One Of FDR's Last Letters Written Two Weeks Before His Death
FDR's health was in decline as he prepared in 1944 for both a fourth run at the Presidency and the aftermath of WWII. Those close to the President and even those who saw him speak in public noted his haggard and weak appearance, his flagging energy, and his increasing lapses of concentration and memory. The Yalta Conference in February had put FDR under immense pressure. The President returned to Warm Springs, Georgia, a destination that had served since the 1920s as his favorite retreat. Before he left the White House for Warm Springs, he signed a number of routine letters like this one, signed on March 28. His once bold signature was now shaky and cramped, reflecting his poor health. Two weeks later, on April 12, while sitting for a portrait, Franklin Delano Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage at Warm Springs.
