The Age of Eisenhower: America and the World in the 1950s

by William I. Hitchcock

He could occasionally lay down these heavy cares at the small home he occupied, called Telegraph Cottage, hidden in the then-remote suburbs southwest of London, near Richmond Park. Here he found time to unwind, play cards with his band of devoted aides, listen to records, stroll in the garden, and rest. In those days at Telegraph Cottage, among his ersatz family, he developed an amorous reliance on his pretty Irish driver and helpmate Kay Summersby. At a time of immense stress and anxiety, Eisenhower welcomed the attentions and ministrations of this lively young woman who gave him something else to think about than war. It is unknown if their friendship ever became sexual; the story is veiled by the fog of war. To say that they were for a time devoted to and dependent on one another is enough.