Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt (1861-1948)

Figure 1.--.

Edith was born in Connecticut in 1861, a few years after Teddy. The family moved to New York and Edith grew up in an old New York brownstone on Union Square--an environment of comfort and tradition. The Roosevelt's were neighbors. Edith knew Theodore virtually from infancy; as a toddler she became a playmate of his younger sister Corinne. Her relationship as a youth with Theodore was more than just that of good friends. Attending Miss Comstock's school, she acquired the proper finishing touch for a young lady of that era. After Theodore's first wife died, putting tragedy behind him, he and Edith were married in London in December 1886. Theodore and Edith settled down in a house on Sagamore Hill, at Oyster Bay, headquarters for a family that added five children in 10 years: Theodore, Kermit, Ethel, Archibald, and Quentin. Throughout Roosevelt's intensely active career, family life remained close and entirely delightful. Mrs. Roosevelt meant to guard the privacy of a family that attracted everyone's interest, and she tried to keep reporters outside her domain. The public, in consequence, heard little of the vigor of her character, her sound judgment, her efficient household management. Edith was perhap's the President's most reliable and certainaly most trusted advisor. After Roosevlt's death in 1919, Edith traveled abroad but always returned to Sagamore Hill as her home.

Parents

Edith's parents were Charles and Gertrude Tyler Carow.

Childhood

Edith was born in Connecticut in 1861, a few years after Teddy. The family moved to New York and Edith grew up in an old New York brownstone on Union Square--an environment of comfort and tradition. The Roosevelt's were neighbors. Throughout childhood, Edith and "Teedie" were in and out of each other's houses.

Childhood Friends

Edith knew Theodore virtually from infancy; as a toddler she became a playmate of his younger sister Corinne. She was schooled with the Roosevelt children. Theodore spent the summer of 1876 once again at Oyster Bay. Edith Carrow had by now matured into an intelligent and moderately attractive young woman. Her relationship with Theodore was more than just that of good friends. He would often row her about in his boat while they would recite poetry to one another. Roosevelt family tradition would insist that by the time Teedie left for Harvard that the two of them had some sort of understanding, but there was no formal record of this.

Education

Attending Miss Comstock's school, she acquired the proper finishing touch for a young lady of that era.

Friendship

A quiet girl who loved books, she was often Theodore's companion for summer outings at Oyster Bay, Long Island; but this ended when he entered Harvard. Although she attended his wedding to Alice Hathaway Lee in 1880, their lives ran separately until 1885, when he was a young widower with an infant daughter, Alice.

Marriage

Putting tragedy behind him, he and Edith were married in London in December 1886.

Children

Theodore and Edith settled down in a house on Sagamore Hill, at Oyster Bay, headquarters for a family that added five children in 10 years: Theodore, Kermit, Ethel, Archibald, and Quentin. Throughout Roosevelt's intensely active career, family life remained close and entirely delightful. A small son remarked one day, "When Mother was a little girl, she must have been a boy!"

Family Life

The Roosevelt family was a strong close=knit group. The President took a great interest in his children and was fascinating in watching them growup. His letters are full of comments about the children and many letters to them. The children for their part adored their parents, except perhaps Alice, and were very close to each other. A fascinating view of Roosevelt family life can be seen in this letter written by the President at Oyster Bay, Aug. 6, 1903.

First Lady

Public tragedy brought them into the White House, 11 days after President McKinley succumbed to an assassin's bullet. Assuming her new duties with characteristic dignity, Mrs. Roosevelt meant to guard the privacy of a family that attracted everyone's interest, and she tried to keep reporters outside her domain. The public, in consequence, heard little of the vigor of her character, her sound judgment, her efficient household management.

Social Center

But in this administration the White House was unmistakably the social center of the land. Beyond the formal occasions, smaller parties brought together distinguished men and women from varied walks of life. Two family events were highlights: the wedding of "Princess Alice" to Nicholas Longworth, and Ethel's debut. A perceptive aide described the First Lady as "always the gentle, high-bred hostess; smiling often at what went on about her, yet never critical of the ignorant and tolerant always of the little insincerities of political life."

Influence

Edith did much more than just manage the household. She was infact anstute political advisor. She was perhap's the President's most reliable and certainaly most trusted advisor. Theodore once wrote to Ted Jr. that "if Mother had been a mere unhealthy Patient Griselda I might have grown set in selfish and inconsiderate ways." She continued, with keen humor and unfailing dignity, to balance her husband's exuberance after they retired in 1909.

Final Years

After Roosevlt's death in 1919, Edith traveled abroad but always returned to Sagamore Hill as her home. Alone much of the time, she never appeared lonely, being still an avid reader -- "not only cultured but scholarly," as her husband had said. She kept till the end her interest in the Needlework Guild, a charity which provided garments for the poor, and in the work of Christ Church at Oyster Bay. She died on September 30, 1948, at the age of 87.