If you know former U.S. president Theodore “T.R” Roosevelt, you will be intrigued to know that Paulina Longworth Sturn was his granddaughter. Despite living a short life, we know plenty of details about Paulina; in this post, we will focus on her early life, parents, marriage, etc. Hopefully, all your questions regarding knowing who Paulina Longworth Sturn is will be quenched by the end of this post.
Early Life of Paulina Longworth Sturn
Paulina is an American nationality born on February 14, 1925, in Washington, D.C. She is popularly known as the granddaughter of the of the former U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt III.
Paulina was the solo child of Alice Roosevelt. Paulina’s legal father was the Speaker of the house of Nicholas Longworth. As for her biological father, he was Senator William Borah. Paulina lived with her legal father briefly as he died when she was six, leaving her to have a long-distance relationship with her mother.
According to various historians, Paulina suffered from belittlement from her mother. Paulina’s mother wanted her to become an extroverted figure like her. However, Paulina is shy, and this belittlement drowned her into depression and alcoholism. At some point, it was reported that she had several suicide attempts.
Marriage Life of Paulina Longworth
While campaigning for her mother in 1944, Paulina met Alexander McCormick. Alexander, popularly known as “Sandy,” was an artist and Yale graduate at that time. He came from a prominent family, and the two began their friendship and married on August 26, 1944.
During the marriage, Paulina was only 19 years old, and her mother felt the marriage drove further apart the distance between Paulina and her. Their marriage gave birth to a daughter in July 1946. Paulina’s daughter, Joanna Mercedes, was attentive and doting. Unfortunately, Paulina’s husband, Sandy Sturm, succumbed to Hepatitis in 1951, leaving Paulina a widow and a single mother.
This situation worsened the drug issue on Paulina, drowning her in further depression. At this point, she sought refuge and comfort in religion and converted to Catholicism. She volunteered to help in various hospitals and joined Dorothy Day’s Chrystie Street Hospitality.
Paulina’s drug issue was still an issue. It even led to her death in 1957 after she overdosed on sleeping pills. Her mother disagreed with the reported case that her death was suicide, despite the previous suicide attempts.
During her funeral, the then vice president, Richard Nixon, was the pallbearer. Paulina left behind a will, and in it, she stated that her mother was the custodian of her daughter, Joanna. Her death brought peace between her mother and her cousin, Eleanor Roosevelt.
Paulina is buried in the Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington. Her birth came three weeks before she celebrated her 32nd birthday. She left behind one child, and her lineage will continue thanks to her daughter’s life. More details about her lineage will be posted as the information keeps coming up.
