Growing up in the
Kennedy Family
Rose Fitzgerald
Kennedy, who was a very disciplined and organized woman, made the
following entry on a notecard, when her second child was
born:
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Born Brookline, Mass.
(83 Beals Street) May 29, 1917
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Hyannis
Port, MA 1928. Eight of the nine Kennedy children pose for a
photo. From youngest to oldest they are: Jean, Robert, Patricia,
Eunice, Kathleen, Rosemary, Jack, and Joe,
Jr. |
In all, Rose Fitzgerald
Kennedy would have nine children, four boys and five girls. She
kept notecards for each of them in a small wooden file box and made a
point of writing down everything from a doctor’s visit to the shoe size
they had at a particular age. John Fitzgerald Kennedy was named in honor
of Rose’s father, John Francis
Fitzgerald, the popular Boston Mayor who everybody knew as Honey
Fitz. Before long, family and friends called this small blue-eyed baby,
Jack. Jack was not a very healthy baby and on his notecard Rose also
recorded the childhood diseases he suffered from : ‘whooping cough,
measles, chicken pox’. On February 20, 1920 when Jack was not yet three
years old, he became sick with scarlet fever, a highly contagious and
potentially life-threatening disease. His father, Joseph Patrick
Kennedy, was terrified that little Jack would die. Mr. Kennedy
went to the hospital every day to be by his son’s side, and about a
month later Jack took a turn for the better and recovered. But Jack was
never very healthy, and because he was always suffering from one ailment
or another his family used to joke about the great risk a mosquito took
in biting him – with some of his blood the mosquito was almost sure to
die!
When Jack was three,
the Kennedys moved to a new home a few blocks away from their old house
in Brookline, a neighborhood just outside of Boston. It was a lovely
house with twelve rooms, turreted windows, and a big porch. Full of
energy and ambition, Jack’s father worked very hard at becoming a
successful businessman. When he was a student at Harvard College and
having a difficult time fitting in as an Irish Catholic, he swore to
himself he would make a million dollars by the age of thirty-five. There
was a lot of prejudice against Irish Catholics in Boston at that time,
but Joseph Kennedy was determined to succeed. Jack’s great-grandparents
had come from Ireland and managed to provide for their families, despite
many hardships. Jack’s grandfathers did even better for themselves, both
becoming prominent Boston politicians. Jack, because of all his family
had done, could enjoy a very comfortable life. The Kennedys had
everything they needed and more.
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Palm Beach,
c. 1931. Joe, Jr., Joseph P. Kennedy,
Jack |
There was always
something going on in the Kennedy family home. By the time Jack was
eight there were seven children altogether. Jack had an older brother,
Joe; four sisters, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, and Patricia; and a
younger brother, Robert. Jean and Teddy hadn’t been born yet. Nannies
and housekeepers helped Rose run the household.
At the end of the
school year, the Kennedy children would go to their summer home in
Hyannis Port on Cape Cod where they liked swimming, sailing, and playing
touch football. The Kennedy children played hard, and they enjoyed
competing with one another. Joseph Sr. encouraged these competitions,
especially among the boys. He was a father with very high expectations
and wanted the boys to win at sports and everything they tried. As he
often said, ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going’. But
sometimes these competitions went too far. One time when Joe suggested
that he and Jack race on their bicycles, they collided head-on. Joe
emerged unscathed while Jack had to have twenty-eight stitches. Because
Joe was two years older and stronger than Jack, whenever they fought,
Jack would usually get the worst of it. Jack was the only sibling who
posed any real threat to Joe’s throne as the oldest child. The next in
line were girls, and Bobby and Teddy were still too young to be anything
but pests.
Jack was very
popular and had many friends at Choate, a boarding school for adolescent
boys in Connecticut. He played tennis, basketball, football, and golf
and also enjoyed reading. His friend Lem Billings remembers how unusual
it was that Jack had a daily subscription to the New York Times
newspaper. Jack had a ‘clever, individualist mind’, his Head Master once
noted, though he was not
the best student. He did not always work as hard as he could,
except in history and English, which were his favorite subjects. ‘Now
Jack’, his father wrote in a letter one day, ‘I don’t want to give the
impression that I am a nagger, for goodness knows I think that is the
worse thing any parent can be, and I also feel that you know if I didn’t
really feel you had the goods I would be most charitable in my attitude
toward your failings. After long experience in sizing up people I
definitely know you have the goods and you can go a long way…It is very
difficult to make up fundamentals that you have neglected when you were
very young, and that is why I am urging you to do the best you can. I am
not expecting too much, and I will not be disappointed if you don’t turn
out to be a real genius, but I think you can be a really worthwhile
citizen with good judgment and understanding’.
Jack graduated from
Choate and in 1936 he started his first year at Harvard, where Joe was
already a student. Like his brother Joe, Jack played football. He was
not as good of an athlete as Joe but he had a lot of determination and
perseverance. Unfortunately, one day while playing he ruptured a disk in
his spine. Jack never really recovered from this accident and his back
continued to bother him for the rest of his life.
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Hyannis
Port, c. 1946. John F.
Kennedy |
The two eldest boys
were attractive, agreeable, and intelligent young men and Mr. Kennedy
had high hopes for them both. However, it was Joe who had announced to
everyone when he was a young boy that he would be the first Catholic to
become President. No one doubted him for a moment. Jack, on the other
hand, seemed somewhat less ambitious. He was active in student groups
and sports and he worked hard in his history and government classes,
though his grades remained only average. Late in 1937, Mr. Kennedy was
appointed United States Ambassador to England and moved there with his
whole family, with the exception of Joe and Jack who were at Harvard.
Because of his father’s job, Jack became very interested in European
politics and world affairs. After his summer visit to England and other
countries in Europe, Jack returned to Harvard more eager to learn about
history and government and to keep up with current events.
Joe and Jack
frequently received letters from their father in England, who informed
them of the latest news regarding the conflicts and tensions that
everyone feared would soon blow up into a full-scale war. Adolph Hitler
ruled Germany and Benito Mussolini ruled Italy. They both had strong
armies and wanted to take land from other countries. On September 1,
1939 Germany invaded Poland and World War II began.
By this time Jack
was a senior at Harvard and decided to write his thesis on the reasons
why Great Britain was unprepared for war with Germany. It was so good
that it was later published as a book called Why England Slept.
In June 1940 Jack graduated from Harvard. His father sent him a
cablegram from London: TWO THINGS I ALWAYS KNEW ABOUT YOU ONE THAT YOU
ARE SMART TWO THAT YOU ARE A SWELL GUY LOVE DAD.
World War II and a
future in politics
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Lt. John F.
Kennedy aboard his PT-109 boat in
1943 |
Soon after
graduating, both Joe and Jack joined the Navy. Joe was a flyer and sent
to Europe, while Jack was made Lieutenant (Lt.) and assigned to the
South Pacific as commander of a patrol torpedo boat, the PT-109.
Lt. Kennedy had a crew of twelve men whose mission was to stop the enemy
Japanese ships from delivering supplies to their soldiers. On the dark
night of August 2, 1943 Lt. Kennedy’s crew patrolled the waters looking
for enemy ships to sink. A Japanese destroyer suddenly became visible.
But it was traveling at full speed and headed straight at them. Holding
the wheel, Lt. Kennedy tried to swerve out of the way, but to no avail.
The much larger Japanese warship rammed the PT-109, splitting it
in half and killing two of Lt. Kennedy’s men. The others managed to jump
off as their boat went up in flames. Lt. Kennedy was slammed hard
against the cockpit, once again injuring his weak back. Patrick McMahon,
one of his crew members, had horrible burns on his face and hands and
was ready to give up. In the darkness Lt. Kennedy managed to find him
and haul him back to where the other survivors were clinging to a piece
of the boat that was still afloat. At sunrise, Lt. Kennedy led his men
toward a small island several miles away. Despite his own injuries, Lt.
Kennedy was able to tow Patrick McMahon ashore, a strap from McMahon’s
life jacket clenched between his teeth. Six days later two native
islanders found them and went for help, delivering a message Jack had
written on a piece of coconut shell. The next day, the PT-109
crew was rescued. Jack’s brother Joe was not so lucky. He died a year
later when his plane blew up during a dangerous mission in
Europe.
When he returned
home, Jack was awarded the Navy and
Marine Corps Medal for his leadership and courage. With the war
finally coming to an end, it was time to choose the kind of work he
wanted to do. Jack had considered becoming a teacher or a writer, but
with Joe’s tragic death suddenly everything changed. After serious
discussions with Jack about his future, Joseph Kennedy convinced him
that he should make his family proud and run for a seat in
Massachusetts' eleventh congressional district, which he won in 1946.
This was the beginning of Jack’s political career. As the years went on,
John F. Kennedy, a Democrat, served three terms (six years) in the House
of Representatives, and in 1952 he was elected to the U.S.
Senate.
Soon after being
elected senator, John F. Kennedy, at thirty-six years of age, married
twenty-four year-old Jacqueline Bouvier, a writer with the Washington
Times-Herald. Unfortunately, early on in their marriage, Senator
Kennedy’s back started to hurt again and he had two operations. While
recovering from surgery, he wrote a book about several U.S. senators who
had risked their careers to fight for the things in which they believed.
The book, called Profiles in Courage, was awarded the Pulitzer
Prize for biography in 1957. That same year, the Kennedys’ first child,
Caroline, was born.
John F. Kennedy was
becoming a popular politician. In 1956 he was almost picked to run for
Vice President. Having been defeated, Kennedy decided that he would run
for President in the next election. He began working very long hours and
traveling all around the United States on weekends. On July 13, 1960 the
Democratic party nominated him as its candidate for President. Kennedy
asked Lyndon B. Johnson, a senator from Texas, to run with him as Vice
President. In the general election on November 8th 1960,
Kennedy beat Republican Richard M. Nixon in a very close race. At the
age of forty-three, Kennedy was the youngest man elected President and
the first Catholic. Before his inauguration, his second child, John Jr.,
was born. His father liked to call him John-John.
John F. Kennedy: The
35th President of the United States
John F. Kennedy was
sworn in as the 35th President on January 20, 1961. In his inaugural speech he
spoke of the need for all Americans to be active citizens. 'Ask not what your
country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,'
[sound] he said. He also asked the nations of the world to join together
to fight what he called the 'common enemies of
man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself.'
[sound]
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White
House, 1962. Jacqueline Kennedy, President Kennedy, Mme. Malraux,
and violinist Isaac Stern at a dinner reception in honor of Andre
Malraux, French Minister of Cultural
Affairs |
President Kennedy,
together with his wife and two children, brought a new, youthful spirit
to the White House. The Kennedys believed that the White House should be
a place to celebrate American history, culture, and achievement. They
invited artists, writers, scientists, poets, musicians, actors, and
athletes to visit them. Jacqueline Kennedy also shared the same interest
in American history as her husband. Gathering the finest art and
furniture the United States had produced, she restored all the rooms in
the White House to make it a place that truly reflected America’s
history with a sense of beauty. Everyone was impressed and appreciated
her hard work.
The White House also
seemed like a fun place, because of the Kennedys’ two young children,
Caroline and John-John. There was a pre-school, a swimming pool, and a
tree-house outside on the White House lawn. President Kennedy was
probably the busiest man in the country, but he still found time to
laugh and play with his children.
However, the President also had
many worries. One of the things he worried about most was the
possibility of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet
Union. He knew that if there was a war, millions of people would die.
Since World War II, there had been a lot of anger and suspicion between
the two countries but never any shooting between Soviet and American
troops. This 'Cold War', which was unlike any other war the world had
seen, was really a struggle between the Soviet Union's communist system
of government and the United States' democratic system. Because they
distrusted each other, both countries spent enormous amounts of money
building nuclear weapons. There were many times when the struggle
between the Soviet Union and the United States could have ended in
disaster or war, such as in Cuba
and in the city of
Berlin.
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President
Kennedy with his two children, Caroline and John, Jr., in the Oval
Office |
President Kennedy
worked long hours, getting up at seven and not going to bed until eleven
or twelve at night, or later. He read six newspapers while he ate
breakfast, had meetings with important people throughout the day, and
read reports from his advisers. He wanted to make sure that he made the
best decisions for his country. ‘I am asking each of you to be new
pioneers in that New Frontier’ he said. The New Frontier was not a place
but a way of thinking and acting. President Kennedy wanted the United
States to move forward into the future with new discoveries in science
and improvements in education, employment and other fields. He wanted
democracy and freedom for the whole world.
One of the first
things President Kennedy did was to create the
Peace Corps. Through this program, which still exists
today, Americans can volunteer where help is needed. They can help in
areas such as education, farming, health care, and construction. Many
young men and women have served as Peace Corps volunteers and have won
the respect of many people throughout the world.
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Cape
Canaveral, 1962. President Kennedy and John
Glenn |
President Kennedy
was also eager for the United States to lead the way in exploring space.
The Soviet Union was ahead of the United States in its knowledge of
space and President Kennedy was determined to catch up. He said, ‘No
nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to
stay behind in this race for space’. Kennedy was the first
President to ask Congress to approve more than twenty two billion
dollars for ‘Project Apollo’, which had the goal of landing an
American man on the moon before the end of the decade.
President Kennedy
had to deal with many serious problems here in the United States. The
biggest problem of all had to do with racial discrimination. The
US Supreme Court had ruled in 1954 that segregation in public schools
would no longer be permitted. Black children and White children should
be able to go to school together. This was now the law of the
land. However, there were many schools, especially in southern states,
that did not obey this law. There was also racial segregation on buses,
in restaurants, movie theaters, and other public
places.
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President
Kennedy meets the leaders of the civil rights
movement |
Thousands of
Americans joined together, people of all races and backgrounds, to
peacefully protest this injustice. Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of
the famous leaders of the movement for civil rights. Many civil rights
leaders didn’t think President Kennedy was supportive enough of their
efforts. The President believed that holding public protests would only
anger many white people and make it even more difficult to convince the
members of Congress who didn't agree with him to pass civil rights laws.
By June 11, 1963, however, President Kennedy decided that the time had
come to take stronger action to help the civil rights struggle. He
proposed a new Civil Rights bill to the Congress and he went on television
asking Americans to end racism. ‘One hundred years of delay
have passed since President Lincoln freed the slaves, yet their heirs,
their grandsons, are not fully free,’ he said. ‘This Nation was
founded by men of many nations and backgrounds…[and] on the principle
that all men are created equal.’ President Kennedy made it clear that
all Americans, regardless of their skin color, should enjoy a good and
happy life in the United States.
The President is
shot
On November 21,
1963, President Kennedy flew to Texas to give several political
speeches. The next day, as his car drove slowly past cheering crowds in
Dallas, shots rang out. Kennedy was seriously wounded and died a short
time later. Within a few hours of the shooting, police arrested Lee
Harvey Oswald and charged him with the murder. On November 24, another
man, Jack Ruby, shot and killed Oswald, thus silencing the only person
who could have offered more information about this tragic event. The
Warren Commission was organized to investigate the assassination and to
clarify the many questions which remained.
The Legacy of
John F. Kennedy
President Kennedy's
death caused enormous sadness and grief among all Americans. Most people
still remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when
they heard the news of the murder. Hundreds of thousands of people
gathered in Washington for the President's funeral, and millions
throughout the world watched it on television.
As the years have
gone by and other Presidents have written their chapters in history,
John Kennedy's brief time in office stands out in people's memories for
his leadership, personality, and accomplishments. Many respect his
coolness when faced with difficult decisions--like what to do about the
missiles in Cuba. Others admire his ability to inspire people with his
eloquent speeches. Still others think his compassion and his willingness
to fight for new government programs to help the poor, the elderly and
the ill were most important. Like all leaders, John Kennedy made
mistakes, but he was always optimistic about the future. He believed
that people could solve their common problems if they put their
country's interests first and worked together.
