J. L. Auchincloss Morris; JFK’s Mother-in-Law

Janet Lee Auchincloss Morris, a leading figure in Newport society, an accomplished horsewoman and the mother of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, died over the weekend.

She was 81 and died after what was described as a lengthy illness. United Press International reported that she had been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Mrs. Morris, who died at her home in Newport on Saturday, won the hunter championship three times at the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden aboard the mare Daneuse.

She was married to John V. Bouvier III on July 7, 1928. The couple’s other daughter was Caroline Lee Radziwill Ross. That marriage ended in divorce in 1940.

She married Hugh D. Auchincloss, the father of three, on June 21, 1942. The couple had two children, Janet Auchincloss Rutherford, who died in 1985, and James Auchincloss. Hugh Auchincloss died Nov. 26, 1976.

Sat on Board

Mrs. Auchincloss then married Bingham W. Morris on Oct. 25, 1979.

She was on the board of the Newport Historical Society and the Redwood Library and was honorary director of the Robert E. Lee Memorial Assn. at Stratford, Va., at the time of her death.

Her death occurred on the same day that Rose Kennedy, mother of the late President John F. Kennedy, turned 99. Mrs. Morris’ 14 grandchildren include John F. Kennedy Jr. and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, the children of the late President and Onassis.

The exact cause of her death was not known. A spokeswoman answering the telephone at Hammersmith Farm, the family home, refused further comment. Nancy Tuckerman, a spokeswoman in New York for Onassis, did not return a call.