| Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Kennedy (C. 1940) | |
| Governor of Massachusetts | |
| In office January 2nd, 1955 – January 6th, 1961 | |
| Vice Governor | Foster Furcolo |
| Preceded by | Christian A. Herter |
| Succeeded by | Foster Furcolo |
Joseph Patrick Kennedy II (1915-2000) was an American Politician, diplomat and businessman who served as Governor of Massachusetts from 1955 until 1961. Kennedy was a member of the Kennedy Political Family and the oldest son of Attorney General Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. After a failed senate bid in 1960 he retired to manage the familial finances.
Early Life[]
Kennedy was born on July 25, 1915, in Hull, Massachusetts. He first attended the Dexter School in Brookline, Massachusetts, with his brother John. In 1933, he graduated from the Choate School in Wallingford, Connecticut. He then entered Harvard College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, from which he graduated in 1938 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in government. Kennedy participated in football, rugby, and crew and served on the student council. He then spent a year studying under the tutelage of Harold Laski at the London School of Economics before he enrolled at Harvard Law School. He graduated from Harvard in 1945.
Kennedy left before his final year of law school at Harvard to enlist in the U.S. Naval Reserve on June 24, 1941. He entered flight training to be a naval aviator, received his wings, and was commissioned an ensign on May 5, 1942. He piloted land-based PB4Y Liberator patrol bombers on anti-submarine details during two tours of duty in the winter of 1943–1944. Kennedy was appointed a lieutenant on July 1, 1944. He had completed 25 combat missions and was eligible to return home. He instead volunteered for an Operation Aphrodite mission and having completed it he returned home having received the Navy Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart and the Air Medal.
Political Career[]
After his father's impeachment in 1939 many had thought the Kennedy's Political days numbered but in 1946 the war hero dubbed "JPK" clinched the Democratic nomination for the Massachusetts 11th Congressional district, and having been a state-wide recognized war hero the 31 year old wins the election. Kennedy would represent the district for a total of 4 Congress's, declining to run in 1954 instead running for Governor.
In 1954 Kennedy managed to successfully defeat incumbent Republican Governor Christian A. Herter in the gubernatorial election being sworn in as governor in the January that followed. During his time as Governor the Northerner would generally oppose his fellow Democrat President Douglas MacArthur being considered in between the Democrats and Progressives. He would be re-elected in 1956 and 1958, with the endorsement of the Progressive party in 1956.
Kennedy did not seek a fourth term in 1960 rather attempting to reach the U.S. Senate but losing to Mayor Thomas O'Connor of Springfield in a massive primary upset. Kennedy opted to retire from directly holding public office instead assuming the position of head of the Kennedy's clan from his aging father.
Post-Politics[]
In 1970 Kennedy was appointed as ambassador to Ireland by President Harry F. Byrd Jr., the Kennedy clan deriving from Ireland. Kennedy would hold that position until New Year's Day in 1975 when he became an advisor to his son Joseph III who had then been elected to Congress.
During his four decades as the unofficial head of the Kennedy clan the eldest son would sponsor and plan out his family's political campaigns even as most of them joined the Progressive Party, he is credited with overseeing the family's golden age the "Camelot Era" in the 1970s and the 80s.
Personal Life and Death[]
Joseph Kennedy married Mary Curley (b. 1913), the daughter of Boston Mayor and former congressman James Curley, in 1947. The couple had one son Joseph Patrick Kennedy III who was born in 1949. Mary passed away from a stroke in 1950 and Joseph never remarried.
In 1977 Joseph was diagnosed with Addison's disease and largely withdrew from public life and passed away 23 years later in 2000 from natural causes aged 85.