Riverdale Country School John F. Kennedy, front row center, at Riverdale Country School circa 1927.Let us now visit the house where a 10-year-old John F. Kennedy lived.
It’s in the Bronx.
And it’s a bit creepy.
We stopped by in recognition of the 50th anniversary of Kennedy’s assassination, on Friday.
The Kennedys lived in the upscale Riverdale section of the Bronx in the late 1920’s.
At the Riverdale Country School, Kennedy was not a star student.
One year, he got a D in French.
In a 1960 campaign appearance at a Bronx hotel, he boasted of his local roots.
“I said up the street that I was a former resident of the Bronx. Nobody believes that, but it is true,†he declared. “No other candidate for the presidency can make that statement.â€
About that house, though.
It’s enormous, 20 rooms of Georgian splendor, set on two acres fringed by pines.
But it’s been empty for a long time, neighbors said. (We’ve been trying to track down the owners through property records. We’ll let you know what we find out.)
The front doorway is sealed over with cement.
No historic plaque is visible.
A few houses down, a man named Ian Kirby, who grew up in the neighborhood, was raking leaves.
“It’s always looked to be in some sort of disrepair,†he said of the house.
Here’s what else you need to know for Wednesday.
WEATHER
Brrr. A high of only 45, with a ruffling breeze. Stay in the sunshine.
COMMUTE
Subways: O.K. Click for latest status.
Rails: No delays. Click for L.I.R.R., Metro-North or New Jersey Transit status.
Roads: Click for traffic map or radio report on the 1s.
Alternate-side parking is in effect all week.
COMING UP TODAY
- Mayor-elect de Blasio visits the Talking Transition Tent, on Canal Street, where New Yorkers can offer opinions on policies for his administration, at 2:30 p.m.
- The City Council holds a hearing on allegations of racial profiling at department stores, at 11 a.m.
- Cab drivers will protest a new 6-cent-per-fare tax outside Taxi and Limousine Commission headquarters.
- Opening: “ ‘Dearest Jackie’: On the Death of JFK,†with art by Andy Warhol and Robert Rauschenberg, and a condolence letter to the first lady from Arthur Schlesinger Jr., at the main New York Public Library. [Free]
- A fancy food court, Gotham West Market, opens on 11th Avenue and 44th Street, with stalls from name chefs.
- More foodie news: Mission Cantina, the new offering from Danny Bowien of Mission Chinese Food, opens on Orchard Street.
- A tribute concert for the 109-year-old pianist Alice Herz-Sommer, believed to be the oldest Holocaust survivor, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. (She will not be there.) 7 p.m. [$10]
- For more events, see The New York Times Arts & Entertainment guide.
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