inside the New York City Apartment of Jackie Kennedy Onassis at the age of 35 Jackie moved from Washington to New York in the fall of 1964 to start a new life for her and her children in the book The estate of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis by Sotheby’s Nancy Tuckerman reflects on her time spent with Jackie and writes when we went to apartment hunting to avoid a publicity she came up with the idea that I would play the part of the prospective buyer while she’d come along disguised as the children’s Nanny she looked upon it as a game and loved every moment of it she soon
came across a home which she liked a penthouse apartment on the 15th floor located at 10 45th Avenue built in 1930 the building is comprised of 27 apartments and Rises 18 stories tall it is thought to be one of the most luxurious and prestigious apartment buildings on Fifth Avenue Nancy Tuckerman States I think Jackie saw her return to the city as coming home and more than anything she hoped perhaps even expected that a city of such size and diversity she’d be able to find the autonomy she longed for but this was unrealistic and intellectually she probably knew
it Jackie by this time was more than a household name she was a public figure and the press and the rest of the world were not about to let her forget it but the thing about Jackie is that she never thought of herself as famous she thought to be famous a person had to accomplish something in her own right that Fame had nothing to do with being the wife of a president when Jackie moved into her apartment she furnished it with works of art and other possessions that she had brought with her from the White House while Jackie had the Practical eye of
a collector she did not consider herself one and she acquired art that pleased her rather than as an investment essentially there was nothing Grand or ostentatious about her apartment it was inviting and comfortable with a pleasing lived-in feeling to it she was not in the habit of changing or rearranging Furniture once everything was in place she kept it that way replacing worn upholstery or slipcovers with identical materials the day Jackie moved into her apartment we spent the day unpacking emptying cartons putting books in bookcases and around 8 o’clock in
the evening the doorbell rang and Jackie in her blue jeans and looking quite disheveled open the door there stood two distinguished looking couples in full evening attire when they recognized Jackie they were taken aback they said they were expected for dinner at Mrs whitehouses it turned out that the elevator man unnerved by the mere thought of Jackie’s presence in the building was unable to associate the name White House with anyone or anything but her Jackie’s apartment was close to her sisters and featured beautiful views of Central Park she lived there
for 30 years until 1994. let’s now take a look at the details of the Interiors which she lived in her home was extremely spacious yet cozy by the way she decorated it there were five bedrooms all equipped with ensuite bathrooms as well as a beautiful Gallery spacious living room library and large dining room the home also featured accommodations for staff from the elevator you would enter into the gallery lined with beautiful leather-bound books and adjacent Oriental tables in the center of the room with empire style lamps and cast
iron plants along with her favorite coffee table books from here you would enter into the living room which had a balcony that overlooked Central Park and Fifth Avenue lined in original white wood paneling and parquet floors she furnished the space in coveted objects which embraced the room’s light and Airy tone in this room she had two couches one a button tuft overstuffed upholstered settee covered in Floral brocade with a cream damask slipcover as well as another settee with a plain back three cushioned seat in yellow upholstery the
living room also contained many chairs of the 18th century mostly in the Rococo style of Louis XV and these chairs were said to have belonged to Marie Antoinette at the petite trionon at Versailles she covered the walls in diverse artworks mostly of lithographs which she had kept with her throughout her life the room housed important objects of great meaning to Jackie and this traveling case made for Marie Antoinette is no exception here are some photos of Jackie in this space in the 1980s she loved
to celebrate birthdays holidays and Christmas here her dining room served as an additional living space with only a small dining table in the corner of the room the room was covered in bookcases and featured a baby grand piano there was ample seating space with couches and chairs placed carefully around the room throughout the room there are equestrian paintings of men on Horseback from the 1700s in the 1980s the room’s wallpaper and much of its fabric was redone originally the walls were a salmon color and there were bold patterns and prints throughout the room
now passing into the library in 1973 she opened her doors to Vogue where they took interior photographs of her home although one might say that this room was very much of the decade it was still a fun and Lively space where she could have it her own way there was also classic pieces which remained with her throughout her life and were kept there as the decades progressed the lengthy hallway area was done in a bright yellow color and fitted with beautiful Antiques and artwork from architectural watercolors to a Roman torso from the 2nd Century A.D this space was
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wonderfully done and lined with a couch and chairs which had traveled with her from the White House now let’s take a look at some of the objects that were in her China closet thank you foreign pictured here is Caroline in her bedroom it was in this home that Jackie raised her children and whilst living in New York she played a key role in Saving various architectural institutions from Demolition joining a number of boards in the late 70s Jackie turned to a career in publishing having an immense love for books
and inquisitive and creative mind and a Discerning taste for literature the job suited her perfectly while working out of a small office she was committed to editing about 12 books a year Jackie passed on in 1994 at the age of 64. Caroline and John Jr stated in deciding what to do with our mother’s possessions we were guided first and foremost by her deep knowledge and love of History she was proud to have played a part in the history of our country and in accordance with her wishes we have given objects and documents which help Chronicle the Kennedy administration
and her role as first lady to the John F Kennedy Library Foundation which will make them available to the public beyond that our mother believed in individuals more than in institutions she was able to evoke the lives and people of other times and places describing to us the ancient pharaohs court adversi or life on a Nantucket whaling ship so vividly that we felt we had visited these wonderful places for our mother history came alive through objects and paintings as well as books because the things she collected linked her with history and because she cared about them they
represent more than just just a record of her life and travels as they go out into the world we hope that they bring with them not only their own Beauty and spirit but some of hers as well thank you so much for touring the apartment of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis with me you can purchase the estate of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis by Sotheby’s in the description of this video thank you so much for watching everyone I’ll see you in the next one foreign
