Jackie's Newport: America's First Lady and the City by the Sea

"All the memories come back, no place in the world as lovely as Hammersmith Farm," Jackie wrote in a letter to her mother upon departing Hammersmith Farm, following the first presidential visit in the fall of 1961. Hyannis Port is most commonly associated with the Kennedy presidency, but the truth is that Hammersmith Farm was Jackie's preferred getaway, providing the privacy she so passionately desired. Jackie arrived in Newport in 1942 just before her thirteenth birthday and emerged as "Queen Debutant of the Year" five years later. "I remember seeing her once as a debutant," recalled a Newport contemporary, "I remember catching my breath...as she walked down a flight of stairs...she was so regal...I've never forgotten that moment." Jackie's Newport takes you through her early years, to debutante, to Senator's wife, to America's First Lady where she emerged as an international force beguiling world leaders. And finally; "With majestic pace and instant dignity, she disciplined our grief, made us proud in our shame, and gave us gentle strength to nurture future Americans." Bringing "every woman a new grace, every wife a new radiance, every mother a new tender courage," as she etched herself into the soul of America, guiding the country through the darkness of that November weekend in 1963. Jackie's Newport brings a fresh look into the inner strength, courage and dignity of the woman who over fifty years later remains America's First Lady.   Read more