John Fitzgerald Kennedy

John F. Kennedy was born into a rich, politically connected Boston family of Irish-Catholics. He and his eight siblings enjoyed a privileged childhood of elite private schools, sailboats, servants, and summer homes. During his childhood and youth, "Jack" Kennedy suffered frequent serious illnesses. Nevertheless, he strove to make his own way, writing a best-selling book while still in college at Harvard and volunteering for hazardous combat duty in the Pacific during World War II. Kennedy's wartime service made him a hero. After a short stint as a journalist, Kennedy entered politics, serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 and the U.S. Senate from 1953 to 1961.

Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans... Inaugural Address
Inaugural Address

Legacy

When Kennedy was sworn in as president in 1961, he was––at age 43––the youngest person ever to have been elected president. Unfortunately, less than three years later he was also the youngest president to die.

Kennedy’s policies and administration centered on what he coined the “New Frontier” of American politics, which focused on fulfilling unmet challenges in civil rights, the economy, the arts and sciences (particularly space exploration), foreign aid and relations, and national defense. Kennedy promised to put an American on the moon by 1970, and indeed the first American astronauts explored space during his term and later, in 1969, Neil Armstrong did make that momentous first step on the moon.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Legacy

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