Evening star., 1938-12-11
Roosevelt Offers
Estate 10 u. ).
For Repository
Building Projected
At Hyde Park to
House Papers

President Roosevelt will turn over
to the Government all records and
private papers of his service in the
White House and throughout his
previous years in public Office and
provide on the fami 7 estate at Hyde
Park, N. Y, land FIR building to
store these archives for future gen.
erations.
This the President revealed late
yesterday at an unscheduled press
conference which he called IN his
study in the living quarters Of the
White House.
With the land for the archives re-
pository will go to the Government,
on Mr.. Roosevelt's death, the family
home and surrounding grounds. 100
acres in all, land which has been in
the family since shortly after the
Revolutionary War.
The announcement followed 4
luncheon at which 18 historians,
writer's and personal friends were
guests OF the President. This group
will form an advisory council to
plan the project and launch a CAM
paign to finance it through pub ,ic
subscription. Mr.. Roosevelt revealed
that he will contribute toward 1t all
the money he has derived from writ
ings which he has sold since he took
ONCE. after taxes on these funds
have been deducted.
First Such Plan Attempted.
The historians who attended the
luncheon agreed that this would be
the flrst time In American history
the complete collection OF original
documents covering a presidential
administration had been given to
the Government for its future his
torical value.
When this huge accumulation of
source material has been catalogued
and made available to students, 1t
will constitute a definitive record
OF an American era, they pointed
out.
The gift Of the Roosevelt family
home to the Government after the
Presidents death has been ap-
proved by his mother, Mrs. Sara
Delano Roosevelt. who now owns
the property, 1t was disclosed. The
President and Mrs. Roosevelt re-
gard Hyde Park place as their sum-
mer home, but often visit 1t fol
week ends or longer periods at othe,
seasons.
About IS reporters attended the
Upecial press conference, and some
Of them felt that the Presidents
interest 1t this time in the preser-
vation Of Ill he records Of his two
administrations indicated he had
no thought Of third term. But
this was not discussed.
The President merely said he had
been considering the plan for three
years and wanted to see 1t put
under way.
Collection Dates From 1910.
In a prepared statement which
he read to the newspapermen, the
President said that since 1910 he
had carefully preserved all CORE
spondence, papers, books and other
data pertaining to the various pub
lie ofnces he has held.
These years" he pointed out
"cover my service of nearly three
years in the New York State Sen
ate, seven and one-haf years as
Assistant Secretary of the Navy, in
cluding the World War period and
two trips to Europe; my business
and legal correspondence; much po-
litical material between 1920 and
1928, including my campaign fol-
Vice President; the 1924 conven-
ton and the 1928 convention; my
campaigns for Governor In 1925
and 1890; all my personal paper,
as Governor of New York, 1929
1893; the campaigns for the presi-
dency, 1882 and 1896. and all OF
my presidential papers from March
4, 1888, to date.
Because these papers relate to
SO many periods and activities which
are not connected with my service
in the Federal Government, I dc
not wish to break them up, leav-
ing 4 portion of them to the Ma
toinal Archives and dividing the
rest between the State Of New York
Archives, the New York State His
torical Society, the Dutchess County
Historical Society, the Harvard Col
lege Library, etc., ETC."
The President also explained that
he wanted the collection placed near
his Hyde Park home, so that dur
ing his lifetime he could assist in
annotating and cataloguing the ma
terial with which he Is so familiar.
It vas, therefore, his thought
"that funds can be raised for the
erection of a separate, modern, fire.
proof building to be built near my
lcan R00QENEI paua Ally