Theodore Roosevelt
Monday, January 7th, 2019January 7, 2019
Yesterday, January 6, was the 100th anniversary of the death of former United States President Theodore Roosevelt in 1919. During his presidency from 1901 to 1909, Roosevelt fought for reforms that would benefit the American people. He became known as a “trust buster” because he tried to limit the power of great business corporations. During his administration, Congress passed laws to regulate the railroads, to protect the public from harmful foods and drugs, and to conserve the nation’s forests and other natural resources.
Roosevelt was a man of great energy and practiced what he called the “strenuous life.” He enjoyed horseback riding, swimming, hunting, hiking, and boxing. He often expressed enthusiasm for something by describing it as “bully.” Cartoonists liked to draw Roosevelt with his rimless glasses, bushy mustache, prominent teeth, and jutting jaw. One cartoon showed him with a bear cub. Soon, toymakers were producing stuffed animals that are still known as “teddy bears.”
![Theodore Roosevelt. Credit: Theodore Roosevelt (1967, after 1908 original), oil on canvas by Adrian Lamb, after Philip Alexius de László; Smithsonian Institution](https://bth.worldbook.com/bth/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/pc379423-228x300.jpg)
This portrait of Theodore Roosevelt hangs in the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Credit: Theodore Roosevelt (1967, after 1908 original), oil on canvas by Adrian Lamb, after Philip Alexius de László; Smithsonian Institution
Theodore Roosevelt was born in New York City on Oct. 27, 1858. After graduation from Harvard University in 1880, Roosevelt won election to the New York State Assembly. He later served as president of the Board of Police Commissioners in New York City and assistant secretary of the Navy. After the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898, Roosevelt helped form a cavalry regiment—the “Rough Riders”—that gained fame for its battle exploits in Cuba. After the war, Roosevelt won election as governor of New York. Two years later, he was elected vice president on the ticket with President William McKinley.
![Mount Rushmore Credit: © Shutterstock](https://bth.worldbook.com/bth/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/pc365308-300x200.jpg)
The face of Theodore Roosevelt (third from left) graces Mount Rushmore National Monument in South Dakota. The other presidents depicted are (from left) George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln. Credit: © Shutterstock
Roosevelt had been vice president for only six months when McKinley was assassinated in September 1901. Roosevelt then became the youngest president—aged just 42—in U.S. history. He won wide popularity, and millions of Americans affectionately called him “Teddy” or “T.R.” In 1904, the voters elected him to a full term as president.
In foreign relations, Roosevelt worked to make the United States a world leader. He felt that this leadership must be supported by strong armed forces. He expressed his foreign policy as: “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” Roosevelt strengthened the U.S. Navy, began the construction of the Panama Canal, and kept European nations from interfering in Latin America. He helped end the Russo-Japanese War, and became the first American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
Roosevelt ran for president again in 1912, as the “Bull Moose” party candidate, but lost the election to Woodrow Wilson. Roosevelt was considering another run at the presidency in 1920, but he died unexpectedly at age 60 of a blood clot in the heart.