Hickory Hill (McLean, Virginia)

For other uses, see Hickory Hill (disambiguation).

Hickory Hill
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Hickory Hill in June 2007
Location	1147 Chain Bridge Road McLean, Virginia
Part of	Langley Fork Historic District (ID82001818)
Designated CP	October 19, 1982

Hickory Hill is a large brick house in McLean, Virginia, in the United States. Although sometimes claimed to have been built earlier, architectural historians note that an 1865 ordinance map of the area indicates that the house was not present at that time. They date the house to shortly after the American Civil War, circa 1870. The 5.6-acre (2.3 ha) property was part of an 88-acre (36 ha) tract acquired by George Walter in 1846. He had built several houses in this area prior to his death in 1890. The core of Hickory Hill originally had a verandah encircling the structure, topped by a mansard roof. It was extensively remodeled in 1931, when it assumed its current configuration. A north wing was added by the Kennedy family in 1964.

The house has been the home of notable public figures. In July 1941, it became the home of newly appointed United States Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson and his wife, Irene, who, in 1955, after his death, sold Hickory Hill to United States Senator John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline. After the 1956 Democratic National Convention, the Kennedys sold the house to John's brother Robert F. Kennedy and his wife, Ethel, who had a growing family (eventually eleven children). While he lived at Hickory Hill, Robert Kennedy became Attorney General of the United States, in 1961; a United States Senator, in 1965; and a presidential candidate, in 1968.

Expanded by Robert Kennedy's family, the house was for sale since 2004, initially at an asking price of $25 million, but the property was withdrawn from the market November 2008. It was sold December 2009 to a Virginia businessman for $8.25 million. It is currently undergoing a complete renovation.

The house, along with eleven other historic structures, was designated as a contributing property to the Langley Fork Historic District by the the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places on October 19, 1982.