Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born on January 30, 1882, in Hyde Park, New York. His father, James Roosevelt, was a wealthy businessman and financier. His mother, Sara “Sallie” Delano, was a strong-willed woman. She never wished for her son to enter politics.

Roosevelt grew up in a world of privilege and often traveled overseas with his parents. He was brought to meet Grover Cleveland at the White House when he was five and was a cousin of Theodore Roosevelt. He grew up with private tutors before attending Groton from 1896 to 1900. Roosevelt was an average student at Harvard, graduating in 1904. He then went to Columbia Law School (1904–1907), passed the bar, and decided not to stay on to graduate.