Winter White House auction pulls in almost $400,000

An auction of furniture and other household items from the former “Winter White House” in Palm Beach generated almost $400,000 in sales.

The 153 lots sold Saturday at the West Palm Beach showroom of Leslie Hindman Auctioneers had an estimated total value of $87,000, which excluded any premium for the historic nature of property that President John F. Kennedy and his family used.

The biggest sales included $20,000 for a pair of Venetian-style walnut beds and $10,625 for the walnut-framed massage table.

Buyers also paid $38,000 for a pair of Venetian glass mirrors and $16,250 for a Louis XV Provincial-style mahogany banquet table.

A set of 14 Baroque-style dining rooms sold for $17,500, and a pair of William and Mary tile-inset side tables went for $10,625.

Palm Beach architect Addison Mizner designed the Kennedy family estate at 1095 North Ocean Boulevard, where President Kennedy wrote his inaugural speech and his book Profiles in Courage. JFK also spent time at the Palm Beach residence recovering from back surgery.

Kennedy’s father Joseph P. Kennedy bought the Palm Beach residence in 1933 for $120,000.

Mr. and Mrs. John Castle, who purchased the Kennedy family estate in 1995, consigned the historic collection of household items in Saturday’s auction.