The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers, Digital Edition > My Day
My Day by Eleanor Roosevelt

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ALBANY, N.Y. Tuesday—Miss Thompson and I decided to come up by train yesterday afternoon as I had to be here in time for dinner. It is always a pleasure to come into Albany. For one thing, the taxi drivers are so quick to recognize old friends, and while I imagine they greet everyone with warmth, still it gives one a sense of personal welcome when they seem to remember you as an individual!

I have always thought that Albany had a charm all its own. In the old prints of the city, when it was really nothing but a trading post, one sees the Dutch influence very clearly and I think there is still a feeling of quaintness and old tradition here, in spite of the fact that the population today is as mixed as that in almost every city throughout our country. There are steep hills here, and in the old days I used to be somewhat apprehensive of both driving and walking in the winter months. But I believe our climate is changing, for my husband used to tell me that he remembered when Albany streets were piled high with snow for months and that sleighs and fast-stepping horses were the best means of transportation.

It is so long since I have taken part in state political gatherings that I had a feeling of unreality about my part in the Democratic State Convention until I actually stepped into the DeWitt Clinton Hotel. Then the old and familiar atmosphere seemed to surround me and I began to see familiar faces on every side.

Miss Thompson and I were soon settled in our room, and Miss Doris Byrne, the vice-chairman of the Democratic State Committee, and chairman of the women's division, came up with Mrs. William H. Good, our national committeewoman from New York State, to say "Hello" and to ask me when I could see the ladies of the press. I thought at first I could not be ready for them until after dinner, but I got downstairs while the party for the press was still going on and was led to the press room. Miss Byrne and Mrs. Good sat by while I answered questions.

A little later I attended State Chairman Paul E. Fitzpatrick's dinner, at which Miss Byrne, Mrs. Good and I were the only ladies. Daniel O'Connell, the Albany County Chairman, had arranged the dinner and we teased him a little for being so lavish, but I suppose that is one of the ways that Democrats show their feeling that victory looms in the offing. It was a harmonious meeting, which is always a good sign.

Later in the evening, Thomas F. Boyle, executive vice-chairman of the Democratic State Committee, Walter Brown, head of the speakers' bureau, and I were interviewed on the radio. The local station first presented speakers from the Republican Convention and as I entered the room I heard one speaker say: "Do, do, do, do it with Dewey." To me, this slogan seems unfortunate, because one could also say: "Do, do, do, doom it with Dewey." After the broadcast we immediately went to our rooms to get a good night's rest for today's many activities.

E. R.

(WORLD COPYRIGHT, 1946, BY UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC.; REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR PART PROHIBITED.)


Names and Terms Mentioned or Referenced

Persons
  • Boyle, Thomas F. [ index ]
         American executive vice-chairman of the Democratic State Committee
  • Brown, Walter [ index ]
         Head of the Speaker's Bureau
  • Byrne, Doris Irene, 1905-1975 [ index ]
         American lawyer and politician
  • Dewey, Thomas E. (Thomas Edmund), 1902-1971 [ index ]
         American politician; Governor of New York
         [ LC | ISNI | VIAF | Wikidata | SNAC | FAST | US Nat. Archives | ANB ]
  • Fitzpatrick, Paul (Paul Early), 1897-1977 [ index ]
         American soldier and democrat party chairman
         [ LC | VIAF | SNAC ]
  • Good, Alice Campbell, 1878-1956 [ index ]
         Democratic Party Committee member
         [ LC | VIAF | SNAC ]
  • O'Connell, Daniel Peter, 1885-1977 [ index ]
         American political party boss; leader of the Democratic Party political machine in Albany County, New York
         [ LC | VIAF | Wikidata ]
  • Thompson, Malvina, 1893-1953 [ index ]
         ER's secretary
         [ ERPP bio | LC | VIAF | Wikidata | SNAC | FAST | US Nat. Archives ]
Organizations
  • Democratic Party (N.Y.) [ index ]
         [ LC | VIAF | FAST ]
  • Republican Party (N.Y.) [ index ]
         [ LC ]
Geographic
  • Albany (N.Y., United States) [ index ]
Other Terms and Topics
  • Press
         [ LC | FAST ]
  • Radio programs
         [ LC | FAST ]
  • State governments
         [ LC | FAST ]


About this document

My Day by Eleanor Roosevelt, September 4, 1946

Roosevelt, Eleanor, 1884-1962
[ ERPP bio | LC | VIAF | WorldCat | DPLA | Wikidata | SNAC ]

Digital edition created by The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project The George Washington University 312 Academic Building 2100 Foxhall Road, NW Washington, DC 20007

  • Brick, Christopher (Editor)
    [ VIAF | ORCID ]
  • Regenhardt, Christy (Associate Editor)
    [ ISNI ]
  • Black, Allida M. (Editor)
    [ VIAF | ISNI ]
  • Binker, Mary Jo (Associate Editor)
    [ VIAF | ORCID ]
  • Alhambra, Christopher C. (Electronic Text Editor)
    [ VIAF | ORCID ]

Digital edition published 2008, 2017 by
The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project

Available under licence from the Estate of Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.

Published with permission from the Estate of Anna Eleanor Roosevelt.

MEP edition publlished on June 30, 2008.

TEI-P5 edition published on April 28, 2017.

XML master last modified on May 2, 2022.

HTML version generated and published on May 3, 2022.

Transcription created from a photocopy of a UFS wire copy of a My Day column instance archived at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library.
TMs, AERP, FDRL