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Memorial Day celebrations in the United States began after the Civil War to commemorate the lives of those lost during the war. During FDR’s presidency, Decoration Day honored the lives of all Americans who had died in military service for the United States. The name of the holiday was officially changed to Memorial Day in 1967 and starting in 1971 the date was moved from May 30th to the last Monday in May.
In 1936, FDR received the following message from King Leopold III of Belgium in observance of Decoration Day.
FDR’s response:
This document and others from the collections of the FDR Library can be found on the Franklin D. Roosevelt Day by Day website.
On March 29, 1945, FDR left the White House for the last time on a trip to Warm Springs, Georgia. He had first visited Warm Springs in the mid-1920s after hearing that the waters there had healing powers. He hoped they would help him regain the use of his legs which were left paralyzed from a polio attack in 1921.
In 1926, FDR bought and renovated the old resort at Warm Springs, turning it into a state-of-the-art rehabilitation center for polio patients. Throughout his time as Governor of New York and President, FDR continued vacationing at Warm Springs. The cottage where he stayed became known as the “Little White House,” thanks to his frequent visits as president.
It was here that FDR went in April 1945 to rest and rejuvenate following the pressures of the 1944 campaign, the Yalta Conference, and the continued war effort. On April 12, 1945, while sitting for a portrait by painter Elizabeth Shoumatoff, FDR suffered a massive stroke. He died a few hours later having never regained consciousness.
The President’s body was transported by train to Washington D.C. and then on to his estate in Hyde Park for burial. Thousands of mourners lined the tracks to say goodbye.
The White House appointment diaries for April 12, 1945 are available on our Franklin D. Roosevelt Day by Day website.
March 17, 1935 marked Franklin and Eleanor’s 30th wedding anniversary. They were married on St. Patrick’s Day in 1905 in New York City at the home of Eleanor’s aunt, Mrs. Henry Parrish Jr. The bride was given away by her uncle, President Theodore Roosevelt. They took their honeymoon over the summer and visited England, France, Germany, Italy, Scotland and Switzerland.
Below is the front of a card sent to the President and Mrs. Roosevelt for their 30th wedding anniversary. The rest of the card and letter sent to the Roosevelt’s can be found on Franklin D. Roosevelt Day by Day.
FDR and Japanese American Internment
February 2012 marks the 70th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 9066. The decision to intern Japanese Americans is widely viewed by historians and legal scholars as a blemish on Roosevelt’s wartime record.
Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the FBI arrested over 1200 Japanese aliens throughout the United States. Over the next several weeks, President Roosevelt received contradictory advice about further action.
FDR’s military advisers recommended the exclusion of persons of foreign descent, including American citizens, from sensitive areas of the country as a safeguard against espionage and sabotage. The Justice Department initially resisted any relocation order, questioning both its military necessity and its constitutionality.
But the shock of Pearl Harbor and of Japanese atrocities in the Philippines fueled already tense race relations on America’s West Coast. In the face of political, military, and public pressure, Roosevelt accepted the relocation proposal. The Attorney General acquiesced after the War Department relieved the Justice Department of any responsibility for implementation.
On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 granting the War Department broad powers to create military exclusion areas. Although the order did not identify any particular group, in practice it was used almost exclusively to intern Americans of Japanese descent. By 1943, more than 110,000 Japanese Americans had been forced from their homes and moved to camps in removed inland areas of the United States.
Please see our document packet on FDR and Japanese Internment for more information as well as documents from the FDR Library related to this topic.
Pictured below is baggage belonging to evacuees of Japanese ancestry at an assembly center prior to transfer to a War Relocation Authority Center. This photograph was taken several months after the February Executive Order, on July 1, 1942.
On January 18, 1935, President Roosevelt spoke to Congress on social legislation. He asked for broad social security programs, unemployment compensation, old age pensions, federal aid for dependent and crippled children, and federal aid to state and local public health agencies. Later that year on August 14th, FDR signed the Social Security Act into law.
Below is the first page of the press release of FDR’s speech to Congress. The complete speech can be viewed on the Franklin D. Roosevelt Day by Day website.
