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Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.

FDR's Private Study

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Explore the objects in FDR’s private Study.

The FDR Library and Museum is the only Presidential library ever used by a sitting president. When it opened to the public in June 1941, President Roosevelt was beginning his third term. He used his private Study in the Library building as a place to conduct government business, receive visitors, and work with his books and papers during his many visits to Hyde Park (totaling over 250 days) during World War II.

FDR designed the Study for his own use. He selected and arranged the furniture, pictures, and other objects. Many are personal treasures—gifts from friends and relatives, family pieces, or mementos from his travels. They reflect his varied interests, including his love of family history and his passion for sailing and the United States Navy. The Study remains almost precisely as the President left it on his last visit on March 28, 1945.