Sara Delano
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Sara Ann Roosevelt ( Delano; September 21, 1854 â€“ September 7, 1941) was the second wife of
James Roosevelt I James Roosevelt I (July 16, 1828 – December 8, 1900), known as "Squire James", was an American businessman, politician, horse breeder, and the father of Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd president of the United States. Early life Roosevelt was bor ...
(from 1880), the mother of
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, her only child, and subsequently the mother-in-law of
Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...
. Delano grew up in
Newburgh, New York Newburgh is a city in the U.S. state of New York, within Orange County. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown metropolitan area. Located north of New York City, a ...
, and spent three years in
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
. She gave birth to Franklin in 1882, and was a devoted mother to him for the remainder of her life, including home schooling and living close by in adulthood. She had a complex relationship with her daughter-in-law Eleanor, which has led to media portrayals of her as a domineering and fearsome mother-in-law, though these are at odds with other views. She died in 1941, with her son, then the President, at her side.


Childhood

Sara Delano was born at the Delano Estate in the town of
Newburgh, New York Newburgh is a city in the U.S. state of New York, within Orange County. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown metropolitan area. Located north of New York City, a ...
, to
Warren Delano Jr. Warren Delano Jr. (July 13, 1809 – January 17, 1898) was an American merchant and drug smuggler who made a large fortune smuggling illegal opium into China. He was the maternal grandfather of U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Early ...
and Catherine Robbins Lyman. She had ten siblings, two of whom died as small children. Three more died in their twenties. In 1862, Sara, her mother Catherine, and six brothers and sisters traveled to
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
on the clipper ship '' Surprise'', where they joined Warren Delano who had resumed his business of trading in
opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...
, then still legal. On board ship, Sara enjoyed spending time in the sailmaker's loft listening to the sailmaker tell sea stories. Her brother
Fred Fred may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Frederico Ro ...
discovered Catherine's journal of the voyage many years later, in 1928. In 1865, she moved with her family back to Newburgh. She was educated at home, aside from a brief period in a girls' school in
Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
, Germany in 1876. Delano was described as 5'10" (178 cm), and an intelligent
debutante A debutante, also spelled débutante, ( ; from french: débutante , "female beginner") or deb is a young woman of aristocratic or upper-class family background who has reached maturity and, as a new adult, is presented to society at a formal " ...
beauty in her youth. She was also known for her sense of purpose that many young women of her age and class lacked at the time.


Family

After many suitors, Sara married
James Roosevelt I James Roosevelt I (July 16, 1828 – December 8, 1900), known as "Squire James", was an American businessman, politician, horse breeder, and the father of Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd president of the United States. Early life Roosevelt was bor ...
, who was 26 years her senior, in 1880. Two years later, she gave birth to a son,
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, on January 30, 1882. After the birth of her son, doctors advised Sara not to have any more children, and thus the young Franklin became the focus of her attention. Many wealthy parents of this time period relied on servants to care for their children, but not Sara. She taught Franklin reading and geography, and employed tutors rather than sending him to a conventional school. After the death of her husband in 1900, she temporarily moved to Boston, Massachusetts to be close to her son who was then studying at
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
. Sara did not approve of many of the women that her son courted. When Franklin fell in love with his distant cousin,
Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...
, Sara was determined to change his mind. She tried to coerce him out of the engagement, but with no luck, she insisted that her son keep his arrangement a secret for over a year. Sara was heavily involved in the lives of Eleanor and Franklin's children. She often offered advice on how to raise them, and frequently undermined the couple's disciplinary skills by spoiling her grandchildren. Eleanor often relied on Sara's direction to make her feel more secure in her role of being a mother. Though Sara became known popularly as a stereotypical domineering mother-in-law after being portrayed as much in the film ''
Sunrise at Campobello ''Sunrise at Campobello'' is a 1960 Warner Bros. biographical film telling the story of the struggles of future President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his family when Roosevelt was stricken with paralysis at the age of 39 i ...
'', her actual relationship with Eleanor was much more complex. The pair grew close during the early years of the marriage as Eleanor's mother had died when she was young, and she used Sara as a surrogate mother to discuss issues. She supported Eleanor after she discovered Franklin's affair with
Lucy Mercer Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd ( Lucy Page Mercer; April 26, 1891 – July 31, 1948) was an American woman who was best known for her affair with US president Franklin D. Roosevelt. Background Lucy Page Mercer was born on April 26, 1891, in Washington, ...
, which put the marriage close to collapse. However, the relationship began to be more distant after Eleanor became more heavily involved in politics and activism. Franklin Roosevelt never had a home of his own that was separate from that of his mother's. In 1906, Roosevelt commissioned a pair of houses to be built at E 65 Street,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, as a wedding present for Franklin and his wife,
Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It is the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages. The name was introd ...
, on the strict condition that she could move in next to them. She oversaw a series of connecting doors between the houses, allowing her access to the drawing room and children's bedrooms in the neighboring property. Her son and daughter-in-law moved out after Franklin took office in the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
in 1933. She lived to see Franklin elected
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
three times, becoming the first presidential mother to vote for her son. Sara continued to support her son's career, even standing in as First Lady on several occasions. She was always prepared to say something positive about her son, and remained highly protective of him and his family.


Death

Sara Delano Roosevelt died on September 7, 1941, with the President at her side, two weeks before her 87th birthday. "Minutes after her death, the largest oak tree at Hyde Park toppled to the ground. It was a clear windless day." The funeral was held at Springwood. The President can be seen wearing a black mourning band on his arm in photographs of him later signing the declaration of war against Japan. His mother's memory is commemorated with the
Sara Delano Roosevelt Park Sara Delano Roosevelt Park is a park in the Lower East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. The park, named after Sara Roosevelt (1854–1941), the mother of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, stretches north–south along seven blo ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
's
Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...
, which was dedicated during her lifetime, in 1934. She was buried next to her husband at the churchyard at St. James Episcopal Church in Hyde Park. In 2003, the
City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven Upper divis ...
announced they would restore Roosevelt's former home, now known as the
Sara Delano Roosevelt Memorial House Sara Delano Roosevelt Memorial House is a building that was built in 1908 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The Neo-Georgian townhouse was designed by Charles A. Platt for Sara Ann Delano Roosevelt in 1907. It ori ...
, on 47 East 65th Street, where she lived from 1908 until her death.


See also

*
Delano family In the United States, members of the Delano family include U.S. presidents Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant and Calvin Coolidge, astronaut Alan B. Shepard, and writer Laura Ingalls Wilder. Its progenitor is Philippe de Lannoy (1602†...


References

Citations Sources * Further reading *


External links


China voyage of young Sara Delano Roosevelt on clipper ship ''Surprise'' with six siblings
* The President wearing a mourning band after his mother's death, December 10, 1941: http://docs.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/images/decwars.jpg {{DEFAULTSORT:Roosevelt, Sara 1854 births 1941 deaths American debutantes American expatriates in Hong Kong American people of English descent American people of French descent Delano family Mothers of presidents of the United States New York (state) Democrats People from Hyde Park, New York People from Newburgh, New York
Sara Sara may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Sara'' (1992 film), 1992 Iranian film by Dariush Merhjui * ''Sara'' (1997 film), 1997 Polish film starring Bogusław Linda * ''Sara'' (2010 film), 2010 Sri Lankan Sinhal ...