Whitinsville's Dr. Joseph J. Plaud, who has amassed a collection of Franklin D. Roosevelt memorabilia that is considered the largest in private hands, stands in front of a portrait of his hero. (T&G Staff / JIM COLLINS)

WHITINSVILLE- As a child, Joseph J. Plaud was fascinated by his grandmother's stories about President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.She didn't know the president, but she admired him so much that she spoke about him in familiar terms.

"She made him seem like he was her best friend," Dr. Plaud said.

The grandmother piqued her grandson's curiosity. "I thought, "Who is this FDR, and why is he so important?'"

As a teenager, Dr. Plaud started buying kitschy items connected to FDR and the New Deal. As he matured, so did his interest. Dr. Plaud said he moved on to books, photographs and documents, especially the ones with FDR's signature, which represented "the force of a pen behind a bill, policy or government action."

By the mid-1990s, Dr. Plaud, a forensic psychologist by trade, had become a very serious collector - so serious, in fact, that he had amassed a cache of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt material considered by many collectors and dealers to be the largest of its kind in private hands.

Today, Dr. Plaud estimates its worth at several million dollars.

John Reznikoff, president of University Archives, which specializes in the sale of historically significant letters, documents and autographs, said that Dr. Plaud has low-balled the value of his assemblage.

"It's the largest collection I know of, and I'm pretty well traveled in those circles," Mr. Reznikoff said. "He's got an excellent and trained eye for what is really good and what is really important."

Dr. Plaud said the collection is a reflection of the value he places on what FDR stood for and what he accomplished in leading the country out of the Great Depression and through World War II.

"FDR was a little ahead of the curve," he said. "He knew government had to change and become more responsive. He brought the country along when he saw the magnitude of the problem. He had critics on the right and on the left. He had a vision for the country and transformed the government into a more activist protector."

With that legacy in mind, Dr. Plaud has formed a nonprofit organization, the Franklin D. Roosevelt American Heritage Center Inc., through which he will establish a museum and develop a curriculum on FDR and the New Deal that can be introduced into the schools. His intention is to set up the center's headquarters in Worcester, where he spent part of his childhood and attended college.

On a recent afternoon, Dr. Plaud, a cheerful and talkative man, ushered a visitor into the pleasant, airy home he shares with his wife, Deborah, a clinical psychologist. Intriguing artifacts, many of them unique, stood on shelves and tabletops. On the walls were FDR portraits.

A Panama hat FDR wore at the Tehran Conference in November and December 1943 is on display, along with a straw hat the president donned for a baseball game.

Standing on a bookshelf is a miniature chrome flagpole inscribed to Harry Hopkins, FDR's friend and adviser who headed the Works Progress Administration dur ing the Depression. FDR presented the mementos to the members of his inner circle on his 60th birthday, Jan. 30, 1942.

"The only other one is at the FDR Library and is inscribed to Eleanor," Dr. Plaud noted.

James Roosevelt sold Dr. Plaud the Tiffany watch given to his grandfather on his 63rd birthday, a gift from five members of the press corps, including his son-in-law, John Boettinger, who reported for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. FDR would die of a cerebral hemorrhage less than three months later, on April 12, 1945, in Warm Springs, Ga.

Watch Inscription
Dr. Plaud was happy to take the watch out of its box and hand it over. It is inscribed: "Franklin Delano Roosevelt with loyalty, respect and affection Jan. 30, 1945."

Dr. Plaud, 38, views the artifacts as far more than interesting inanimate objects. He recounts with verve his detailed knowledge of the history surrounding each item. "It's like anything in life," he remarked. "To be good at something you have to develop an expertise."

When asked if he had a favorite piece, Dr. Plaud pointed to a framed document that hangs over the desk in his office. It is an endorsement of FDR's re-election in 1936 signed by hundreds of members of Congress, the president's Cabinet and U.S. Supreme Court. Copies were printed up and sold for 25 cents to raise money for the campaign. Dr. Plaud has the original.

"A collection house called and said, "I've got this thing, Joe. It's yours,'" he recalled. "It's the most amazing Roosevelt piece I've ever seen. The dealer had picked it up in the estate sale of a Massachusetts man. I don't think there's anything like it anywhere that has the signatures of the members of the three branches of the federal government."

10,000 Items
Dr. Plaud has 500 signed documents and 10,000 items in all. The documents are archived and stored in plastic sleeves in two fireproof, waterproof safes.

He makes his purchases over the Internet and through dealers, such as Mr. Reznikoff.

"There are things upwards of $15,000 I've bought for him at auction," Mr. Reznikoff said. "There are many things in the four and five figures, and I am by no means the only person he's bought from."

Dr. Plaud also places bids at Sotheby's and Christie's, but often the offers spiral out of his price range. He has sometimes gotten coveted pieces when the buyers at those auctions need to sell off possessions for one reason or another.

He is particularly proud of the rare, handwritten letters he has assembled. He has one written by FDR in 1911, three months after he assumed office as a New York state senator. It is a masterpiece of fence-mending composed by a skilled politician.

The letter was owned by Malcolm Forbes and was auctioned off by his sons after his death. It was cataloged incorrectly and, amid items going for $30,000 and $40,000, Dr. Plaud bought it for $3,000, unsure of what he would get.

Dr. Plaud grew up in Worcester and Shrewsbury. He graduated from St. John's High School, went on to WPI and then transferred to Clark University, graduating in 1987.

Renowned Specialist
With his interest in FDR, he considered studying history in graduate school, but decided he could build a good career in psychology. He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Maine. Over time, he has gained renown for his expertise in the pathology and treatment of sex offenders.

Determined that FDR's legacy not be lost on future generations, Dr. Plaud intends to "bring the era alive" through the collection and the curriculum, which he and others will devise.

He and James R. Martini, the center's director of research, are now negotiating with Worcester officials about a possible site for the center and what the city's role will be. They also have met with Clark faculty and administrators, who have expressed interest in being active partners in the endeavor.

Janette Thomas Greenwood, who chairs Clark's history department, wrote an endorsement to city officials in July, saying the center "would be an invaluable resource for the Worcester community - for both the colleges and for the public schools.

"College students would use the collection extensively and the center would provide opportunities for internships and practical archival experience," she stated.

Dr. Plaud and Mr. Martini are also consulting with officials in Providence and Johnstown, Pa., about establishing satellite branches. Dr. Plaud, who serves as executive director, eventually would like to run the center full time.

Growing Collection
Meanwhile, the collection continues to grow.

Back at Dr. Plaud's house, his wife remarked that he buys new items nearly every day. Just then, the doorbell rang. She returned to the family room with a package that contained a fringed pink satin pillowcase, yet another New Deal souvenir with its own particular character.

"Joe, we have to frame this one!" she exclaimed.

The center's Web address is http://www.fdrheritage.org/.