John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site

Happy Easter to all those who celebrate today! 🐇💐

Here we see President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy in April of 1963 outside a private chapel at the residence of Ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., in Palm Beach, Florida, attending an Easter Sunday service. President Kennedy holds Caroline Kennedy's hand, while the First Lady holds John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s.

To learn more about the contributions made by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy to the legacy of President Kennedy, in addition to those made by Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, visit our website: https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/commemorating-camelot-three-women-who-shaped-jfk-s-legacy.htm



Image Description and Citation: President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy pose with their children in Palm Beach, Florida, on Easter Sunday. April 14, 1963. Cecil Stoughton. White House Photographs. Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 🍀

"I am proud to be the first American President to visit Ireland during his term of office, proud to be addressing this distinguished assembly, and proud of the welcome you have given me. My presence and your welcome, however, only symbolize the many and the enduring links which have bound the Irish and the Americans since the earliest days."

- President John F. Kennedy in an address before the Irish Parliament in Dublin, June 28, 1963

To learn more about the history of Irish immigration in Boston and its connection to President Kennedy, visit our website here: https://go.nps.gov/15kiw7



Image Description and Citation: Parade banner displayed during President Kennedy's 1963 visit to Ireland. Rectangular piece of linen with a black and white image of the head of JFK flanked by the Irish and United States flags in center. Gaelic welcome "Cead Mile Failte" in green script across top edge which translates to "A Hundred Thousand Welcomes." Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

February was a big birthday month for the Kennedy family and we'd like to celebrate that! 🎂🎉

Both Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy and Jean Kennedy were born on February 20, and Edward "Ted" Kennedy was born on February 22!

Born in 1920 at the Beals Street home, Kathleen, or "Kick" as she was nicknamed for her effervescent personality, traveled with her family to Great Britain when her father became ambassador in 1938. During her time there, Kick volunteered with the American Red Cross and fell in love with England and a man who she would later marry, William “Billy” Cavendish, the Marquess of Hartington. Sadly, Kick's life was cut short when she died in a plane crash at the age of 28.

Jean was the eighth child of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy, born in 1928. Carrying on the Kennedy Family tradition of public service, Jean founded Very Special Arts in 1974. In 2011, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian recognition, for her work with VSA and individuals with disabilities. Jean also served as United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1993 through 1998.

The youngest of the nine Kennedy children and born in 1932, Ted grew to be among the longest serving U.S. senators, elected nine times. Throughout his long and impactful career, he focused on rights, health, and equality, working with multiple presidents across the decades. He is remembered as the “Lion of the Senate.”

Learn more about the Kennedy family across the generations at https://www.nps.gov/jofi/learn/historyculture/people.htm



Images: 1.) Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy and William “Billy” Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington, April 1944. John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, Kennedy Family Collection. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. 2.) Jean Kennedy Smith (center right) in Dunganstown, County Wexford, Ireland. June 27, 1963. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston. 3.) Senator Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy, Official Photo Portrait.
United States Senate.

Happy Presidents Day from John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site! Here's to the 35th president of the United States!

"In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom ... I do not shrink from this responsibility - I welcome it ... The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it - and the glow from that fire can truly light the world." - President John F. Kennedy

To learn more about President Kennedy's birthplace, life, and legacy, check out our website: www.nps.gov/jofi

Quote: Segments from President Kennedy's Inaugural Address. January 20, 1961. Image Description and Citation: President Kennedy seated in the Oval Office. Credit: John Vachon and JFK Library.

🎆 Happy New Year’s Eve! 🎇

“Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And old lang syne?”

“We celebrate the past to awaken the future.”
– Senator John F. Kennedy, 1960



Image Description and Citation: View from the White House of the National Christmas tree at dusk, lit with multi-colored lights, on the snow-covered Ellipse at President’s Park, Washington, D.C. The Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial are visible in the background. December 26, 1962. Public Domain. Robert Knudsen. White House Photographs. JFK Library Foundation, Boston. KN-C25855.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!🎄 🎁❄️

"Now the most joyous of all days draws near--and the approach of Christmas rekindles the flame of hope in a world so long wearied by tension and conflict." - President John F. Kennedy



Image Citation and Description: Front of the Kennedy family Christmas card for 1927. Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy are pictured in inset oval photographs at left, and their seven children are pictured beside them, with tinted photographs of their faces atop illustrated bodies. Kennedy Family Collection. Photograph KFC2894P. Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Quote (segment): Remarks at lighting of National Christmas Tree, December 17, 1962.

Come work with us! 📚🏡🎉

Longfellow House - Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site in Cambridge, MA and John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site are hiring a Seasonal Museum Technician for the 2026 season! From early May through late October 2026, the Seasonal Museum Technician will help preserve the sites' museum collections through housekeeping, environmental monitoring, integrated pest management, and object care. This position also supports exhibit installation, inventory management, and packing of historic objects.

To learn more about this position and to apply, follow the link here: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/853079400 The job posting is currently open to the first 200 applicants or through January 6, 2026, whichever occurs first.

Insider tip: Announcements often close sooner than the announced closing date. To be sure your application goes through, make a plan and apply early!



Image Description and Citation: A photo of a cultural resources National Park Service staff member with a repaired frame and painting from the collection of the JFK birthplace. The painting is a replica of "A Venetian Scene" by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851); the original is c. 1843 and is at the National Gallery, London. NPS Photo.

Happy Winter Solstice!❄️

Today is the first day of winter and the shortest day of the year! How do you feel about entering into the winter season? Jack and Joe Jr. certainly do not look like they're enjoying having to be all bundled up!



Image Description and Citation: Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. and John F. Kennedy wear matching winter coats and hats in Brookline, Massachusetts, ca. 1921. Credit: Photographer unknown. John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. Kennedy Family Collection. JFK Library Foundation, Boston. KFC727N.

Season’s Greetings! We hope everyone is enjoying this holiday season. If you’re feeling festive, our friends and colleagues at Longfellow House - Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site are having a free Holiday Open House tomorrow, December 12 from 1:00 - 4:00 PM and again from 5:00 - 8:00 PM that welcomes all ages!

Follow the link below for more information -- we hope to see you there! ⛄️

"A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on. Ideas have endurance without death.” – President John F. Kennedy, 1963

in 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. For many that lived through it, the tragedy presented not just the loss of a national leader, but the loss of someone they believed in personally, and all that might have been had he survived. They can remember where they were and what they were doing at the precise moment they heard the news - the moment the world stopped. Nearly all adult Americans followed the funerary services on television, an act of collective mourning which has left a lasting imprint on our national memory.

President Lyndon B. Johnson declared the Monday after the assassination, November 25, as a National Day of Mourning. InBrookline, Massachusetts, a crowd spilled out of the memorial service hosted by the nearby synagogue and down Beals Street to pay respects to their late president at his birthplace here at 83 Beals Street.

President Kennedy’s courage, charisma, and vision caught hold of a generation, propelled them to hold fast to what he meant to them and enact change long after his brief presidency. His legacy endures today.

Please feel free to share your remembrances of November 1963, or what JFK means to you.



Image Descriptions and Citations: 1.) Photo portrait of President Kennedy, February 20, 1961. Courtesy of the JFK Library Foundation. 2.) A view of Beals Street in Brookline, MA taken from the JFK birthplace on the National Day of Mourning, November 25, 1963. Courtesy of Congregation Kehillath Israel in Brookline and John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

Happy Birthday to Robert F. Kennedy! 🎂🎉

, 100 years ago, Robert F. “Bobby” Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts.

The seventh of nine children, his childhood was spent striving to meet the standards of excellence and civic duty set by his older siblings. He went on to enlist in the Naval Reserve, graduate from Harvard University, and earn a law degree from the University of Virginia.

In the 1950s, Bobby investigated corruption, organized crime, and labor racketeering for two Senate Committees. He also became a key architect of his brother John F. Kennedy's senate and presidential campaigns. These races ushered in a new era of mass-media politics, with their playbook serving as an example for future national campaigns.

Bobby then became the U.S. Attorney General under President Kennedy. Here, his work stretched far beyond his official responsibilities. He became one of the president’s most trusted advisors, helping to steer the nation through moments of peril, such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and anti-Civil Rights riots.

In 1964, Bobby won a U.S. Senate seat in New York and focused on uplifting the downtrodden. There, he strived to combat racism and eliminate poverty, issues he had seen firsthand as he traveled the country. During his time in the Senate, he made a point to visit many of the most vulnerable and overlooked Americans. Bobby’s empathy for the many unified Americans from disparate backgrounds, giving hope in the turbulent 1960s. In 1968, he sought the Democratic nomination for president, only to be tragically assassinated just after winning the California primary.

His commitment to justice, zeal for public service, and authentic desire to help others lives on in the countless others he’s inspired. As Bobby would say “each time a man stands up for an ideal or acts to improve the lot of others or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.”

To learn more, read our article here: https://go.nps.gov/rfk-an-agent-of-hope



Image Description and Citation: Senator Robert F. Kennedy addresses a crowd at San Fernando Valley State College, California during his 1968 presidential campaign. March 25, 1968. Courtesy of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

During the federal government shutdown, this account will continue to share critical information about park access, safety, and resources. Some services may be limited. For more details, visit: doi.gov/shutdown