Kennedy's- Part 3: The Kennedy Curse

(This is the 3rd of the Kennedy Posts. Please visit the 1st post and 2nd post).


With the flood of news lines about Saoirse Rosisin Kennedy Hill's death ruled a drug overdose, I thought it fitting that I write a 3rd Kennedy blog post about the well-known Kennedy curse.

Many people believe that the Kennedy family is cursed because of their string of accidental deaths and incidents. Others' just make it out to be a coincidence because it spans through many generations. Well, whatever you believe, it is truly unusual. 

Accidental Kennedy deaths in Red and other incidents in Blue  

~1941- Rosemary Kennedy (1918-2005)- sister of JFK- underwent a lobotomy at the age of 23 to "fix" frequent seizures and mood swings. It failed and she became unable to walk or speak well. She was institutionalized most of her life until her death in 2005 when she was 86 years old.

~1944- Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (1915-1944)- died in a plane crash during WWII in England. He was 29 years old. 

~1948- Kathleen Agnes Cavendish ('nee Kennedy" (1920-1948)- died in a plane crash in France. She was 28 years old. 

~1956- Arabella Kennedy- Stillborn daughter of John F. (JFK) and Jackie Kennedy.

~1961- Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. (1888-1969) suffered a massive stroke that left him paralyzed on his right side and aphasia, which affected his ability to speak. 

~1963- Patrick Bouvier Kennedy (1963-1963)- infant of John F. (JFK) and Jackie Kennedy. Died of respiratory failure 2 days after a premature birth. 

~1963- John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) (1917-1963) was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas Texas. He was 46 years old.

~1964- Edward Moore Kennedy "Ted" (1932-2009) survived a plane crash in which two others died. He suffered from a broken back, punctured lung, broken ribs and internal bleeding.

~1968- Robert Francis Kennedy (1925-1968) was assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan in Los Angeles. He was 42 years old.

~1969- Ted Kennedy (1932-2009) accidently drove his car off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, fatally killing his 28 year old passenger.

~1973- Joseph P. Kennedy II (b. 1952) crashed his jeep, leaving one passenger paralyzed and another injured. 

~1973- Edward Moore Kennedy Jr. (b. 1961) was 12 years old when part of his right leg had to be amputated due to bone cancer. 

~1984- David Anthony Kennedy (1955-1984)- Robert Francis' son died of a drug overdose in Palm Beach, Florida. He was 28 years old.

~1991- William Kennedy Smith (b. 1960)- son of Jean Ann Kennedy, was arrested, charged and later acquitted of rape with a young woman at the Kennedy Estate in Florida. 

~1997- Michael LeMoyne Kennedy (1958-1997)- Robert Francis' son died in a skiing accident in Aspen, Colorado. He was 39 years old. 

~1999- John F. Kennedy Jr. (1960-1999)- JFK's son died in a plane crash in Massachusetts along with his wife Carolyn. He was 38 years old, she was 33.


~2011- Kara Anne Kennedy (1960-2011)- daughter of Edward Moore Kennedy, first had lung cancer and then died of a heart attack at the age of 51.

~2012- Mary Kathleen Richardson Kennedy (1959-2012)- Wife of Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. She committed suicide at the age of 52. 

~2014- Josephine Ethel Kerr (2014-2014)- daughter of Kyle Rose Kennedy and granddaughter of Michael LeMoyne Kennedy- died in infancy. 

~2019- Saoirse Roisin Kennedy Hill (1997-2019)- daughter of Courtney Kennedy, died of a drug overdose. She was 22 years old.