HYDE PARK – On Saturday, December 9, 2023, the FDR Presidential Library and Museum and the Home of FDR National Historic Site will host a full day of free holiday events. The Museum will be open to visitors free of charge from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Home of FDR (Springwood) will have tours available from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. There will be holiday decorations, refreshments and special activities – including the annual Children’s Reading Festival and free photo time with Santa – beginning at Noon in the Henry A. Wallace Center. In addition, Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site (Val-Kill) will be decorated for the holidays and open from 12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Children’s Reading Festival, Santa and Holiday Cards for Sailors
The annual Children’s Reading Festival – presented by the Roosevelt Library and the Friends of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District – will be held in the Henry A. Wallace Center, from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on December 9, 2023. Children’s book authors will read from and sign copies of their books. Featured books will be available for purchase in the New Deal Store in the Wallace Center.
Children’s Reading Festival authors include Barbara Ann Mojica author of LITTLE MISS HISTORY TRAVELS TO HYDE PARK, HOME OF FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT: PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY & MUSEUM and Barbara Guerriero-Flites THE MEMOIR OF A WHITE HOUSE DOG: MY LIFE WITH PRESIDENT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT; 1940-1945.
In addition, there will be live music, free photo time with Santa from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., and children can make holiday cards for sailors on the USS FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT (www.surflant.usff.navy.mil/ddg80/) beginning at Noon. Refreshments will be served throughout the afternoon in the Wallace Center lobby.
Holiday Open House – December 9, 2023 – Roosevelt Library and Home, Val-Kill
Holiday Open House on December 9 is from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Home of FDR National Historic Site and at the Roosevelt Library. Both the Home and the Roosevelt Library study will be decorated for the holidays as they were during the Roosevelt presidency. Admission is free to the Home and Library throughout the day.
Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site (Val-Kill) will also be free, decorated for the holidays, and open to visitors from 12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on December 9.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum
Designed by Franklin Roosevelt and dedicated on June 30, 1941, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum is the nation’s first presidential library and the only one used by a sitting president. Administered by the National Archives and Records Administration since 1941, the Library preserves and makes accessible to the American people the records of FDR’s presidency. The Roosevelt Library’s mission is to foster a deeper understanding of the lives and times of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt and their continuing impact on contemporary life. This work is carried out through the Library’s archives and research room, museum collections and exhibitions, innovative educational programs, and engaging public programming. Visit www.fdrlibrary.org for more information.
The National Park Service administers the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Sites in Hyde Park, New York. Visitors to the sites can enjoy guided tours of the historic buildings, beautiful gardens, lush green lawns, and miles of hiking trails. Special park events are offered throughout the year, and kids can participate in free junior ranger programs. For more information visit www.nps.gov/hofr.