Anna Roosevelt Halsted

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Halsted was born on May 3, 1906, at 125 East 36th Street, New York City. She was the eldest child and only daughter of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who later became the President of the United States, and Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady. She was named after her mother and her maternal grandmother, Anna Rebecca Hall. Roosevelt Halsted graduated from Miss Chapin's School in 1924 and attended a short course in forestry at Cornell University.

On June 5, 1926, she married Curtis Bean Dall, a stockbroker from New York, in Hyde Park, New York. The couple had two children: Anna Eleanor Dall, born March 25, 1927, and Curtis Roosevelt Dall, born April 19, 1930. The marriage ended in divorce in July 1934. Following the divorce, she returned to her family’s residence in the White House.

In March 1935, she married Clarence John Boettiger, a journalist whom she met on her father's campaign train. They had one son, John Roosevelt Boettiger, born March 30, 1939. Roosevelt Halsted’s early career included roles as associate editor of the magazine *Babies Just Babies* from 1932 to 1934, hosting a radio program sponsored by Best and Company Department Store, and contributing articles to *Liberty* magazine. She also authored two children's books titled *Scamper* and *Scamper's Christmas*.

Later, she moved to Seattle with her second husband when he was appointed editor of the *Seattle Post-Intelligencer* by William Randolph Hearst. From December 1936 to September 1943, she served as the editor of the women’s pages and a columnist for the newspaper. During World War II, Clarence Boettiger, concerned about his contribution to the war effort, took leave from the newspaper, was commissioned as a captain in the Army, and served during the conflict.

In 1944, Roosevelt Halsted moved into the White House with her young son at her father’s request, where she took on duties such as hosting events and serving as an unofficial secretary, handling correspondence, scheduling, and speechwriting for President Franklin D. Roosevelt. She also sought medical advice for the President’s health deterioration, which led to her being the only family member informed when he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure.

She accompanied her father to the Yalta Conference in February 1945 as his aide-de-camp, alongside other daughters such as Sarah Churchill and Kathy Harriman. During this period, she played a role both personally and in protecting her father’s interests. Roosevelt Halsted was present during significant historic moments and was involved in personal family discussions concerning her parents' marriage, including the long-term relationship between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd.

Following Franklin D. Roosevelt’s death in April 1945, Roosevelt Halsted experienced a falling out with William Randolph Hearst, who had supported her second husband. The pair subsequently purchased and renamed a weekly newspaper in Phoenix, Arizona, the *Arizona Times*, converting it into a daily paper by May 1947. The venture was unsuccessful, and the couple faced bankruptcy. Roosevelt Halsted and Clarence Boettiger divorced on August 1, 1949.

She collaborated with her mother Eleanor Roosevelt on a radio program called *The Eleanor and Anna Roosevelt Program* for one year and edited a magazine titled *The Woman*. She also wrote a series of articles titled *My Life with F.D.R.*. In 1952, she married Dr. James Halsted, a physician employed by the Veterans Administration, and moved to New York. She worked in public relations for hospitals and medical centers and later contributed to establishing Pahlavi University Medical School in Iran, where her husband was involved.

Roosevelt Halsted was appointed to the Citizen’s Advisory Council on the Status of Women by President John F. Kennedy in October 1963, and in February of that year, she became vice-chairman of the President’s Commission for the Observance of Human Rights. She retired to Hillsdale, New York, in 1971. She remained active in various organizations until her death from throat cancer on December 1, 1975, at Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx, New York.