Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was truly a woman ahead of her time and understood that the role of women in post-World War II life was changing before it even began to change. Onassis balanced the traditional woman's role as wife and mother by becoming one of the most influential First Ladies the country had ever seen through her style, intelligence and grace. However, it was her cunning that made her so endearing; Onassis knew what needed to be done politically, historically, and socially to advance her and her husband's legacy for decades to come. Her ability and desire to always be one step ahead of the game was what led her to such recognition, and it remains her legacy to this day. Even from her experiences as a child, Onassis displayed a zeal for learning and a lively attitude that foreshadowed her success as an adult woman. Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was born on July 28, 1929 in Southampton, New York. His father, John Bouvier, was a New York stockbroker while his mother, Janet, was a horsewoman. Onassis was sent to good schools her entire life and proved to be a conscientious, if somewhat mischievous, student.1 One of her elementary school teachers described her as "a lovely child, a very cute little girl, very intelligent, very artistic, and full of devil.” Another teacher stated that “her disruptive behavior during geography lessons made it necessary to exclude her from the classroom.”2 From the age of twelve, Onassis participated in ballet lessons, learned French, and shared with her mother the love of horseback riding In 1940, when Onassis was only eleven years old, she won a national junior riding competition It was reported in the New York Times that "Jacqueline Bouvier, an eleven-year-old horsewoman from... half of the paper...... days.27 The fact that Onassis had planned all of this years before and that she died before the recordings were released shows how committed she was to preserving her husband's legacy and not allowing it to be forgotten . In the words of Douglas Brinkley, "Jacqueline Kennedy epitomized elegance in the post-World War II era... There has never been a first lady like Jacqueline Kennedy, not only because she was so beautiful but because she was able to call an entire era 'Camelot'... no other first lady of the 20th century will have that aura. She became an icon."28 Throughout her life she was admired as a cultured, classy and graceful woman. . Through her actions in the White House and her influence on her husband's presidency, the legacy of Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis still paints her today as a hard-working, fiercely independent woman with wisdom beyond her years..