“Eleanor Roosevelt was born on October 11, 1884 into a family of lineage, wealth, and uncommon sadness.”(Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project) Her father, President Roosevelt’s younger brother, was Elliott Roosevelt, and her mother was Anna Hall, a well known member of the Livingston’s family.
Her mother Anna was well known in New York as being beautiful. However she picked on Eleanor and made her self-conscious about her looks and behavior. Her mother went so far as to nickname her Eleanor “Granny. (Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project)
Her father was not critical of her. He even nicknamed her “Darling Little Nell.” (Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project) After her mother’s death in 1892, Eleanor devoted herself to her father. Her father died from depression and alcoholism about a year and a half after her mother’s death, making her an orphan at the age 10, leaving her grandmother as her guardian.
Education
In 1899 Eleanor attended Allenswood Academy in London, a school for girls only. Here she met one of the most important influences in her life. She learned to speak successfully about political events. While touring Europe in the summers her headmistress made sure Eleanor saw both the rich and the poor. What she learned in Europe had an impact on her. When she had returned to New York in 1902 she had volunteered as a teacher for the College Settlement on Rivington Street, a place where poor immigrants taught skills to help themselves. She was so dedicated that she was not just known as a rich, nice woman, but also known as a woman who wanted to make change, a reformer. Her life as a leader was just beginning.
Young Woman
After secretly dating her cousin Franklin Roosevelt for a year they got engaged on November 22, 1903. Franklin’s mother tried to break them up but her plan did not work. Uncle and President Teddy Roosevelt gave the bride away on March 17, 1905.
Between 1906 and 1916, they became the parents of six children, one girl, and five boys, one of which died soon after birth. For ten years she focused on being a mother, with the outbreak of world war one she became active in the Red Cross and as a volunteer nurse for the navy. This was a surprise to her family and the political community. Again, her actions were leading to her legacy.