Deirdre M. Henderson of Essex, died on Sunday, December 28, 2025. She was born on February 22, 1934, to Warwick and Elizabeth Henderson. Deirdre grew up in a farmhouse in Essex, one of seven brothers and sisters.
Deirdre had a long and impressive career in politics. In 1967 she ran for Congress against Massachusetts Republican congressman William Bates. Deirdre graduated from Wells College in Aurora, New York. She later worked as assistant to the director of Harvard University’s defense studies program headed by Prof. Edward Katzenbach and later by Prof. Henry Kissinger. Deirdre managed Senator John F. Kennedy’s Boston office. After she was employed in the White House with the Kennedy administration as a research assistant on Foreign Policy and Defense Research. She also served in the State Department. In 1995 Deirdre published a book called “Prelude to Leadership: The Post-War Diary of John F. Kennedy." She worked on a sequel to the book during her remaining years.
Deirdre's other interests included restoring old colonial houses and land preservation. Together with relatives in the 1960’s she acquired parcels of land in Essex. A tract of these lands is now owned by the Essex County Greenbelt. Her final years were spent living in Manchester in a house built in the 1920's.
Deirdre is survived by twenty-one nieces and nephews and a younger sister. The family wishes to thank her friends and caregivers for their kindness and loyalty. In lieu of flowers please send donations to the First Congressional church in Manchester. She will be remembered by friends and family with a memorial in the Spring.
