Category: Uncategorized

Detail from hand drawn Christmas card to the Roosevelts from Louis Simon, supervising Library architect, and his staff, December 1939. As illustrated in the previous post about holiday greetings from our armed forces during World War II, everyday Americans, and well-wishers from abroad, along with Roosevelt associates and notables, also sent Christmas cards and letters … Continue reading Merry Christmas, President Roosevelt: Seasons Greetings from Everyday Americans

Above top: This card from the Ninth Infantry Division depicts troops gathered in a battle-damaged church for Christmas services. Above: On the inside, humor takes center stage, highlighting where the 9th had served and noting slyly that Paris was "off limits." December 1944. FDR loved everything about Christmas. Annual traditions like reading "'Twas the Night … Continue reading Merry Christmas, President Roosevelt: Seasons Greetings from the Troops in World War Two

William A. Harris, Director Above: The former First Lady preparing for radio remarks marking the end of World War II, August 19, 1945. (Library of Congress) August 1945 was a month crowded with history. Though Eleanor Roosevelt had famously remarked after FDR's death that "the story is over," her busy summer and multiple radio appearances … Continue reading The Atom Bomb and V-J Day: Eleanor Roosevelt and the End of World War II, August 1945

Seventy-Five years ago, on February 12, 1950, Eleanor Roosevelt made her debut as host of the television program “Today with Mrs. Roosevelt” on the NBC network. By 1950 Eleanor Roosevelt had made great use of different media during her lifetime, such as radio, newspapers, and magazines – most notably her syndicated newspaper column, “My Day.” … Continue reading Today with Mrs. Roosevelt

by William A. Harris, Director Draped in a snow-white fox stole, Eleanor Roosevelt beams with a birthday corsage, 1939. The FDR Library collection continues to surprise us with its richness and variety. Last week, while conducting one of our annual inventories, we were reminded of an unusual item in the archives, an original leaf from … Continue reading The Roosevelts, a Broadway Producer, and the Gutenberg Bible

Above, FDR 1944. Last night, the Library participated in a White House Historical Association program focused on FDR and V-E Day. Victory in Europe Day isn't often discussed in detail here at the Library. We leave that day to the Truman Library. But FDR played a major role in shaping V-E Day and the way … Continue reading FDR and V-E Day

Unique Perspectives in the Papers and Records at the FDR Library A stunned citizenry gathers in Lafayette Park in Washington, DC, April 12, 1945. President Roosevelt's death on April 12, 1945, less than three months into his fourth term, was the first in a series of events in 1945 that dramatically marked the end of … Continue reading Flash, the President is Dead, April 12, 1945

In 2024 we expect and receive nearly instantaneous information about current events and happenings from a multiplicity of sources. Many people find it hard to believe that not too far in the past one relied upon a handful of radio and television stations, newspapers and magazines for news. This was certainly true in 1944 at … Continue reading D-Day and Radio News-A Different Perspective

D-Day has been the subject of countless articles, books, and motion pictures, but many  aspects of this pivotal moment in world history remain unknown or unacknowledged. Perhaps surprisingly, one involves the FDR Library, according to the Library's first director, Fred Shipman. His tale of events in late 1943 and early 1944 regarding a misfiled document, … Continue reading D-Day, the FDR Library, and a Remarkable Story