President John Kennedy and his family spent only two weekends in their custom-built bucolic Virginia estate, which wrapped up construction in Oct. 1963, the month before Kennedy was shot to death in the back of a Lincoln Continental convertible in Dallas. Designed by and for his wife Jacqueline (along with her trusted decorator, Stéphane Boudin), who wanted a pastoral setting near the White House for horseback riding, the 39-acre ranch has largely been kept anonymous since the pair moved in. And that's exactly how Jackie wanted it: "It's the only house that Jack and I ever built together, and I designed it all myself … I don't want it exploited and photographed all over the place, just because it was ours." Half a century, three owners, and an additional 127 acres later, the place was listed for the first time in 22 years in October for $10.995M; now, though, the listing finally shows what everyone's been waiting for: interior pics.
Jackie lived at Wexford (named after the county in Ireland from which the Kennedys heralded) for months after Kennedy's assassination, though sold it the following year. The place, as Zillow Blog describes, is "rather simple"—if one can call a 5,055-square-foot stucco midcentury house, with 15 rooms and an underground bunker, "simple." During his 1980 presidential campaign, Ronald Reagan rented out the home, which sits about an hour out of the city.
Still, perhaps the most intriguing bit about Wexford is how little it's changed since Jack and Jackie pushed Caroline and John F. Kennedy, Jr. on the backyard swingset. Indeed the estate, whose listing shots are below, has the same pale yellow façade and stone patio featured in the Presidential Library's 1963 estate video. Curbed DC describes the place as "somewhat quaint (okay, very quaint)," and considering butter-yellow-and-green floral wallpaper in the entryway and and shiny orange paint job in the living room, that seems to be an apt (and generous, frankly) description. Anyway, have a look for yourself:
· The Kennedy Family Estate [Atoka Properties]
· John F. Kennedy's Custom Home for Sale [Zillow]
· Peep at the interiors of JFK's $11M Virginia Retreat [Curbed DC]
· The Only Home JFK and Jackie Ever Built Asks $10.995M [Curbed National]
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