JFK in Georgetown
In the late 1940s, a young John Fitzgerald Kennedy moved to Washington D.C. as a newbie congressional representative from Massachusetts. He chose to live in a beautiful red-brick home in the city’s Georgetown neighbourhood. According to local legend, JFK first met Jacqueline Bouvier at a nearby dinner party when she was introduced by a mutual friend. And friend says that Jack (as JFK was known to most) reached across the table for the asparagus… and asked her for a date.
Today, after extensive renovation and updating, the stately home is on the market for US$ 4.68 million.
Since Washington’s first days as America’s capital city in the 1790s, politicians, lobbyists and journalists have gravitated to the Georgetown neighbourhood for the city’s best restaurants, schools, art galleries, quaint shops and homes. The Clintons and Henry Kissinger, as well as many other movers and shakers, have also called Georgetown home.
Several embassies including those of Sweden, France and Thailand are located in Georgetown, and the locale has also been the setting for a number of movies including Topaz, St. Elmo’s Fire and The Exorcist.
Kennedy’s former residence is located on a tree lined cobblestone street only a few blocks away from Georgetown University and the Potomac River. The house has three bedrooms and four baths, and spreads across 4,659 sq ft of living space with large windows and high ceilings. It’s a bright and cheerful house with sunshine spilling into the large rooms.
The ground floor has a dramatic foyer with a suspended circular staircase, formal living and dining spaces with a large terrace and beautifully panelled library. The large kitchen is up-to-the-minute in style and function while the laundry room is also spacious.
Every inch of the residence has undergone extensive renovation and updating. The bedrooms and bathrooms are cheerful and bright with a private terrace leading off the master suite, which is also equipped with a fireplace.
Despite hailing from one of America’s wealthiest families, Kennedy wasn’t much of a homeowner and almost always chose to rent rather than buy. And that includes his free White House residence too! He also had the unlimited use of his parents’ mansions in Palm Beach and the Kennedy Compound on Cape Cod.