The collection is open for research.
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Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Franklin D. Roosevelt Inauguration Collection, Ms2022-004, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
This collection was acquired by Special Collections and University Archives prior to 2012.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Inauguration Collection was completed in April 2022.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) was born in Hyde Park, New York on January 30, 1882, to James and Sara Delano Roosevelt. He married Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) in 1905. He was fifth cousin to Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), the 26th President of the United States. Always admiring his cousin, Theodore, and after earning a law degree from Columbia Univeristy, Franklin decided to pursue politics. He was able to win a New York State Senate seat in 1910 as a Democratic. By 1913, he was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1921) to be the Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Navy.
In 1921, Roosevelt contracted polio at the age of 39. This illness took him out of the public eye for several years as he focused on rehabilitation. Even though he had "liberal" views, he was elected as Governor of New York in 1928, which he was re-elected in 1930. Roosevelt became the Democratic presidential nomination and, by 1933, he was elected the 32nd president of the United States. He held this position until his death in 1945, being the only president to be elected for four terms.
His third inauguration speech was in 1941, during the World War II. The United States still believed in isolationism. His speech was largely trying to convince the American people to move past this isloationism and join the global conflict. Eventually after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of that year, the United States joined the war. Roosevelt remained president up until 1945, where he passed away on April 12, 1945 in his cottage in Georgia. He was 63 years old.
This collection contains papers from the 32nd U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third inauguration on January 20, 1941. The collection includes an invitation with photos of Roosevelt and the 33rd U.S. Vice President H. A. Wallace; a program for the inaugurations of Roosevelt and Wallace; and a small "card of admission" and envelope that gives walking instructions and directions for the event. The enclosing envelope of the materials says "Congress of the United States", "No. 1666", and "East Platform N", and a handwritten note identifies it as part of the R. C. Campbell estate. All of the items (except the card of admission) contain an engraving or embossing of the Great Seal of the United States.
The guide to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Inauguration Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (