Father and Sons - Joseph P. Kennedy holds sons
Joseph Patrick Junior (left) and two-year-old future president John
Fitzgerald Kennedy, in 1919.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born in Brookline,
Massachusetts on May 29, 1917, the great-grandson of Irish immigrants. His father,
the son of a saloon keeper, had graduated from Harvard and at age 25
became the youngest bank president in the U.S. He was a highly skilled
investor and money handler and made a fortune. In 1914, Joe Kennedy had
married Rose Fitzgerald, the daughter of John "Honey Fitz"
Fitzgerald, a colorful Boston politician. Young Jack Kennedy was the
second child in a family that would eventually have nine children. Joe
Jr., Jack, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, Robert, Jean, and Edward
(Teddy).
Pals - and rivals - Joseph Patrick (left) and
John Fitzgerald. Fiercely loyal and fiercely competitive, they sometimes
even brawled as boys. Joe was a natural athlete and had many talents,
but was also a bit more serious. Young Jack Kennedy was a sickly child
but fun loving and well liked. Despite his illnesses, Jack liked to
compete in sports, the competitive spirit largely encouraged by his
father.
With the girls - Rosemary, Kathleen and Eunice
in 1925.
Playing policeman. At about age five, Jack decided
he would become a cop.
In the water at Hyannis Port, Massachusetts,
the family's summer home.
On the team - the Dexter boys school football team
in Brookline, Massachusetts, featuring Jack Kennedy at about age ten
(seated on ground, front right) and older brother Joe (row behind, third
from left).
A bright-eyed, handsome boy - JFK at age eleven.
Growing up - and all dressed up, at the family's
vacation home in Palm Beach, Florida.
1931 family portrait at Hyannis Port. Left to
Right: Bobby, Jack, Eunice, Jean, Joseph Sr., Rose with Pat in front
of her, Kathleen, Joe junior, and Rosemary.
At Choate, an exclusive prep school in Connecticut.
The Muckers, a group that delighted in practical jokes and bucking the
school's traditions, featuring JFK on the right, 1934. Their antics nearly
got Jack expelled. Right - Choate graduate, class of 1935, surprisingly
voted "Most Likely to Succeed." As a final joke on the school,
Jack rigged the election.
1937 - Feeding the pigeons in Venice during his
first tour of Europe. Right - with little friend at The Hague.
With Kathleen at Palm Beach.
Young JFK signed portrait.
JFK Photo History
Early Years | War
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