
- Many other witnesses in the plaza did not report smoke, and some reported shots from other places.
- The Warren Commission found three shots fired from the Texas School Book Depository. The 1979 House Select Committee on Assassinations said a conspiracy was probable, based on acoustic evidence that a later National Academy of Sciences review discredited.