Exploring FDR's legacy in Hyde Park

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States, grew up in Hyde Park in Dutchess County, New York. After his death, he wanted his home to be a place the American public could visit.

He is still relevant today, more than 70 years after he was president. FDR led the country out of the great depression and during the attack on pearl harbor and world war ii. He held office between 1933 and 1945.

FDR and Eleanor had six children they raised here. Later he renovated his Hyde Park home so it would be suitable to entertain foreign leaders including Winston Church Hill and Queen Elizabeth. This historic property gives visitors a more personal look at the public figure.

Historians say one of the ways that FDR escaped the pressures of the presidency would be to sit at a desk and work on his famous stamp collection.

FDR was paralyzed from the waist down but he did what he could to hide that from the public. He didn't want to be limited. He had his car, which you can also see in the museum in Hyde Park, adapted so he could still drive it. FDR was famously a terrible driver. The Secret Service knew it and so did the queen.

Paul Sparrow is the director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. He says candidates from both parties in this divisive campaign could learn something from FDR's leadership. He says the key to being a great leader is learning to work with your opponents.