The JFK Forever Statue

President John F. Kennedy once said, “I always come back to the Cape and walk on the beach when I have a tough decision to make. The Cape is the one place I can think and be alone.” This statue captures JFK doing just that, walking on the sandy shores of Hyannis Port. The statue, created by noted sculptor David Lewis, was unveiled on May 29, 2007, the anniversary of JFK’s 90th Birthday. Hundreds of people, including JFK's brother, Senator Ted Kennedy, gathered here for the event.

The Kennedy Compound

After renting the Malcolm Cottage for three summers, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy & Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. purchased the six-acre property and house in Hyannis Port in 1928. Twenty years later, Jack and his brother Bobby expanded the family footprint by purchasing nearby homes. The family gathered here to await the results of the 1960 Presidential election. It served as the summer White House from 1961 to 1963. Over nearly a century, many important events in the Kennedy family legacy have been centered around the compound. Family weddings celebrated at the compound include those of Maria Shriver in April 1986 and Caroline Kennedy in July 1986. And here the family has gathered to mourn the deaths of President Kennedy in 1963, and John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife and sister-in-law in July 1999. JFK's brother, US Senator Ted Kennedy, called the compound home until his death in 2009. The public cannot access the compound, but images of the homes are on display at the JFK Hyannis Museum. The best way to view the compound is from the water, which can be done on private boat tours that depart from Hyannis Harbor, at Stop #9 on the Kennedy Legacy Trail.