Roosevelt, Edith Kermit Carow, 1861-1948

<p>Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt was the second wife and First Lady of her childhood companion and the 26th President, Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909).</p>

<p>Edith Kermit Carow knew Theodore Roosevelt from infancy; as a toddler she became a playmate of his younger sister Corinne. Born in Connecticut in 1861, daughter of Charles and Gertrude Tyler Carow, she grew up in an old New York brownstone on Union Square — an environment of comfort and tradition. Throughout childhood she and “Teedie” were in and out of each other’s houses.</p>

<p>Attending Miss Comstock’s school, she acquired the proper finishing touch for a young lady of that era. A quiet girl who loved books, she was often Theodore’s companion for summer outings at Oyster Bay, Long Island; but this ended when he entered Harvard. Although she attended his wedding to Alice Hathaway Lee in 1880, their lives ran separately until 1885, when he was a young widower with an infant daughter, Alice.</p>

<p>Putting tragedy behind him, he and Edith were married in London in December 1886. They settled down in a house on Sagamore Hill, at Oyster Bay, headquarters for a family that added five children in ten years: Theodore, Kermit, Ethel, Archibald, and Quentin. Throughout Roosevelt’s intensely active career, family life remained close and entirely delightful. A small son remarked one day, “When Mother was a little girl, she must have been a boy!”</p>

<p>Public tragedy brought them into the White House, eleven days after President McKinley succumbed to an assassin’s bullet. Assuming her new duties with characteristic dignity, Mrs. Roosevelt meant to guard the privacy of a family that attracted everyone’s interest, and she tried to keep reporters outside her domain. The public, in consequence, heard little of the vigor of her character, her sound judgment, her efficient household management.</p>

<p>But in this administration the White House was unmistakably the social center of the land. Beyond the formal occasions, smaller parties brought together distinguished men and women from varied walks of life. Two family events were highlights: the wedding of “Princess Alice” to Nicholas Longworth, and Ethel’s debut. A perceptive aide described the First Lady as “always the gentle, high-bred hostess; smiling often at what went on about her, yet never critical of the ignorant and tolerant always of the little insincerities of political life.”</p>

<p>T.R. once wrote to Ted Jr. that “if Mother had been a mere unhealthy Patient Griselda I might have grown set in selfish and inconsiderate ways.” She continued, with keen humor and unfailing dignity, to balance her husband’s exuberance after they retired in 1909.</p>

<p>After his death in 1919, she traveled abroad but always returned to Sagamore Hill as her home. Alone much of the time, she never appeared lonely, being still an avid reader — “not only cultured but scholarly,” as T.R. had said. She kept till the end her interest in the Needlework Guild, a charity which provided garments for the poor, and in the work of Christ Church at Oyster Bay. She died on September 30, 1948, at the age of 87.</p>

<p>Edith Kermit Roosevelt (née Carow; August 6, 1861 – September 30, 1948) was the second wife of President Theodore Roosevelt and served as the First Lady of the United States during his presidency from 1901 to 1909. She also served as the Second Lady of the United States in 1901. Roosevelt was the first First Lady to employ a full-time, salaried social secretary. Her tenure resulted in the creation of an official staff, and her formal dinners and ceremonial processions served to elevate the position of First Lady.</p>

<p>Edith was born in Norwich, Connecticut, to merchant Charles Carow (1825–1883) and Gertrude Elizabeth Tyler (1836–1895). Gertrude's father Daniel Tyler (1799–1882) served as Union general in the American Civil War.</p>

<p>Edith's younger sister was Emily Tyler Carow (1865–1939). Edith also had a brother, Kermit (February 1860 – August 1860) who died one year before her birth. The name "Kermit," selected by Edith's parents as her brother's first name and as her middle name, was the surname of a paternal great-uncle, Robert Kermit.</p>

<p>During her childhood, Edith was known as "Edie."</p>

<p>Edith grew up in a brownstone on Union Square in New York City. Next door lived Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt (1858–1919). Edith was best friends with his younger sister Corinne (1861–1933).</p>

<p>Edith, Corinne, Teddy, and Elliot had their earliest schooling together at the Roosevelt family home at 28 East 20th Street. Edith later attended Miss Comstock's finishing school.</p>

<p>Although Edith and Teddy may have had a teenage romance, the relationship faded when Teddy went to Harvard University. While at Harvard, Teddy met Alice Lee. Teddy and Alice married in 1880. Edith attended the wedding.</p>