The First Lady of the Struggle

Mary McLeod Bethune acted as leader of the Black Cabinet. Bethune was a friend and confidante of Eleanor Roosevelt and FDR held her in high regard. She used her unique connection to the Roosevelts to bring race-related issues directly to the President. Photograph: Library of Congress Much of the success of the Black Cabinet was … Continue reading The First Lady of the Struggle

Special Exhibition Highlight: Walter White

Walter White was a Black American civil rights leader and executive secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 1929 to 1955. Born into a prominent family in Atlanta, Georgia in 1893, he was a graduate of Atlanta University. White joined the NAACP in 1918 and gained prominence for his … Continue reading Special Exhibition Highlight: Walter White

FDR’s D-Day Prayer

American troops head toward Omaha Beach, June 6, 1944. At 9:57 pm on D-Day, June 6, 1944, FDR sat in front of a microphone in the Diplomatic Reception Room at the White House waiting to begin a national radio address. Earlier in the day the President had held a press conference in the Oval Office … Continue reading FDR’s D-Day Prayer

New Exhibit and Book Spotlight Museum’s World War II Posters

By Herman Eberhardt, Supervisory Museum Curator. When I arrived as the new museum curator at the Roosevelt Library in the summer of 2003 I set to work understanding the museum’s rich collection of over 34,000 objects. My review turned up much that I expected to find. But there were also more than a few surprises. … Continue reading New Exhibit and Book Spotlight Museum’s World War II Posters

New Special Exhibit Opening at the Roosevelt Library

On Saturday, April 25, museum visitors will be able to experience a brand new special exhibit at the Roosevelt Library. The exhibit, titled The Spirit of the Gift: Gifts of State and Affection, features nearly 100 impressive and unusual presidential gifts given to FDR. The exhibit’s title is taken from President Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Address, in … Continue reading New Special Exhibit Opening at the Roosevelt Library

Remembering FDR

One of the best things that can happen at the Roosevelt Library is when a member of the public makes a personal connection with one of the artifacts or documents on display in our Museum. Such an encounter occurred just this week— and, by chance, it relates directly to the 70th anniversary of President Roosevelt’s … Continue reading Remembering FDR

Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection

Starting on August 9th, Museum visitors will be able to experience a new traveling exhibition Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection in the William J. vanden Heuvel Special Exhibitions Gallery. This unique exhibit features a collection of more than 200 distinctive pins and explores how Secretary of State Madeleine Albright—the first woman to serve … Continue reading Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection

An Exceptional Day

by Lynn Bassanese Most days at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum are really good; some could even be classified as great. But every once in a while a day becomes exceptional. Last Thursday, July 11th was one of those exceptional days. We were hosting 120 school counselors and college and university professionals … Continue reading An Exceptional Day

FDR Presidential Library Rededication – The Role of the Historians Committee

by David B. Woolner, Senior Fellow and Hyde Park Resident Historian, The Roosevelt Institute In the summer of 2000, a group of historians gathered at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum to examine the question of how the permanent exhibit at the FDR Library might be reconfigured for a new generation. The group, … Continue reading FDR Presidential Library Rededication – The Role of the Historians Committee

Confront the Issue Interactives

Controversial issues are part of every presidency.  As a four term president Franklin D. Roosevelt had his share and as our exhibit design team and historians committee planned our new permanent museum exhibits we talked at great length about how to deal with them.  Our decision was to address these issues head on.  “Confront the … Continue reading Confront the Issue Interactives