ELEANOR ROOSEVELT
Eleanor Roosevelt sends a letter of regret that she no longer sends out photographs.
Typed Letter Signed: "Eleanor Roosevelt", 1p, 6x7. New York, N.Y., 1956 February 6. On her "Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt" letterhead to Mr. Seigel. In full: "Thank you very much for your kind interest which I appreciate. I regret to say I cannot send you a photograph as I have long since stopped giving them out. However, I hope you will accept this note with my good wishes as a substitute." In the year she wrote this letter, the former First Lady campaigned and raised funds for Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson, refused to support John F. Kennedy's bid for Vice President, chaired the Civil Rights Platform Committee for the 1956 Democratic National Convention, which she addressed, supported the Powell amendment to deny federal funds for construction of segregated schools, debated Margaret Chase Smith on Face the Nation, appeared on Meet the Press and wrote "Salute to Montgomery" and "The Right to Vote". Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962) had married her distant cousin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1905 (her uncle, President Theodore Roosevelt, gave her away). She would serve as First Lady for 12 years and 39 days (March 4, 1933 until her husband's death of a cerebral hemorrhage on April 12, 1945), longer than any other woman. Eleanor, who had previously been First Lady of New York when FDR was Governor of the state (1929-1933), later became known as "First Lady of the World" for her humanitarian efforts, including getting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations. Appointed by President Truman, she had been a member of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations from 1945-1952. On November 7, 1962, 78-year-old Eleanor Roosevelt died at her New York apartment, the address of which is imprinted on this letterhead. She was buried next to her husband in Hyde Park four days later. Slightly creased. Mounting remnants on verso show through at corners and mid left and right blank margins. Overall, fine condition.