Theodore Roosevelt Association

Theodore Roosevelt Association Chartered by Congress in 1920, the Theodore Roosevelt Association perpetuates the legacy of the twenty-sixth President of the United States.
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in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt addressed a tremendous crowd in Old Orchard, Maine, during his tour of New Engla...
08/26/2026

in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt addressed a tremendous crowd in Old Orchard, Maine, during his tour of New England. The Biddeford Weekly Journal estimated that 10,000 to 15,000 people gathered to see and hear the President.

President Theodore Roosevelt praised Maine for remaining true to what he called the “old American theory of treating each man on his worth as a man, without regard to the incidentals of his position.”

He then offered a message about the balance between good government and personal responsibility:

“The State can do something for all of us but not as much as we can do for the State and not as much as each man can and must do for himself.”

Government, President Theodore Roosevelt argued, could establish conditions that gave each person “a square and fair chance,” but individuals still had a responsibility to work for their own future and contribute to the greater good.

He also warned against the temptation of making easy promises:

“It is not worth while making a promise if you have got to feel ashamed of yourself for breaking it afterward.”

More than a century later, President Theodore Roosevelt’s message from Old Orchard still resonates: a square and fair chance, personal responsibility, service, and promises backed by action.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

Happy Birthday to the National Park Service! Today, the Theodore Roosevelt Association celebrates the 110th birthday of ...
08/25/2026

Happy Birthday to the National Park Service!

Today, the Theodore Roosevelt Association celebrates the 110th birthday of the National Park Service, established on August 25, 1916.

Although the National Park Service was created after President Theodore Roosevelt left office, his extraordinary conservation legacy helped lay the foundation for its mission. According to the National Park Service, during his presidency, President Theodore Roosevelt protected approximately 230 million acres of public land, established five national parks, created 18 national monuments, and set aside 150 national forests and 51 federal bird reserves.

President Theodore Roosevelt understood that America’s natural treasures belonged not only to his generation, but to those yet to come.

“There can be nothing in the world more beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of the Colorado, the Canyon of the Yellowstone, the Three Tetons; and our people should see to it that they are preserved for their children and their children's children forever, with their majestic beauty all unmarred.”

For 110 years, the National Park Service has carried forward that responsibility, protecting the landscapes, wildlife, history, and cultural heritage that tell the American story.

From all of us at the Theodore Roosevelt Association, Happy Birthday to the National Park Service—and thank you to the men and women who protect America’s special places for future generations.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

in 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt made history as the first sitting U.S. president to travel beneath the waves abo...
08/25/2026

in 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt made history as the first sitting U.S. president to travel beneath the waves aboard a submarine.

Off Town of Oyster Bay, President Theodore Roosevelt boarded the U.S. Navy’s USS Plunger at 3:30pm and remained aboard until 6:10pm During the visit, the submarine conducted a series of dives, spending nearly an hour submerged. President Theodore Roosevelt inspected its equipment, observed its operation (including rapid underwater turns) and even briefly took the controls as Plunger descended to roughly 40 feet.

For President Theodore Roosevelt, the dive was more than an adventure. As commander in chief, he believed a leader should be willing to share the risks asked of those who served under him.

“I went down in it chiefly because I did not like to have the officers and enlisted men think I wanted them to try things I was reluctant to try myself.”

The experience clearly delighted him. He recalled having never experienced “such a diverting day” or “so much enjoyment in so few hours.”

President Theodore Roosevelt also recognized the potential of the emerging technology. Writing to German Ambassador Hermann Speck von Sternburg on September 6, 1905:
“I believe a good deal can be done with these submarines, although there is always the danger of people getting carried away with the idea and thinking that they can be of more use than they possibly could be.”

The voyage came as President Theodore Roosevelt was helping mediate peace between Russia and Japan—negotiations that culminated in the Treaty of Portsmouth on September 5, 1905.

His dive aboard Plunger captured two hallmarks of his presidency: an enthusiasm for innovation and a conviction that leaders should never ask others to face risks they are unwilling to face themselves.

A fitting example of President Theodore Roosevelt’s philosophy of leadership: lead from the front.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

“Bullies do not make brave men.” – Theodore RooseveltTheodore Roosevelt wrote these words in “The American Boy,” publish...
08/24/2026

“Bullies do not make brave men.” – Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt wrote these words in “The American Boy,” published in St. Nicholas in May 1900. He believed true courage required more than physical toughness. It demanded character: being “clean and straight, honest and truthful, gentle and tender, as well as brave.”

For Theodore Roosevelt, strength carried a responsibility. A person should be capable of standing up for themselves, for others, and for what is right, but should also “abhor any form of bullying, cruelty, or brutality.”

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

LIMITED TICKETS REMAIN: DON’T MISS !Join the Theodore Roosevelt Association and the Theodore Roosevelt Center on Octobe...
08/23/2026

LIMITED TICKETS REMAIN: DON’T MISS !

Join the Theodore Roosevelt Association and the Theodore Roosevelt Center on October 9–11, 2026, for the 2026 Theodore Roosevelt Convention at the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora, North Dakota!

With registration nearing capacity, now is the time to secure your spot for this historic gathering in the Badlands!

For the first time, the TRA’s 107th Annual Meeting and the Theodore Roosevelt Center’s 21st Annual Symposium come together for one extraordinary weekend celebrating our theme:
“Looking Back, Moving Forward.”

Join historians, authors, scholars, conservationists, military leaders, TR enthusiasts, and friends from around the world as we celebrate the life and legacy of President Theodore Roosevelt.

⚠️ Space is limited and remaining tickets are going fast. Register today before sells out!

Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are also available.

Learn More & Register Today:
www.theodoreroosevelt.org/teddycon


John Avlon Karl Rove Candice Millard Lindsay M. Chervinsky, Historian Mason Via Teddy Roosevelt Show Talk About Teddy - Theodore Roosevelt Podcast Outdoors North Dakota Dickinson State University Visit North Dakota Travel North Dakota

in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt delivered what became known as his “Trust Speech” in Providence, Rhode Island, a...
08/23/2026

in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt delivered what became known as his “Trust Speech” in Providence, Rhode Island, addressing the growing power of large corporations in American life.

President Theodore Roosevelt did not condemn wealth or corporations themselves. He recognized them as essential features of the modern industrial economy but warned that concentrated corporate power could threaten the public good when abused.

“The great corporations which we have grown to speak of rather loosely as trusts are the creatures of the State,” President Theodore Roosevelt declared, “and the State not only has the right to control them, but it is in duty bound to control them wherever the need of such control is shown.”

President Theodore Roosevelt argued that regulating corporations operating across state lines increasingly required federal authority:
“In my judgment this sovereign must be the National Government.”

At the same time, President Theodore Roosevelt cautioned against reckless regulation, insisting that government power be exercised with “wisdom and self-restraint.” He called for greater corporate transparency, summed up in one memorable line:

“Daylight is a powerful discourager of evil.”

The Providence speech helped define President Theodore Roosevelt’s emerging approach to corporate regulation and foreshadowed the reputation he would earn as America’s “trust-buster.” It was an early expression of the philosophy that would become associated with his Square Deal—a strong federal government capable of holding powerful interests accountable while preserving the benefits of American enterprise.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt made history in Hartford, Connecticut, becoming the first sitting U.S. president...
08/22/2026

in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt made history in Hartford, Connecticut, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to make a public appearance in an automobile.

And the automobile was electric.

President Roosevelt rode through Hartford in a Columbia Electric Victoria Phaeton, manufactured by the city’s Columbia Electric Vehicle Company. Accompanied by Colonel J. L. Greene, TR passed cheering crowds while automobiles, men on horseback, and riders on Columbia bicycles followed—a scene that foreshadowed the modern presidential motorcade.

The vehicle itself reflected the transition from horses to automobiles. Its driver sat at the rear, reminiscent of a horse-drawn carriage, while two 20-volt batteries weighing approximately 800 pounds powered it to a top speed of about 13 miles per hour.

Despite making history, Theodore Roosevelt rarely traveled by automobile while president. In 1905, he wrote his cousin John Ellis Roosevelt, “I have been on but two automobile rides since I was President.” He was also wary of the press accusing him of going “improperly fast.”

TR remained skeptical of automobiles, once calling them “distinct additions to the discomfort of living.” After leaving the White House, however, he became a more frequent passenger—and eventually a driver himself.

From horses to horsepower, Theodore Roosevelt occupied the White House at a remarkable turning point in American transportation history.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

in 1912, Udo J. Keppler’s political cartoon “The Great American Bull-Fight” appeared in Puck, capturing the intensity ...
08/21/2026

in 1912, Udo J. Keppler’s political cartoon “The Great American Bull-Fight” appeared in Puck, capturing the intensity of the four-way presidential race.

Keppler portrayed Theodore Roosevelt as the bull, surrounded by political figures attacking him, including Robert M. La Follette, Elihu Root, President William Howard Taft, James S. Sherman, William Jennings Bryan, Henry Watterson, William Barnes, and Winthrop Murray Crane. In the background, Democratic nominee Woodrow Wilson waits as the matador, ready to finish the contest.

The caption reads:
“When the picadors sufficiently puncture him, the matador will finish him.”

The cartoon reflected the extraordinary political battle of 1912, when Thedoore Roosevelt, running as the Progressive (or “Bull Moose”) candidate, challenged both his former Republican Party and Wilson’s Democrats in one of the most consequential campaigns in American history.

Wilson ultimately won the election, but TR finished second, receiving 27.4 percent of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes—outpolling incumbent President Taft, who received 23.2 percent and eight electoral votes.

Theodore Roosevelt’s campaign remains the most successful third-party presidential bid of the modern two-party era.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

The Library of Congress Theodore Roosevelt Center

in 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt arrived in Provincetown Harbor, Massachusetts, aboard the presidential yacht May...
08/20/2026

in 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt arrived in Provincetown Harbor, Massachusetts, aboard the presidential yacht Mayflower to lay the cornerstone of the Pilgrim Memorial Monument.

Amid an elaborate public ceremony featuring naval vessels, Marines, cheering crowds, and a 21-gun salute, President Roosevelt delivered a speech that reached far beyond the Pilgrims’ historic landing.

He praised the Puritans’ “iron sense of duty” and their determination to do right, but argued that their descendants faced a different challenge: shaping a modern industrial civilization with the same commitment to “justice and fair dealing.”

“The Puritan tamed the wilderness, and built up a free government on the stump-dotted clearings amid the primeval forest,” President Theodore Roosevelt declared. “His descendants must try to shape the life of our complex industrial civilization by new devices, by new methods, so as to achieve in the end the same results of justice and fair dealing toward all.”

For President Theodore Roosevelt, modern conditions demanded modern government. The enormous growth of corporations and concentrated wealth required stronger government regulation, protections for working people, and new laws capable of confronting modern economic power.

In the address, Roosevelt memorably condemned the “malefactors of great wealth,” attacking those who used great fortunes, special privilege, chicanery, and wrongdoing against the public interest.
Yet legislation alone was not enough. Good laws and institutions, President Theodore Roosevelt insisted, ultimately depended upon a “high quality of individual citizenship.”

More than a century later, the Pilgrim Monument still rises above Provincetown—a landmark connected to a day when Theodore Roosevelt looked to America’s past to address the challenges of its future.

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Learn More at www.thedoreroosevelt.org

: Theodore Roosevelt co-founded the Boone and Crockett Club?The Boone and Crockett Club was the brainchild of Theodore ...
08/19/2026

: Theodore Roosevelt co-founded the Boone and Crockett Club?

The Boone and Crockett Club was the brainchild of Theodore Roosevelt and his friend George Bird Grinnell, editor of the influential magazine Forest and Stream. Both men were alarmed that America’s big-game populations were being overhunted to the point of extinction and believed action was needed to preserve the nation’s wildlife.

Named for American frontiersmen Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett, the Club was organized in the fall of 1887 and officially established in January 1888, with Theodore Roosevelt serving as its first president.

Membership was limited to just 100 men, and admission came with an unusual requirement: members had to have hunted at least three different species of American big game, such as bear, bison, caribou, cougar, or moose. Members pledged to promote fair and responsible rifle hunting while working to preserve big game by gathering information about wildlife populations and ranges and advocating for protective legislation.

TR and Grinnell also used the written word to advance the Club’s conservation goals, editing its publications while Grinnell championed its work in the pages of Forest and Stream.

One of the Club’s early successes was supporting federal legislation in 1894 to protect wildlife in Yellowstone National Park, sponsored by Congressman John F. Lacey. Among those associated with the Club during its early decades were Elliott Roosevelt, J. West Roosevelt, William Tecumseh Sherman, Gifford Pinchot, and Aldo Leopold.

After 1898, Theodore Roosevelt’s active involvement in the Club declined as his political career demanded more of his attention. But the principles he and his fellow members championed—conservation, responsible hunting, wildlife management, and protection of America’s natural resources—would become an important part of Theodore Roosevelt’s legacy.

The Boone and Crockett Club remains active in conservation today, carrying forward a mission that began nearly 140 years ago.

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Learn More at www.theodoreroosevelt.org

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