Eleanor Roosevelt
Born 1884 · Age 141
American political figure, diplomat, activist; longest-serving U.S. First Lady (1933–1945); chair of UN Commission on Human Rights and key drafter/champion of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in New York City
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt born to Elliott Roosevelt and Anna Rebecca Hall in Manhattan.
SS Britannic collision; childhood trauma
Two-year-old Eleanor aboard SS Britannic which collided with SS Celtic; later lifelong fear of ships/sea.
Mother dies of diphtheria
Eleanor's mother, Anna Hall Roosevelt, dies; Eleanor's childhood marked by loss and insecurity.
Brother Elliott Jr. dies
Elliott Roosevelt Jr. dies (scarlet fever/diphtheria shortly after mother), further family loss.
Father dies; raised by grandmother
Elliott Roosevelt dies after institutionalization; Eleanor goes to live with maternal grandmother in Tivoli, NY.
Enrolled at Allenswood Academy (London)
Sent to Allenswood Academy; influenced by headmistress Marie Souvestre; learned French and gained confidence.
Meets Franklin D. Roosevelt
Encountered Franklin Delano Roosevelt on a train in the summer of 1902; courtship begins.
Society debut at Waldorf-Astoria
Leaves Allenswood and makes her New York society debut at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel.
Engaged to Franklin D. Roosevelt
Eleanor and Franklin become engaged (Franklin's mother delays public announcement).
Married Franklin D. Roosevelt
Wedding in New York City; Theodore Roosevelt, her uncle and then-president, walks her down the aisle.
Birth of son Franklin Jr.
Franklin Jr. born in March 1909; infant dies later in 1909.
Death of infant son Franklin Jr.
Their infant son Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. dies in 1909 (same year as birth).
Franklin elected to New York State Senate
FDR wins a seat in the NY Senate; family moves to Albany and Eleanor takes on political host duties.
Franklin becomes Assistant Secretary of the Navy; Lucy Mercer hired
FDR appointed Asst. Secretary of the Navy; Eleanor hires Lucy Mercer as social secretary.
Birth of second son named Franklin Jr.
A later son named Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. is born (1914); family expands during World War I onset.
Birth of son John
John Aspinwall Roosevelt born (texts vary between March 13 and 17; commonly cited March 1916).
United States enters World War I
Eleanor becomes active in Red Cross and volunteer work at Navy hospitals as the US enters WWI.
Discovers Franklin's affair with Lucy Mercer
Eleanor finds love letters from Lucy Mercer; divorce prevented by family intervention; marriage becomes largely political.
Volunteers for veterans and international women's labor conference
Volunteers at St. Elizabeth Hospital visiting WWI veterans; volunteers at International Congress of Working Women in Washington.
Active in 1920 campaign trail and suffrage era
Travels with Franklin on his 1920 vice-presidential campaign; joins League of Women Voters; 19th Amendment ratified.
Franklin stricken with paralytic illness (polio)
Franklin contracts paralytic illness at Campobello Island; Eleanor nurses him and persuades him to remain in politics.
Joins Women's Trade Union League; political organizing
Eleanor becomes member of Women's Trade Union League and Women's Division of NY Democratic Committee; meets Marion Dickerman and Nancy Cook.
Campaigns for Al Smith; family rifts
Eleanor publicly campaigns for Alfred E. Smith for NY governor, creating family tensions (theodore jr. upset).
Val-Kill estate and Val-Kill Industries founded
Franklin builds Val-Kill for Eleanor; Eleanor co-founds Val-Kill furniture factory with Marion Dickerman and Nancy Cook to create work for rural women.
Purchase of Todhunter School; teaches history and government
Eleanor, Dickerman and Cook purchase Todhunter School (girls' seminary) in New York; Eleanor teaches there.
Meets Mary McLeod Bethune
Eleanor meets influential Black educator Mary McLeod Bethune, beginning an important friendship and collaboration.
Named director of DNC Bureau of Women's Activities; FDR elected NY governor
Democratic National Committee appoints Eleanor director of Bureau of Women's Activities; Franklin elected governor of New York.
Stock Market Crash (Great Depression begins)
New York Stock Exchange crash begins the Great Depression; Eleanor becomes increasingly engaged in relief and reform work.
Franklin elected President
Franklin D. Roosevelt elected President of the United States (defeating Hoover); Eleanor prepares to assume role of First Lady.
Arthurdale homestead project involvement
Eleanor assists with the Arthurdale New Deal homestead community for unemployed coal miners (later judged a failure by many).
Begins women-only press conferences
In March 1933 Eleanor becomes the first presidential spouse to hold regular press conferences (female reporters only).
Becomes First Lady of the United States
Eleanor becomes First Lady when FDR inaugurated; she begins to reshape the role with an active, public agenda.
Helps form National Youth Administration; meets NAACP leadership
Assists formation of the National Youth Administration; coordinates meeting between FDR and NAACP leader Walter White on anti-lynching issues.
Coordinates women's political strategy meeting
Coordinates a meeting with FDR, James Farley and Molly Dewson to discuss women's roles in elections; expands women's political influence.
Launches syndicated column 'My Day'
Begins daily syndicated column 'My Day' (December 1935) which she continues until October 1962, reaching a wide audience.
FDR re-elected; Eleanor continues active public role
Franklin wins re-election (second term); Eleanor remains an outspoken and active First Lady.
Defies segregation at Birmingham conference
Sits between white and Black attendees at Southern Conference for Human Welfare in Birmingham, Alabama, publicly defying segregation.
Protests DAR; arranges Marian Anderson Lincoln Memorial concert
Resigns from Daughters of the American Revolution after they bar Marian Anderson; arranges Anderson's Lincoln Memorial concert (April 9, 1939) attended by 75,000.
Impulsive speech at Democratic National Convention
Delivers impromptu speech at the 1940 DNC; speech credited with helping FDR win an unprecedented third term.
Appointed Assistant Director of Civilian Defense
Serves as Assistant Director of Civilian Defense (1941–1942), organizing volunteer efforts on the home front.
Pearl Harbor attack; US enters WWII
Japan attacks Pearl Harbor; U.S. enters WWII; Eleanor plays active wartime roles including morale and relief work.
Hosts Soviet sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko; promotes allied cooperation
Welcomes Soviet sniper Pavlichenko to the White House and supports public tours to strengthen Allied ties and morale.
Tours South Pacific to boost troop morale
Undertakes month-long tour of South Pacific (Australia, New Zealand, Guadacanal, etc.) to visit troops and hospitals.
Named US delegate to United Nations General Assembly
President Harry Truman appoints Eleanor as US delegate to the UN General Assembly; she pushes for US support of the UN.
Joins NAACP board; influences Army Nurse Corps desegregation
Joins NAACP board of directors and influences Army Nurse Corps to open membership to Black women.
Death of Franklin D. Roosevelt
President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies while convalescing at Warm Springs, Georgia; Eleanor becomes a widow and shifts to international work.
Helps found Americans for Democratic Action
Initiates creation of Americans for Democratic Action (ADA), focusing on domestic social reform and anti-Communist liberalism.
Elected first chair of UN Commission on Human Rights
Eleanor becomes first chair of the UN Commission on Human Rights and begins overseeing drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Speaks at Sorbonne; threatens UN resignation over Israel recognition
Speaks on 'The Struggles for the Rights of Man' at the Sorbonne; reportedly threatens to resign from UN if Truman won't recognize Israel.
Called 'First Lady of the World' by President Truman (recognition)
Harry S. Truman later calls Eleanor the 'First Lady of the World' in tribute to her human rights achievements (post-UDHR recognition).
Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted
The UN General Assembly adopts the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Eleanor receives a standing ovation for her leadership on the declaration.
Continues 'My Day' column; prolific writing career
During the 1950s Eleanor continues to write 'My Day' daily and authors books and articles (her writing reaches thousands of readers).
Television and radio show with son Elliott on NBC
Teams with son Elliott on a television and radio program on NBC featuring famous guests.
Resigns from United Nations delegation
Resigns from the U.S. UN delegation after the election of Republican President Dwight Eisenhower; campaigns for Adlai Stevenson.
Women's Division of DNC abolished
The Women's Division of the Democratic National Committee is abolished and its members integrated into the DNC structure (context for Eleanor's long work on women's roles).
Brown v. Board of Education decision
Supreme Court decision outlawing public-school segregation (a major milestone in causes Eleanor championed).
Visits Soviet Union; meets Nikita Khrushchev
Travels to the Soviet Union as a representative of the New York Post and meets Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev; remains active on world affairs.
Civil Rights Act passed by Congress (1957)
Civil Rights Act of 1957 passed by Congress; Eleanor remains publicly engaged in civil rights monitoring and advocacy.
Guest DJ on WNYC for March of Dimes
Guest DJ appearance (1957) raising awareness for March of Dimes; played requests for polio-affected children (reported by Smithsonian sources).
Speaks at Highlander Folk School despite KKK threats
Attends and speaks at a civil-rights workshop in Tennessee despite threats, demonstrating her continuing civil-rights commitment.
Supports John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign
Publicly supports JFK in 1960 and later works with his administration after his election.
Appointed chair of Presidential Commission on the Status of Women
President John F. Kennedy reappoints her to the UN and appoints her as chair of the President's Commission on the Status of Women (serves until her death).
Leads Commission of Inquiry into Justice in Freedom Struggle
Spearheads ad hoc Commission of Inquiry to monitor civil-rights progress and administration of justice during the Civil Rights Movement.
Final columns and public work
Continues writing 'My Day' columns and public work; last columns appear weeks before her death.
Death in New York City
Eleanor Roosevelt dies on November 7, 1962; cause cited as aplastic anemia, disseminated tuberculosis and heart failure in some accounts.
Buried at Springwood Estate, Hyde Park
Interred beside her husband at the Rose Garden of the Roosevelt family estate (Springwood) in Hyde Park, NY.
Posthumous family biographies and controversies (Elliott's book)
Elliott Roosevelt publishes 'The Roosevelts of Hyde Park: An Untold Story' (1973) with revelations about family private life; family disputes ensue (posthumous event but directly related).
Ranked ninth in Gallup's list of most widely admired people of 20th century
Gallup ranks Eleanor Roosevelt ninth among the most widely admired people of the 20th century (posthumous recognition).
Honored on US quarter (American Women Quarters Program)
Eleanor Roosevelt is featured on a U.S. Mint quarter in the American Women Quarters™ Program, symbolizing her human-rights legacy.
Key Achievement Ages
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