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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.
Campaign Hat Worn by Franklin Roosevelt
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.

Campaign Hat Worn by Franklin Roosevelt

Artifact IDMO 1945.58.20
Object Type Hat
Maker
Dateca. 1936
Mediumwool felt, leather, silk
Dimensionsoverall H 5 1/8 in x W 12 1/2 in x D 11 1/2 in (13 cm x 31.8 cm x 29.2 cm )
Physical DescriptionA light gray felt fedora with a black grosgrain hat band. The interior is lined with silk that is imprinted with the name: Franklin D. Roosevelt. The lower section of the interior near the opening has a brown leather sweatband stitched around the circumference.
Historical NoteFranklin Roosevelt had a superstitious streak. He considered this fedora hat to be a “lucky” one and used it during all four of his presidential campaigns.

After the 1940 election, FDR donated the hat to be auctioned at a Hollywood fundraiser for the Motion Picture Relief Fund. This surprised First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. “The President is very superstitious about that hat,” she said, “I never expected him to part with it.” Film actors Edward G. Robinson and Melvyn Douglas jointly purchased it for $3200 (roughly $60,000 in 2020 dollars).

When FDR decided to run for a fourth term, Robinson and Douglas returned the hat to him. The President wore it during the 1944 campaign and later gave it to the Roosevelt Library. It is on display on a rotational basis in the 1932 ELECTION CAMPAIGN exhibit in the Museum’s THE PROMISE OF CHANGE gallery.

Additional Details
Custodial History NoteDeposited at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum by Franklin D. Roosevelt on March 10, 1945. It was donated as a bequest of FDR to the Library in 1947.
Credit LineEstate of Franklin D. Roosevelt
National Archives Catalog CollectionFranklin D. Roosevelt Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 735948)
National Archives Catalog SeriesPersonal Possessions of the Roosevelt Family (National Archives Identifier 782689)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestrictedCopyrightReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.
In Collection(s)
Exhibitions
Not on view
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