CHAPTER ONE THE MAKING OF A PRESIDENT Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born on January 30 1882 on his family’s estate overlooking the Hudson River in Hyde Park New York His mother Sara Delano Roosevelt was descended from wealthy New England sea merchants His father James Roosevelt was vice president of several corporations and lived the life of a country gentleman managing his estate riding its farms and fields on horseback and socializing with other members of the upper class Franklin was his mother’s only child His father who was in his fifties when Franklin was born had been married before and widowed Franklin had a married half-brother who was the same age as Franklin’s mother Franklin grew up in luxury surrounded by adults who doted on him At Hyde Park he accompanied his father riding a pony across hundreds of acres of fields and forests on the estate At his family’s vacation home on Campobello Island just north of the Canadian border he spent his time swimming and sailing the family yacht Ships and the sea were among Franklin’s lifelong passions Franklin’s parents traveled widely and from the time he was three he went with them He spent much of his childhood in Britain and elsewhere in Europe 10
Franklin left rides on horseback with his father James around their home in Hyde Park New York in 1891 Franklin’s mother Sara stands nearby School Years Tutored at home Franklin didn’t go to school until he was fourteen when he was sent away to Groton an exclusive prep school northwest of Boston Massachusetts He was initially homesick but eventually settled into his new routine After graduating Franklin moved to Boston and enrolled at Harvard University Soon after he had to rush home to see his ill father who died on December 8 1900 Franklin spent the holidays mourning with his mother When Franklin returned to school in January Sara rented an apartment in Boston so she could be closer to him Franklin was an active student joining a number of clubs at Harvard He sought membership into the most exclusive of all Harvard social clubs the Porcellian but was turned down It was a major disappointment 11
However Franklin found a home at the school newspaper the Harvard Crimson As a first-year reporter he gained a big scoop when his cousin Theodore visited campus Theodore Roosevelt was running for vice president under William McKinley Franklin used his cousin’s visit as an opportunity to ask Harvard’s president Charles Eliot which presidential candidate he supported Though Eliot had previously kept his opinion a secret Franklin managed to get an answer from him The next day the Crimson ran Franklin’s headline President Eliot declares for McKinley On September 4 1901 President McKinley was shot He died eight days later and Theodore Roosevelt became president During Teddy’s term Franklin attended a ball at the White House From start to finish it was glorious he told his mother Franklin front center poses with classmates from the Harvard Crimson in 1904 Franklin reported on campus news and events during his time at college 12
The Roosevelt Family The Roosevelts were wealthy and powerful Their roots in the United States date back to the 1640s when Claes Martenszen van Rosenvelt emigrated from the Netherlands to Manhattan then called New Amsterdam Claes’s son changed his last name to Roosevelt This Roosevelt became an alderman an elected city official beginning the family tradition of political service One of Claes’s grandsons settled in Oyster Bay New York Another settled in Hyde Park New York US president Theodore Roosevelt and his niece Eleanor were members of the Oyster Bay branch of the Roosevelts Franklin was descended from the Hyde Park Roosevelts Both Theodore Roosevelt left and his niece Eleanor right were members of the Oyster Bay branch of the Roosevelt family These photos capture Theodore at the time he became president in 1901 and Eleanor as a young woman in 1898 13
