Sara Delano Roosevelt
| Sara Roosevelt | |
|---|---|
Sara Delano Roosevelt with son Franklin in 1887.
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| Born |
Sara Ann Delano September 21, 1854 Newburgh, New York, U.S. |
| Died | September 7, 1941 (aged 86) Hyde Park, New York, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) |
James Roosevelt I (m. 1880–1900; his death) |
| Children | Franklin Delano Roosevelt |
| Parent(s) | Warren Delano, Jr. Catherine Robbins Lyman |
| Relatives |
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Sara Ann Delano (September 21, 1854 – September 7, 1941) was the second wife of James Roosevelt I (from 1880), the mother of President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt, her only child, and subsequently the mother-in-law of Eleanor Roosevelt.
Delano grew up in Newburgh, New York, and spent three years in Hong Kong. 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.
Sara Delano was born at the Delano Estate in the town of Newburgh, New York, to Warren Delano, Jr. 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 on the clipper ship Surprise, where they joined Warren Delano who had resumed his business of trading in opium, 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 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, Germany in 1876.
Delano was described as 5'10" (178 cm), and an intelligent debutante 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.
After many suitors, Sara married James Roosevelt I in 1880. Two years later, she gave birth to a son, Franklin Delano Roosevelt 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. Sara was quoted as saying "the greatest constant in his life and his biggest supporter". 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.
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