MERIWETHER COUNTY, Ga. — There is so much to say about the 32nd President of the United States. Franklin D. Roosevelt.
He is the longest serving President since he was elected to four terms. He guided the country through the Great Depression and World War II.
Roosevelt also struggled privately with polio. It was common during the 1930s and '40s. He lost the use of his legs to the disease.
However, The Little White House in Merriweather County was a special place to the former president.
Robin Glass is with the park service and works at Roosevelt's Little White House Historic Site.
"If it wasn't for the water that comes out of that basin none of this would be here, including the Little White House," Glass said.
The water, a colorless and mystifying liquid, still jets out of the ground.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt cherished it, soaked in it and depended on it.
"It has 13 minerals coming out of this spring. It gave him the buoyancy of water so he can swim without the use of his legs," Glass said.
At the age of 32, Roosevelt came down with polio and loss the use of his legs.
Once he learned of the pools and the spring, he built a cabin that became known as the Little White House.
He spent many days in the water getting therapy on a wooden table and chairs.
"The hydro therapist would come and massage his legs," Glass said.
Glass is set to retire next month but he will always keep FDR's story close to his heart because it's a tale of compassion.
"FDR came here an aristocrat but he left here a humble man. We didn't cure his polio, we changed his heart and that changed the world," Glass said.
The waters gave the powerful man confidence over a physical condition he was reluctant to tell the public about.
He could be found swimming and chatting in the pools with other polio victims and many of them were children.
"And their not grumbling or griping. That changed the man forever, it broke his heart," he said.
The visit changed Roosevelt so much he founded the March of Dimes and it's why you see his likeness on the dime today.
As for the house, it was like Roosevelt's Camp David.
If the front porch light came on, it signaled to the secret service the President would see visitors.
"FDR was scared of fire because he was in a wheelchair so he didn't want any open flames in his kitchen and remember it was 1932 and if you look at this stove it's an electric stove which was unheard of in 1932," Glass said.
Roosevelt died in his den at his Georgia retreat in1945 as an artist was painting his portrait.
"He looks up at her and passes his hand over his head three times puts his chin down and that was it. He never spoke another word. He suffered a cerebral brain hemorrhage and they picked him up and took him to his bedroom. He died there two hours and thirteen minutes later," Glass said.
The unfinished portrait hangs on display as a haunting glimpse into the past for a man who found so much life at Warm Springs.
The state is investing $7 million into restoring the pools and filling them back up with water.
Once it's done they will let a limited number of people in everyday they're open.