Franklin D. Roosevelt was a physically challenged president. He suffered from paralysis brought on by poliomyelitis, more commonly known as polio. While he was president, Roosevelt never walked without the aid of heavy leg braces, and he often used a cane. He spent most of his working hours in a wheelchair.

The severity of Roosevelt's condition was not widely known. Whenever he appeared in public or was photographed, he would either be sitting or standing, but he was rarely seen moving around. The Secret Service built access ramps around Washington, D.C., to assist in transporting the president. Members of the press agreed that the president's disability was not news. Only among one group, outside of those personally close to him, did Roosevelt freely exhibit his physical challenge: that occurred when he visited with wounded soldiers—he wanted to show that loss of...