Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. to his wife, Bunny

The Lovers
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., (1887-1944) the eldest child of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt by his second wife, was born at Sagamore Hill, the family home in Oyster Bay, on New York's Long Island. In 1908 after attending Harvard, he went into business, and married Eleanor (Bunny) in 1910. In time they had four children. During World War I young Teddy fought in France and received many decorations for bravery. In the 1920's he entered politics, going on to hold several high offices, including assistant secretary of the Navy and governor of Puetro Rico. In 1941 he was made brigadier general and participated in the Tunisian and Italian campaigns of World War II. At the D-Day landings Roosevelt was the first infantry general to land (at Utah Beach); he was serving as military governor of Cherbourg when he died of a heart attack.	Eleanor (Bunny) Butler Alexander Roosevelt (1889-1960) was the daughter of a prominent New York lawyer, Henry Addison, and Grace (Green) Alexander. She married Theodore roosevelt, Jr., in 1910, and throughout her life not only supported him in his career, but also proved a highly organized, socially conscious person in her own right. She helped improve the conditions of Puerto Rican women while her husband was governor of the island (1929-31); she organized the first American women's committee for China Relief (1937); and she directed the American Red Cross Club in England (1942). eleanor received citations and commendations from, among others, the French government, Gen. John J. Pershing, and the U.S. War Department. She also wrote a fascinating account of her life in her memoirs, Day Before Yesterday.

The Lovers

Theodore Roosevelt, Jr.,
(1887-1944)
the eldest child of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt by his second wife, was born at Sagamore Hill, the family home in Oyster Bay, on New York's Long Island. In 1908 after attending Harvard, he went into business, and married Eleanor (Bunny) in 1910. In time they had four children. During World War I young Teddy fought in France and received many decorations for bravery. In the 1920's he entered politics, going on to hold several high offices, including assistant secretary of the Navy and governor of Puetro Rico. In 1941 he was made brigadier general and participated in the Tunisian and Italian campaigns of World War II. At the D-Day landings Roosevelt was the first infantry general to land (at Utah Beach); he was serving as military governor of Cherbourg when he died of a heart attack.

Eleanor (Bunny) Butler Alexander Roosevelt
(1889-1960)
was the daughter of a prominent New York lawyer, Henry Addison, and Grace (Green) Alexander. She married Theodore roosevelt, Jr., in 1910, and throughout her life not only supported him in his career, but also proved a highly organized, socially conscious person in her own right. She helped improve the conditions of Puerto Rican women while her husband was governor of the island (1929-31); she organized the first American women's committee for China Relief (1937); and she directed the American Red Cross Club in England (1942). eleanor received citations and commendations from, among others, the French government, Gen. John J. Pershing, and the U.S. War Department. She also wrote a fascinating account of her life in her memoirs, Day Before Yesterday.

May 20, 1943

Dearest Bunny,
Do you know what this is--a wedding anniversary letter. I think it should arrive about on the right date. Do you remember that hot June day thirty-three years ago?--the church jammed--Father with a lovely waistcoat with small blue spots--the Rough Riders--the ushers in cutaways--the crowds in the street--your long white veil and tight little bodice--the reception at Aunt Harriet's--Uncle Ed--your mother with one of her extraordinary hats that stood straight up.
And do you remember what the world was then--little and cozy--a different order of things, wars considered on the basis of a Dick [Richard Harding] Davis novel, a sort of "As it was in the beginning" atmosphere over life. We've come a long way down a strange road since then. Nothing has happened as we imagined it would except out children. We never thought we'd roam the world. we never thought our occupations and interests would cover such a range. We never thought that our thirty-third anniversary would find us deep in our second war and me again at the front. Well, darling, we've lived up to the most important part of the ceremony, "In sickness and in health, for richer for poorer, till death do you part."
Much, much love.

Their Story

Text from
Famous Love Letters
Messages of Intimacy and Passion
Edited by Ronald Tamplin