FDR's Warm Springs Institute
Friday, September 10, 2010 
Today's historical photo comes to us from Julia of South Carolina, who writes:
"This photo was taken in 1935 at the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Warm Springs, GA. My great-grandfather (not the man pictured standing beside the pony trap) was a polio patient there, confined to a wheelchair. He was apparently very witty and charming -- I wish I could have met him. Affectionately known as 'Carp,' he was one of the more colorful Warm Springs patients and always had something pithy and quotable to say. Carp even became a close friend and confidant of the estimable Franklin D. Roosevelt when President Roosevelt was in and out of treatment at Warm Springs after its founding in 1927. Whether Carp was exaggerating the importance their friendship or not, my family still has a framed and signed portrait of FDR to Carp. Unfortunately, FDR's penmanship was not as masterful as his politics and I can't make out most of what he wrote. It probably doesn't help that the ink has faded somewhat in the past 75 years, either.
"Now back to the photograph at hand. It is part of an album full of Warm Springs photos that my grandmother (Carp's daughter-in-law) gave to me when I was 9 or 10. Whoever these children are, they must have appreciated the chance to leave their wheelchairs and leg braces behind, if only for half an hour."
Thank you, Julia, for sharing this amazing piece of history with us. What I find fascinating is that if we didn't know this photo was taken at FDR's Warm Springs Institute, the four children in the pony trap could easily be children anywhere, which speaks to the incredible thereputic value of time spent with horses. No doubt the four youngsters in the background are patiently awaitng their turn in the pony trap, too.
In fact, the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (NARHA) traces it's history to another famous polio patient -- dressage rider Lis Hartel, who won the Silver Medal at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki. Hartel, who medaled despite physical impairment, is credited with raising awareness of thereputic riding across Europe; shortly thereafter, thereputic riding centers opened their doors in the U.S. and Canda, too. The NAHRA was founded in 1969 in Middleburg, Va., and today boasts over 800 riding centers and 6,300 members internationally, providing equestrian therapy for more than 42,000 people with special needs each year.
Roosevelt's Warm Springs Institute had other thereputic features, too, including the 88 degree mineral springs themselves, which were first ultilized for their healing properties by warring tribes of the Muskogee, Chickasaw and Cherokee Indians. In the mid-1800s, resorts and lodges were built alongside the springs for vacationers, and in 1927, FDR converted one such lodge, the Meriweather Inn, into the polio treatment center. Five years after purchasing the Institute, FDR was elected the 32nd president of the United States. The cure for polio wasn't announced until 10 years after his death, but the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute's noble mission carries on to this day, providing rehabilitation services to nearly 5,000 disabled persons each year.
In another milestone for thereputic riding, 2010 marks the first year that Para-Equestrains will compete in recognized disciplines at the upcoming World Equestrian Games. What would FDR think of that? One look at this photo of him astride a pony in his home town of Hyde Park, New York, in 1889 tells me that he, too, knew the thereputic value of the horse.
Have a great weekend!
Reader Comments (4)
That's a great pony little FDR is on. Quite a curb bit there - was it fashion or was that another super spirited pony they wanted to control?
I was wondering the same thing! I bet it was for style -- like his bobbed tail and roached mane, which date him to the era just like the hairstyles of men and women. I dig FDR's buttoned-up half chaps, too.
Looks like this fine tyke excellantly rides a pony trained to a complete double bridle. Note he is skilled enough to ride with one hand so his riding crop can re-enforce his leg ques.
That is actually a hackamore not a curb or double bridle as it appears. It was common in those days to use both a snaffle and a hackamore for horses that needed that extra control. I have used them myself from time to time as I ride open jumpers where control is key. I sure do love the pony's turnout as well as Franklins, it would have been so cool to be there next to him.