[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 47 (Tuesday, March 14, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E594]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


           FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT'S DEATH

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                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 14, 1995
  Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, as we approach the month of 
April, the Presidential library founded by Franklin Delano Roosevelt 
will inaugurate a series of exhibits, events, films, and a play to 
commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of America's 32d 
President. I would like to submit for the Congressional Record an 
article by a constituent of mine, Edmund Walsh.
              FDR's Legacy Continues at Hyde Park Library

                          (By Edmund A. Walsh)

       Starting April 1, 1995, the presidential library founded by 
     Franklin Delano Roosevelt will inaugurate a series of 
     exhibits, events, films, and a play to commemorate the 50th 
     anniversary of the death of America's 32nd president. The 
     commemorational activities will start with an exhibit 
     entitled ``1945--The Year That Changed Your World.'' This 
     program will cover FDR's inauguration for an unprecedented 
     fourth term, with Harry S. Truman, former senator from 
     Missouri, sworn in as his vice president. The exhibit will 
     profile the Yalta Conference, where Roosevelt, Churchill and 
     Stalin met to lay plans for the post-WWII world. The April 
     program continues with displays showing the transition from 
     ``The New Deal to the Fair Deal'' when a stunned Truman 
     becomes president and moves to continue FDR's steps towards 
     peace.
       The ``1945'' presentation continues with the funeral of FDR 
     and a description of ``The Unfinished Legacy of the New 
     Deal,'' and ``The Birth of the United Nations.'' (Roosevelt 
     passed away on April 12, 1945 in Warm Springs, Georgia; just 
     two weeks before he was to host the San Francisco meeting 
     that saw the birth of the United Nations). ``VE Day,'' 
     Victory in Europe will be honored. The exhibit will also 
     cover ``The Atomic Bomb'' and ``The End of World War II.'' 
     The April program concludes with a presentation of the 
     president's legacy of leadership.
       A film and discussion series follows the ``1945'' exhibit 
     with programs covering the Yalta conference in May and the 
     atomic bomb in June. President Truman is the subject of the 
     July segment.
       A public debate on the legacy of FDR will be presented by 
     teams from Marist College and United States Military Academy 
     at West Point in late April. This will interest those 
     interested in the FDR years, as well those closely following 
     the continuing discussions in Congress concerning entitlement 
     programs. Chief among those programs is the Social Security 
     Act, a major betterment of the early Roosevelt 
     administration.
       The Memorial Day weekend will feature a bivouac and salute 
     to FDR by the Duffel Bag group of Carmel, New York. This 
     group, founded ten years ago, is composed of 300 men, women, 
     and some children, who reenact WWII battles, march in 
     parades, and stage exhibitions of their equipment and 
     vehicles.
       Duffel Bag was conceived and promoted by Brian Benedict, a 
     Carmel dealer in military surplus goods. Recently, Benedict 
     said, the group reenacted the Battle of the Bulge in Indian 
     Gap, Pennsylvania. They performed at half-time of the Army-
     Navy game in 1993 and are scheduled to appear again in this 
     year's game.
       At Hyde Park, Benedict went on, the Duffel Bag associates 
     will create an attempt by enemy commandoes to kidnap 
     President Roosevelt. The ``army's'' assignment will be to 
     deny the attempt. Benedict promised a skirmish between the 
     forces, complete with simulated gunfire. Kids of all ages, he 
     said, are welcome to inspect their equipment which will 
     include jeeps, trucks, and possibly half-tracks and light 
     armor.
       August will see the presentation of the nationally-known 
     ``Sunrise at Campobello'' by the Rhinebeck Theatre Group. 
     This drama tells the story of the summer of 1921 when FDR 
     contracted polio. Theatre goers may remember the original 
     Broadway presentation with Ralph Bellamy in the title role.
       Since the wartime president always considered himself first 
     and foremost a farmer, the FDR Library in conjunction with 
     the Dutchess County Cooperative Extension, will present its 
     first Agricultural Heritage Day in September. Farm groups, a 
     farmer's market and various environmental groups will 
     participate.
       Other activities are planned for Warm Springs, the New York 
     Museum of Television and Radio, and at Roosevelt University 
     in Chicago. For more information on the plans at Hyde Park or 
     other locations, call 800-FDR-Visit or 800-337-8474.
     

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