James Roosevelt, Sr.

Descendant of Mayflower passengers John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley

Roosevelt's father Isaac Roosevelt was a fourth-generation descendant of Nicholas Roosevelt (1658-1742), who was also a sixth-generation ancestor of Theodore Roosevelt. His wife Mary Aspinwall was a sixth-generation descendant of Rebecca Stoughton, sister of William Stoughton, judge and prosecutor during the Salem Witch Trials.

Business

Roosevelt's business interests were primarily in coal and transportation. He was vice president of the Delaware and Hudson Railway, and president of the Southern Railway Security Company. James was a tall, slender and wealthy man with considerable society connections, an eligible bachelor by any standard. He graduated from Union College (NY) in 1847. In 1853, he married his first cousin once removed Rebecca Howland (1831–1876). They had a son, James "Rosy" Roosevelt, Jr (1854–1927). James became a widower in 1876.

Marriage

Four years later, at a party celebrating graduation of his cousin Theodore Roosevelt from Harvard University, he met a very distant relative Sara Delano; they were married on October 7, 1880 and became parents of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. James was reportedly a good father to Franklin; however, his recurring heart problems eventually turned him into an invalid. Franklin reacted by becoming fiercely protective of his father. James died twenty years after he married Sara. His estate was given to his sons.