The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial is a presidential memorial in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, dedicated to the memory of

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

, the 32nd

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

, and to the era he represents. The memorial is one of two in Washington honoring Roosevelt. Dedicated on May 2, 1997, by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

, the national memorial, spread over adjacent to the southwest side of the

Tidal Basin The Tidal Basin is a man-made reservoir located between the Potomac River and the Washington Channel in Washington, D.C. The Basin is part of West Potomac Park, is near the National Mall and is a focal point of the National Cherry Blossom Festiv ...

along the Cherry Tree Walk in

West Potomac Park West Potomac Park is a U.S. national park in Washington, D.C., adjacent to the National Mall. It includes the parkland that extends south of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, from the Lincoln Memorial to the grounds of the Washington Monume ...

, traces 12 years of the

history of the United States The history of the present-day United States began in roughly 15,000 BC with the arrival of Peopling of the Americas, the first people in the Americas. In the late 15th century, European colonization of the Americas, European colonization beg ...

through a sequence of four outdoor rooms, one for each of FDR's terms of office.

Sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s inspired by

photograph A photograph (also known as a photo, or more generically referred to as an ''image'' or ''picture'') is an image created by light falling on a photosensitivity, photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor. Th ...

s depict the 32nd president alongside his dog Fala. Other sculptures depict scenes from the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, such as listening to a

fireside chat The fireside chats were a series of evening radio addresses given by Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States, between 1933 and 1944. Roosevelt spoke with familiarity to millions of Americans about recovery from the Great D ...

on the radio and waiting in a bread line. A

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

statue of First Lady

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

standing before the United Nations emblem honors her work with the UN and the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal D ...

. This is the only presidential memorial to depict a First Lady. Considering Roosevelt's disability, the memorial's designers intended to create a memorial that would be accessible to those with various physical impairments. Among other features, the memorial includes an area with tactile reliefs with

braille Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...

writing for people who are blind. However, the memorial faced criticism from disabled activists. Vision-impaired visitors complained that the braille dots were improperly spaced and that some of the braille and reliefs were mounted eight feet off of the ground, placing it above the reach of most people.

Design and features

The memorial's design and development represents the capstone of a distinguished career for the memorial's designer, landscape architect

Lawrence Halprin Lawrence Halprin (July 1, 1916 – October 25, 2009) was an American landscape architect, designer, and teacher. Beginning his career in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, in 1949, Halprin often collaborated with a local circle of modernist ...

Sullivan, Patricia
"Lawrence Halprin, 93; Urban projects won wide acclaim for American landscape architect,"
''Washington Post.'' October 28, 2009. partly because Halprin had fond memories of Roosevelt, and partly because of the sheer difficulty of the task.Martin, Douglas

''New York Times.'' October 28, 2003. Halprin won the competition for the Memorial's design in 1974. However, Congress did not appropriate the funds to move beyond this conceptual stage for more than 20 years. Halprin collaborated with architect Robert Marquis who designed the visitor center in the winning plans. The memorial's design concept of four outdoor "rooms" and gardens is animated by water, stone, and sculpture. The national memorial now includes sculptures and works by

Leonard Baskin Leonard Baskin (August 15, 1922 – June 3, 2000) was an American sculptor, draughtsman and graphic artist, as well as founder of the Gehenna Press (1942–2000). One of America's first fine arts presses, it went on to become "one of the most imp ...

Neil Estern Neil Carl Estern (April 18, 1926 – July 11, 2019) was an American sculptor. Known for his public monuments, Estern's best-known works are his sculptures of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Fala (dog), Fala at the Franklin Delano R ...

, Robert Graham, Tom Hardy, and

George Segal George Segal Jr. (February 13, 1934 – March 23, 2021) was an American actor. He became popular in the 1960s and 1970s for playing both dramatic and comedic roles. After first rising to prominence with roles in acclaimed films such as '' Ship o ...

. Running water is an important physical and metaphoric component of the memorial. Each of the four "rooms" representing Roosevelt's respective terms in office contains a waterfall. As one moves from room to room, the waterfalls become larger and more complex, reflecting the increasing complexity of a presidency marked by the vast upheavals of economic depression and world war. Tour guides describe the symbolism of the five main water areas as: * ''A single large drop'' – The crash of the economy that led to the

* ''Multiple stairstep drops'' – The

Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolin ...

dam-building project * ''Chaotic falls at varying angles'' –

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

* ''A still pool'' – Roosevelt's death * ''A wide array combining the earlier waterfalls'' – A retrospective of Roosevelt's presidency The architecture critic of the ''Washington Post'' stated that the memorial was designed "to give people as many options as possible to go this way or that, to reverse directions, to pause, to start over, to be alone, to meet others, and to experience as many different sights, smells and sounds as the site permits." When the memorial first opened, people were encouraged to wade into the fountains and waterfalls. However, within a matter of days, the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

(NPS), which operates the Memorial, prohibited people from entering the water due to fear of accidents. The site is a component of the NPS's

National Mall and Memorial Parks National Mall and Memorial Parks (formerly known as National Capital Parks-Central) is an administrative unit of the National Park Service (NPS) encompassing many national memorials and other areas in Washington, D.C. Federally owned and administ ...

administrative unit. As a historic area that the NPS manages, the memorial was administratively listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on the date of its establishment, May 2, 1997.

Wheelchair depiction

The statue of Franklin Delano Roosevelt stirred controversy over the issue of his disability. Designers decided against plans to have FDR shown in a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

. Instead, the statue depicts the president in a chair with a cloak obscuring the chair, showing him as he appeared to the public during his life. Roosevelt's reliance on a wheelchair was not publicized during his life, as there was a stigma of weakness and instability associated with any disability. However, historians and some disability-rights advocates wanted his disability to be shown for historical accuracy and to tell the story of what they believed to be the source of his strength. Other disability advocates, while not necessarily against showing him in a wheelchair, were wary of protests about the memorial that leaned toward making Roosevelt a hero because of his disability. The sculptor added casters to the back of the chair in deference to advocates, making it a symbolic "wheelchair". The casters are only visible behind the statue. The National Organization on Disability, headed by the efforts of Alan Reich, raised US$1.65 million over two years to fund the addition of another statue that clearly showed the president in a wheelchair. In January 2001, the additional statue was placed near the memorial entrance showing FDR seated in a wheelchair much like the one he actually used. The memorial's designer construed the wheelchair controversy as evidence of success: "The most important thing about designing is to generate creativity in others, and to be inclusive – to include the needs and experiences of people interacting with the environment, and to let them be part of its creation."

Gallery

Image:FDR MemorialSign.jpg, Sign outside of the FDR Memorial in Washington DC Image:Fdr-memorial-i-hate-war.jpg, "I hate war" inscription. File:Washington Monument - FDR Memorial.jpg, View of the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States, victorious commander-in-chief of the Continen ...

from the FDR Memorial.

Original Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial

During a conversation that he had with

Supreme Court Associate Justice An associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1 ...

Felix Frankfurter Felix Frankfurter (November 15, 1882 – February 22, 1965) was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1939 until 1962, advocating judicial restraint. Born in Vienna, Frankfurter im ...

in 1941, Roosevelt said that if he were to have a monument in Washington, it should be in front of the National Archives and should be no larger than his desk. A tall, long, wide block of white marble was subsequently dedicated in 1965 as his memorial near the southeast corner of Ninth Street NW and

Pennsylvania Avenue Pennsylvania Avenue is a primarily diagonal street in Washington, D.C. that connects the United States Capitol with the White House and then crosses northwest Washington, D.C. to Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown. Traveling through So ...

NW, within a lawn in front of the

National Archives Building The National Archives Building, known informally as Archives I, is the headquarters of the United States National Archives and Records Administration. It is located north of the National Mall at 700 Pennsylvania Avenue (Washington, D.C.), Penn ...

.(1)
(2) Coordinates of the original Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial near the National Archives Building: The engraved words on the memorial state: "In Memory of Franklin Delano Roosevelt 1882–1945". A bronze plaque at the edge of the sidewalk in front of the memorial states:

References

External links

FDR Memorial Trust for the National Mall

NOD.org FDR Wheelchair Statue Campaign

FDR Memorial Legacy Committee
{{authority control Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Memorial National Mall and Memorial Parks National memorials of the United States Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C. Public art in Washington, D.C. Bronze sculptures in Washington, D.C. Fountains in Washington, D.C. 1997 sculptures 1997 establishments in Washington, D.C. Cultural depictions of Franklin D. Roosevelt Cultural depictions of Eleanor Roosevelt Sculptures of dogs in the United States Dog monuments Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Sculptures of women in Washington, D.C. Monuments and memorials to Eleanor Roosevelt Southwest (Washington, D.C.) Four Freedoms