Melania Trump, Michelle Obama, Jacqueline Kennedy, and Ladybird Johnson are just a few of the many first ladies that have supported presidents of the United States. Interestingly enough, not all those who have served as a first lady were spouses to the presidents. If the president was a bachelor or widower, or if his wife was unable or unwilling to perform the role, other female relatives or friends were called upon to carry out the first lady’s official duties; thus, there have been more first ladies than presidents. Some of these first ladies were more involved than others, but they all had an impact on the country they served. One of the most influential and iconic first ladies is Eleanor Roosevelt. She has become the model of what a first lady should be.
Eleanor Roosevelt was born to Elliott and Anna Roosevelt on October 11, 1884 in New York City. She was exposed to power prestige at an early age, as her father’s brother was Theodore Roosevelt, and her mother was a member of the distinguished Livingston family. Eleanor was only eight years old when her mother died in 1892 and only ten when her father died in 1894. It was after Eleanor’s mother’s death she went to live with grandmother, Mrs. Valentine G. Hall, in Tivoli, New York. There she was educated by private tutors until the age of 15, when she was sent to a school for girls in Allenswood, England. The headmistress of the school, Mademoiselle Marie Souvestre, took a special interest in Eleanor and had a great influence on her thinking and education. By the age of 18, she returned to New York with a fresh sense of confidence in her abilities and herself. She became involved in social service work, taught at the Rivington Street Settlement House, and joined the Junior League.
She married her fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt on March 17, 1905. Between the years 1906 and 1916, they became parents to six children: Anna Eleanor(1906-1975), James(1907-1991), Franklin Delano, Jr.(1909), Elliott(1910-1990), Franklin, Jr.(1914-1988), and John(1916-1981). During these times she pulled back her public activities and gave way to her family concerns and Franklin’s political career. When America entered World War 1, she became active in the American Red Cross and volunteered in Navy hospitals. In 1921, FDR being stricken with polio caused Eleanor to become more active in politics, not only to help him maintain his interests, but also to also assert her own goals and personality. She was part of the League of Women Voters, joined the Women’s Trade Union League, and worked for the Women’s Division of the New York State Democratic Committee. She helped organize Val-Kill Industries, a non-profit furniture factory in Hyde Park, New York and taught at the Todhunter School, a private school for girls in New York City.
Eleanor was a big help throughout FDR’s presidency. She traveled extensively around the nation, visiting relief projects, surveying working and living conditions, and then telling FDR what she observed. This is how she got the nickname “the President’s eyes, ears, and legs”. Even after the attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States entry into WWII, she made sure that FDR didn’t abandon the goals he had set for the New Deal. She used her social and political influence to advocate for the rights and needs of the poor and minorities. The public was drawn in by her actions, so she would recount them in her daily column: “My Day”. She started to write the column in 1935 and continued this until her death in 1962.
From 1941 to 1942 she served as Assistant Director of Civilian Defense and visited England and the South Pacific to foster good relations with the Allies and to boost the morale of US men overseas.
Eleanor continued her public life even after FDR’s death on April 12, 1945. President Truman appointed her to the United Nations General Assembly. She served as chair of the Human Rights Commission and she worked tirelessly to draft the Universal declaration of Human Rights. The draft was adopted by the General Assembly on December 10, 1948.
In 1953, Eleanor resigned from the United States Delegation to the United Nations, so the upcoming president, Dwight Eisenhower, could fill the position with a person of his choosing. She volunteered at the American Association for the United Nations and was an American representative to the World Federation of the United Nations. She became the chair of the Associations’ Board of Directors. In 1961, President Kennedy, reappointed her to the United States Delegation to the United Nations. He then later appointed her to the National Advisory Committee of the Peace Corps and chair of the President’s Commission on the status of Women.
To this day, Eleanor Roosevelt is know for her outstanding work and accomplishments. Her legacy can be seen abroad in the continuing work of the United Nations and Peace Corps and at home in advancements in civil right within the United States. She is a role model which all first ladies should emulate.
