-
Daisy Suckley plays with Fala in FDR’s White House Study, December 20, 1941. (FDR Presidential Library & Museum)
-
Margaret “Daisy” Suckley and Fala, the dog she gave FDR, at Top Cottage during the summer of 1941. This photo was taken by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
-
In 1941, the staff at the Roosevelt Library celebrated the new institution’s first Christmas by decorating President Roosevelt’s private study. This small, blue stocking for FDR’s beloved Scottish terrier, Fala, is hanging next to the President’s stocking in the photo to the right.
-
Franklin D. Roosevelt with Fala and Ruthie Bie in Hyde Park, New York, 1941 One of the few photographs of Roosevelt in his wheelchair.
Franklin D. Roosevelt contracted infantile paralysis, more commonly known as polio, in 1921 when he was thirty-nine years old. After several years of rehabilitation, he returned to politics. Concerned his disability would be used against him in the political arena, Roosevelt was reluctant to be photographed or filmed in situations that highlighted his disability.
More - Franklin D. Roosevelt and Polio
This week in history, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed. To honor the anniversary, The U.S. National Archives has created a space to explore disability history through Presidential records. Throughout the week, we’ll be featuring records and posting questions to explore disability history.
-
Winston Churchill with Diana Hopkins, 1941. During the Second World War, Prime Minister Winston Churchill visited the White House so frequently that staff members learned to anticipate his likes and dislikes. In late December 1941, Churchill posed on the lawn with Diana Hopkins, daughter of presidential aide Harry Hopkins, and Fala, the president’s Scottie. (White House Historical Association)
-
“To Hyde Park last weekend went Mr. and Mrs. Roosevelt. Like millions of other American couples they sought a relief from the hot stickiness of the city, the constant pressure of workday problems. The President finds respite in reading his beloved detective stories, in playing with his shaggy Scotty, Fala. His wife likes to sit and watch them while she knits.” — LIFE, Aug. 4, 1941
-
‘Fala nearly wagged his tail off’
“I was sorry that the President had such a short stay in Warm Springs, Ga., but I think the change was good for him. He told me they had a wonderful dinner at the Foundation on Saturday night, and he had a good sleep in his cottage.
“For once, he left his dog, Fala, behind. I imagine he thought they are apt to get ticks in the South, and that the trip was not going to be long enough to warrant so much time spent on the train for a little dog. However, left behind, Fala was a very pathetic and lonely object. He deigned to spend his nights in my room and woke me up in the mornings by pawing the side of my bed and by little yaps to attract my attention. When the President came in, Fala nearly wagged his tail off.” — Eleanor Roosevelt, My Day, Dec. 4, 1941
-
Is This Any Way To Hold A Celebrity?
President Franklin D. Roosevelt lifts his dog Fala as he prepares to motor from his special train to the Yacht Potomac at New London, Conn., Aug. 3, 1941, at the beginning of a vacation voyage. (AP Photo / Washington Times)
-
Fala on Pearl Harbor Day
While visiting her mother’s cousins, Franklin and Eleanor, in the White House on December 7, 1941, she spent the afternoon teaching the President’s dog, Fala, to roll over. She went on to raise and train dogs to assist deaf persons, helping to found the agency which coordinates such efforts, Assistance Dogs International. — New York Times obituary of Laura Delano Adams Eastman, Sept. 28, 2005
-
FDR seated on the porch at Top Cottage in Hyde Park, New York. Fala is under the table. Photo by Margaret Suckley. June 2, 1941. (FDR Presidential Library & Museum)
-
Arguably history’s best known presidential pet was Fala, a Scottish terrier given to Franklin Roosevelt in 1940 by his distant cousin Margaret Suckley. Fala appeared in political cartoons, news articles, movie shorts, and even FDR’s campaign speeches. Secret Service agents called Fala “The Informer” because, during secret wartime presidential trips, the dog was instantly recognized while out on his walks. But this celebrity was put to good use in 1941 when Fala was named national president of Barkers for Britain. (National Archives)
Photo: FDR and Fala in the White House Oval Study, December 20, 1941.
