A granddaughter of Robert F. Kennedy – Saoirse Kennedy Hill, 22 – has died at the famous Kennedy Compound in Hyannis Port, according to WCVB Boston and the New York Times. Early reports say it may have been from a possible overdose.
According to The Times, she is the daughter of Courtney Kennedy Hill (a daughter of RFK) and Paul Hill. You read more about her life here. She was a Boston College student who had written about struggling with depression and mental health.
FacebookSaoirse-Kennedy-Hill
“Our hearts are shattered by the loss of our beloved Saoirse,” the Kennedy family said in a statement, according to the New York Times. “Her life was filled with hope, promise and love.” Ethel Kennedy, 91, said, “The world is a little less beautiful today.” The Kennedy statement further stated that Saoirse “was passionate about human rights and women’s empowerment and that she worked with indigenous communities to build schools in Mexico,” AP reported.
According to WCVB-TV, the Kennedy granddaughter died on the afternoon of August 1, 2019 “after paramedics were called to one of the homes on the Kennedy Compound property.” The New York Post reported that she was staying on the compound.
Hyannis News is reporting that the call came from the home of Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy. That property is located on the complex at 28 Marchant Ave.
Heavy left a message for local police and fire.
Here’s what you need to know:
The Original Call Reported a Possible Overdose
WCVB reported that police are investigating, and the call came in as a possible overdose.
The Boston Globe reported that the call came in for a medical emergency with the patient taken to a nearby hospital. Authorities were giving out almost no information.
There are multiple homes in the famous Kennedy Compound in Hyannis Port. According to WCVB, the compound encompasses 6 acres. You can listen to radio transmissions here, where rescuers refer to Marchant Avenue. There are some gaps where you don’t hear anything in the file. The first transmission with the address is about just before four minutes in.
According to Hyannis News, the call came in just after 2:30 p.m. Emergency radio transmissions reviewed by Hyannis News indicated that police and rescue were called “to reports of an overdose inside the Kennedy Compound.” The newspaper did not indicate the patient’s condition or give a name.
GettyAn Honor Guard carries the casket of the late US Sen. Edward Kennedy across the porch of his home at the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts on August 27, 2009.
An officer who responded indicated in the radio transmissions that the person was in cardiac arrest and requested a supervisor.
Although, again, it’s not clear who the woman is or whether she is related to the Kennedy family, Ethel Kennedy’s large brood has had its share of tragedy since the assassination of her husband. While some of the 11 children have been very successful (such as Kathleen Kennedy Townsend), two children died tragically, David and Michael. David Kennedy died at age 28 of an overdose in Palm Beach back in 1984. Michael was killed in a skiing accident.
A partial view of the Kennedy compound in Hyannisport, MA where a large tent stands intended for Rory Kennedy’s wedding reception and now where family members wait to hear word of the missing John F. Kennedy Jr. 18 July 1999.
In 2017, in a series commemorating what would have been President John F. Kennedy’s 100th birthday, WBUR reported that Cape Cod is where the president’s legacy remains most visible in the landscape. In addition to the famous Kennedy Compound, where the family has gathered throughout the years, there is a JFK museum, memorial and legacy walk in Hyannis Port, the television station reported.
“The house is a symbol of the Kennedys because so much happened there, especially during the presidential years with different people coming there for conferences or ambassadors visiting heads of state,” said Bob Luddington, a consultant to the Kennedys, to WBUR for that series. The television station described the cluster of buildings as being “in an unassuming residential neighborhood, mostly obscured from street view by tall wooden fences and shrubs” and said Ethel Kennedy was still living there as of 2017.
According to Architectural Digest, “Vivid images of the famed Kennedy compound are emblazoned in the eyes of several generations: Marine One landing on the lawn for weekends President John F. Kennedy spent with his brothers; cousins running toward the helicopter to greet their fathers. Patrick wasn’t born yet, but he speaks of it as if he remembers.”
There have been various incidents throughout the years in Hyannis Port involving the Kennedys, such as when RFK’s son Max and his daughter were arrested after a house party in the area.
“This historical gem was once home to the beloved and iconic United States president John F. Kennedy. Today, the Kennedy family still uses the property. For this reason, it is private property and not open to the public. However, you can still view the estate from a distance,” Candleberry Inn notes.
According to RAAB Collection, “In 1926 Joseph P. Kennedy rented a large, beautiful, oceanfront summer cottage on Cape Cod at 28 Marchant Avenue in Hyannisport, MA. Two years later, he purchased the structure, which had been erected in 1904, and enlarged and remodeled it to suit his family’s needs.”
This post will be updated when more information is learned.