It is located on the southern tip of Campobello Island in the Canadian province of New Brunswick, and is connected to the mainland by the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial Bridge, at Lubec, Maine in the United States.

In August 1921, 39-year-old Roosevelt, who would go on to become the 32nd President of the United States, was stricken by a severe paralytic illness, believed to be polio at the time, leaving him permanently paralyzed from the waist down.

[4] In addition to the 19th century vacation cottage, related outbuildings, gardens, and hiking trails, Roosevelt Campobello International Park has a visitor centre with a gift shop and a small bilingual display on the open Canada–United States border.

The Commission was created by international treaty signed by Governor General Georges Vanier, Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, and President Lyndon B. Johnson on January 22, 1964.

According to the treaty, Canada and US share equally "in the costs of development, operation, and maintenance"; the Park is jointly managed and staffed.