New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt Enlists the Aid of a Prominent Republican to Manage and Preserve the Forests Around Hyde Park in Dutchess County

Typed Letter Signed, letterhead of the Governor of New York but written from Warm Springs, Georgia where he went to rest and treat his polio, December. 5, 1931 to Cornelius N. Bliss concerning preserving the forest lands in Dutchess County, New York where his Hyde Park estate is located. “You probably know of my interest in the woodlands on our place at Hyde Park. This leads me to believe that you and others may be interested in the further development of our local woods. In order to handle properly the woodlands of Dutchess county and vicinity, it has been proposed that the owners who do not feel they have a sufficient area to justify a trained forester might join together in a group effort to manage, plant, and profitably utilize the forests. In cooperation with the Dean Baker of the State College of Forestry at Syracuse I have proposed that those of us in this section who would like to manage their woodlands either for profit or their aesthetic values or perhaps both should join together and employ a trained forester who could handle our woods properties to our financial or pleasurable advantage. It is proposed to have Professor Nelson C . Brown of the college of Forestry at Syracuse call upon you to discuss the plan if you feel you would be interested. Please let me know if this thought appeals to you and if you would like to discuss it with Mr. Brown at your office or home.” In a handwritten postscript he adds, “This relates to the Barrytown-Tivoli property.”

The recipient, Cornelius N. Bliss, was a partner in one of the largest wholesale dry-goods firms in the country. He was also chairman of the Republican committee in New York in 1887 and 1888, and contributed much to the success of the Benjamin Harrison ticket in his state in the 1888 election. He served as treasurer of the Republican National Committee from 1892 to 1904. He turned down the offer of becoming Secretary of the Treasury under President McKinley, but accepted the post of Secretary of the Interior, maintaining that position until February 1899. While in office, Bliss focused on forestry and Indian affairs. Offered by McKinley the vice presidential slot in his 1900 reelection campaign, he declined, so the nod went instead to Theodore Roosevelt. In 1904, Bliss was Roosevelt’s campaign manager.

This letter went out to 25 of FDR’s neighbors, including Bliss, and Brown was hired for the post.