John Fitzgerald National Historic Site – Brookline, MA
The John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site in Brookline, Massachusetts offers the opportunity to step into the earliest chapters of that life that would shape world history.
Touring this modest home, you are greeted by the recorded voice of Rose Kennedy. She calmly recounts the rhythms and rituals of family life. Through her reflections, the house comes alive with the daily routines, discipline, faith, reading aloud, dinner conversations and the expectations she and Joseph Kennedy had for their children. Hearing her describe those early years while standing in the very rooms where young Jack Kennedy spent his infancy creates a closeness with their past.
This was the birthplace of John F Kennedy in 1917, and the home was later carefully restored to reflect how the family lived during this period. The period furnishings and photographs give the sense of a household shaped by ambition, education, faith and strong parental guidance.
Recognizing the importance of preserving this setting, the house was designated a National Historic Site in 1967, during the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson. Congress authorized its inclusion in the National Park System so that we could better understand the early influences that shaped the nation’s 35th president.
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