Franklin Delano Roosevelt + Jaw Fish + Houseboat = Florida, 1924
In 1924, FDR and friend, John Lawrence, purchased a second-hand houseboat that the two named the Larooco. At that time FDR was still coming to terms with his polio diagnosis and hoped that the fun and relaxation of seasonal houseboat life in the warm waters of Florida would benefit his health and recovery. Trusted friend and adviser, Louis Howe, presented FDR with a light-hearted gift of an illustrated ship log to commemorate the Larooco’s first voyage. The cover of the log is pictured above.
Roosevelt made three trips in all aboard the vessel, his last in 1926. The Larooco washed inland during a hurricane and was later sold as scrap in 1927. As FDR wrote to his mother:
So ended a good craft with a personality.
-from The Roosevelt Library
That’s the mother of all groupers!
