18.05.22 Kennebunkport

Pres. George HW Bush Returns to Maine

“Part of what I really am is here.”
What is Kennebunkport? And why is it so special to the Bush family?

Flip: To Learn

• The coastal property in southern Maine, has beenA in the family for a century.
• Pres. Bush, 93, hasA visited Walker’s Point in Kennebunkport every summer since his childhood, except 1944 when he was an aviator in World War II.
• This summer will be Pres. Bush’s 1st summer inA Kennebunkport without Barbara, his wife of 73 years, who died on April 17th.

“I imagine he will feel that half of him is missing for the rest of his life. But that said, there is no quit in this man. Life goes on, and for George Bush life is to be lived with joy a especially when he is in Maine.”



Jim McGrath, President George H.W. Bush's spokesman

The Bush Compound

• The largest house is a 6-bedroom, 7,100-square foot home built in 1920. Other homes have been added over the yrs, including son Jeb’s house in ’15.
• 11-acre property has a building for Secret Service agents, gym, pond, pool & tennis court.
• Secret Service prohibits access, but boats can offer a glimpse.

Presidential History

• If present during office, Pres. George H.W. (’89-’93) or Pres. George W. (’01-’09), theA Presidential flagA was hoisted below the national colors.
• The Bushes hosted world leaders like Margaret Thatcher, Mikhail Gorbachev, & Vladimir Putin – Putin’s visit in 2007 was called “The Lobster Summit” (reference to Maine’s famous crustacean).

For a man who moved 28 times in his adult life, the constant for Pres. Bush is Kennebunkport. 300 well-wishers lined the streets waving American flags as he returned Sunday. Click for a gem from 1988 when reporters were allowed inside the Bush compound.