Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt sneak in some family time on a 1937 Northwest tour.
Barack Obama’s Mom
Plenty of locals know about Obama’s brief tenure as a toddler-age Capitol Hill resident while his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, attended the University of Washington. Before that, though, she lived in Mercer Island’s Shorewood apartment complex and graduated from the town’s newly built high school in 1960.
Donald Trump’s Grandfather
German immigrant Friedrich Trump (eventually known as Frederick) spent two short stints in Seattle during the 1890s. He ran a restaurant called the Dairy in Pioneer Square and lived across the street.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Daughter
Anna Roosevelt Boettiger arrived with her husband John in 1936 for a seven-year stay at the Seattle Post Intelligencer, he as publisher, she as editor of the women’s pages. Secret Service guarded FDR’s grandchildren Eleanor and Curtis, known to the nation as Sistie and Buzzie, as they attended school here.
Ronald Reagan’s Son
Former KIRO radio host and longtime Seattle resident Ron Reagan identifies himself as an “unabashed atheist” in a memorable commercial that resurfaced during the Democratic debates.
Seattle’s Other Presidential Connections
Boeing: Our embattled aviation giant has manufactured Air Force One since the 1950s.
The Presidents of the United States of America: The 1990s alt-rock band hails from Seattle and has nothing to do with the actual POTUS…save a shared interest in the welfare of the American peach industry.
Jay Inslee Kinda?: Washington’s climate-minded governor ran a short presidential campaign that could position him for a future cabinet role.
Published in the The Not-So-Basic Brunch issue of Seattle Met.
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