The story of the Kennedy family is one filled with great achievement but overwhelming heartache. Most of us know the Kennedy name from JFK and Jackie Kennedy as they were the 35th POTUS and FLOTUS, but the family’s tragic story begins way before them. The first Kennedy’s to arrive to America were Patrick Kennedy and Bridget Murphy in 1849 from Ireland. The couple ended up in east Boston and continued to live in the area, creating new generations of Kennedy’s that started their long lineage with political ties. Patrick and Bridget had a son P.J., whose brother in law served as the Mayor of Brockton, Massachusetts in 1913. Their son Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. was the first Kennedy to gain notable fame for his business successes—mostly in banking and securities trading.
Franklin D. Roosevelt is responsible for Joseph Sr.’s political career, as he appointed him to chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Later in his career he also served a term as Ambassador to the United Kingdom, which was extremely controversial as it was during the lead up to WWII. As I previously stated, the family had many political ties and they continued with Rose Fitzgerald, Joseph Sr.’s wife and the daughter of John F. Fitzgerald. Rose served in the US House of Representatives and as the Mayor of Boston in the late 1890’s.
What’s unfortunate about the Kennedy lineage is they are almost just as famous for their tragic curse as they are for their achievements. It’s no doubt that the Kennedy bunch are highly educated and have tried to overcome many political boundaries; but for some of the family, life was more difficult and painful than it should be. There are entirely too many occurrences with plane crashes and assassinations for it all to be just a coincidence, and by the end of this list you’ll be surprised at just how many people are involved…