(1863 – 1950) The Irish roots of John F. Kennedy’s genealogy were also on his mother’s side of the family. Rose Fitzgerald’s father, John F. Fitzgerald (Honey Fitz) was the son of Irish immigrants, Thomas Fitzgerald and Rosanna Cox.
In his early years, Fitzgerald worked as a clerk in Boston’s Custom House and grew active in the Democratic Party. Fitzgerald married his second cousin, Mary Josephine Hannon, on September 18, 1889, and within a few years, he was elected to Boston’s Common Council.
In 1892, he became a member of the Massachusetts Senate, and in 1894, he was elected to Congress, serving until 1901.
From 1906 to 1908, Fitzgerald was elected Mayor of Boston. He lost a two-year term to a Republican challenger, but was re-elected in 1910 to a four-year term. In 1919, he again served in Congress, but was unsuccessful in a run for the Senate in 1916 and Governor in 1922.
Fitzgerald spent his final years looking after his business interests and working with Rose’s sons on the development of their political futures.
