Profile of the Day: Eleanor Roosevelt

On October 11, 1884, former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was born.

Image: Eleanor Roosevelt / Library of Congress

Anne Eleanor Roosevelt was born in New York City, New York to Elliot Roosevelt and Anna Rebecca Hall. Born into the prominent Roosevelt family, Eleanor was the niece of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States. She was an orphan by the age of 10 and grew up in the home of her maternal grandmother, Mary Ludlow Hall. In 1905, she married Franklin D. Roosevelt, who would become the 32nd President of the United States.

During her husband’s presidency, Eleanor broke away from the traditional role of First Lady and remained politically active. She was vocal in her support of the African American civil rights movement and worked to enhance the status of working women. After leaving the White House, she continued her work on behalf of human rights. She was appointed as a delegate to the United Nations General Assembly and served as the first United States Representative to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.

She died on November 7, 1962 at the age of 78.

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