Image via Wikpedia.com- Elias Goldensky (1868–1943)

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Why President FDR Believed His Personal Collection Of 1 Million Postage Stamps Saved His Life

Franklin Roosevelt loved his stamps so much that they were a large and important part of his life since when he was a child

Andrew Martin
4 min readMay 23, 2023

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Franklin Delano Roosevelt, commonly known by his initials of FDR, was the longest-serving President in American history (1933–1945). Despite coming from an affluent family, one of the things he enjoyed most in the world was postage stamps. A source of education and entertainment, they represented a portal to the world for the great political leader. A collector throughout his life, he amassed an astonishing collection that totaled nearly one million unique stamps.

The 32nd President was born to the influential Roosevelt family in New York in 1882. His father James was a successful businessman, but FDR rose to even greater heights. Educated at Groton and then Harvard, he became a lawyer before embarking on a lengthy political career. During his time in office, he served in a variety of capacities, including the New York State Senate, New York Governor, Assistant Secretary of the Navy and of course the three terms he spent in the Oval Office.

Unfortunately, FDR became ill in 1921 from what was diagnosed as Polio and as a result became…

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Andrew Martin
Andrew Martin

Written by Andrew Martin

Dabbler in soccer, history, investing & writing. Master’s degree in baseball history. Passionate about history, diversity, culture, sports, film and investing .

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