Historic Tree Grove: Franklin Delano Roosevelt Live Oak

Southern Live Oak

Southern Live Oaks (Quercus virginiana) are large deciduous trees native to the southeastern U.S. from Virginia to Florida and west to Texas. This is one of the iconic trees of the "Old South", frequently dripping with Spanish moss and dominating the landscape. The shiny green leaves are lost late each winter or early spring, replaced immediately with fresh soft green growth. Acorns from this tree are beloved by squirrels, who frequently use the large trees for nests as well.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882 – April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was the thirty-second President of the United States. Elected to four terms in office, he served from 1933 to 1945, and is the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms of office. He was a central figure of the 20th century during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war.

President Roosevelt delivering a Fireside Chat

After an illness leading to paralysis in 1921 at age 39, FDR spent the rest of his life confined to a wheelchair. He worried that this would affect his political career, but the press at the time worked closely to avoid revealing this well-known "secret" to the general public. He was usually photographed from the waist up, and occasionally propped himself up into a standing position to deliver important speeches. Television was not in wide use at this time, and most citizens knew him from his weekly "Fireside Chat" radio addresses instead.

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Roosevelt created the New Deal to provide relief for the unemployed, recovery of the economy, and reform of the economic and banking systems. Although recovery of the economy was incomplete until almost 1940, many programs initiated continue to have instrumental roles in the nation's commerce, such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). One of his most important legacies is the Social Security system. FDR died while serving his fourth term as president in 1945, and was succeeded by his Vice President, Harry Truman.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Live Oak
The Franklin D Roosevelt Live Oak stands in City Park, a 1,500 acre urban park in New Orleans built in 1891 and expanded under the President’s Works Progress Administration in the 1930’s.

New Deal Garden

President Roosevelt’s New Deal projects in Florida during the 1930s included the construction of fire lanes and fire towers, and the rebuilding of the Overseas Railroad from Miami to Key West. Plantings in our New Deal garden call to mind some of these projects.

• Firebush (Hamelia patens) - In a state frequently devastated by wildfires in the dry season, cleared fire lanes and fire-spotting towers were necessary and valuable.
• Railroad Vine (Ipomoea pes-caprae) - The railroad project linked the Florida Keys to the mainland, eventually leading to the Overseas Highway we use today.

Additionally, each spring a mass planting of 'Miranda' Amaryllis (Hippeastrum 'Miranda') puts on a brilliant orange show beneath this tree.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Live Oak Art and Artists

The art for the informational sign was created by local artist Holly Bird.

The bench art for this tree was created by Eric Milan, a high school teacher in Tampa.