An American Icon “…[Jacqueline] could almost have been a movie star. Her photo appeared on countless magazine covers and “the Jackie look” was widely imitated” (Gerston 53). She is known for being one of the most glamorous first ladies of all time, and women across America wanted to emulate her style, grace, and strength because of the admiration many held for her. Despite Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' elite but turbulent childhood, she became an American icon who influenced women with her ability to persevere and stay true to herself, thereby achieving the American dream. Onassis was born in the 1920s in Southampton, Long Island, New York. York to John Vernou Bouvier III, Wall Street broker, and Janet Lee (Caroli). She had a younger sister, Caroline Lee, and both grew up in an affluent and wealthy lifestyle ("Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis"). Onassis spent winters in New York where she attended the Chapin School and summers in East Hampton, Long Island ("Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis"). Throughout her childhood, Onassis “developed the interests she would enjoy as an adult: horseback riding, writing, and painting” (Caroli). When her parents divorced in 1942, Jacqueline's mother married Hugh Auchincloss, Jr. ("Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis"). At this time in her life, she divided her time between “the family estate Merrywood in Virginia and Hammersmith Farm in Newport, Rhode Island” (Caroli). Onassis had an elite education, attending boarding school from the age of 15 and Vassar College after graduating from high school ("Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis"). During her first year of college, Onassis studied at the "Sorbonne in Paris", where "she perfected her French and solidified her affinity for French culture and...... middle of paper .... .. yourself and your children. She is truly an American icon who will be remembered as a forward-thinking first lady, a loving mother, and a strong, independent woman of her times. Works CitedCaroli, Betty B. "Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy". Britannica Biographies (2010). MAS Ultra - School edition. EBSCO. Internet. February 8, 2010. Gerston, Jill. “Jacqueline Kennedy: First Lady of Style.” Biography January 2001: 53+. Print."Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis." American History. 2010. ABC-CLIO. Internet. February 8, 2010. Kantrowitz, Barbara. “Jackie after Jack.” Newsweek February 23, 1998. Gale Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Internet. February 19, 2010. Koestenbaum, Wayne. “Jackie, icon on the move.” Harper's Magazine, May 1995. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Internet. February 18, 2010. “The new haute couture emerged in the 1960s.” Discovering the history of the United States (2003). Student Resource Center - Gold. Internet. February 19. 2010.