Reopening following Shutdown and Season End

Date: October 18, 2013
Contact: Jim Roberts, 617-566-7937 x10

Brookline, MA – John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site re-opens to visitors today.John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site has been closed since October 1 due to the lapse in Congressional appropriations.

"We are excited and happy to be back at work and welcome visitors to John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site," said Superintendent Myra Harrison, who also oversees Brookline's other NPS site, Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. "October is typically an active month for our two Brookline sites, and each is offering special programs connected with the season in the coming weeks."

National Park Service rangers provide tours of the nine-room house museum where Kennedy family furnishings, photographs, and significant mementos personally collected and arranged by the president's mother are on exhibit. A taped narrative, featuring Mrs. Kennedy in her own words, is a unique and evocative addition to both the ranger-led and self-guided tours.

Visitor hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm. Ranger-guided house tours are offered from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM, with the final tour beginning at 3:30 PM. From 12:00-1:00 PM and 4:00 to 5:00 PM, visitors are welcome to follow a self-guided tour through the first and second floors of the house.Hand-held audio-players are available so that visitors may follow Mrs. Kennedy's tour in English, French, German, Spanish, and Japanese. Admission is free.

The regular visitor season for the site ends on November 2, 2013. The site will open for a special commemorative weekend on Saturday, November 23 & Sunday, November 24 to mark the 50^th Anniversary of the 1963 National Day of Mourning. For more information visit us at www.nps.gov/jofi or call 617-566-7937.