 Born to a wealthy family in New York City on October 27,  As a young boy, Theodore suffered from asthma. His father worried he “had the mind but not the body.”  He spent hours reading about wild animals, hunting trips, and faraway places, which lead to a life long love of the natural world.  He also spent countless hours on building his body stronger to escape his health problems.

 Theodore went to Harvard University when he was 18. He initially studied natural science but switched to law.  He graduated in 1880 and shortly afterward married his college sweetheart, Alice Hathaway Lee.

 In 1881 he quickly entered politics being elected to the New York State Assembly where he became a leader of the reform faction of the GOP.  On February 12, 1884, a daughter Alice was born. Two days later, his mother died of typhoid and within a few hours, his wife died of complications related to childbirth.  Overcome with grief, Theodore left his new baby with his sister and left for the Dakota Territories to try to cope with his tragedies.

 He spent much of the next two years on his ranches in the Badlands of the Dakota Territory. He channeled his sorrow as he lived in the saddle, driving cattle, hunting big game. He later stated that without this experience he could not have become president.

 In 1886 he returned to New York from the Dakotas where he married his childhood friend Edith Kermit Carow. They had five children together as well as his first daughter Alice.

 In 1889 he was appointed the United Stats Civil Service Commissioner by Democratic President Grover Cleveland.  In 1896 became the President of the New York City Police board.  In 1897 the newly elected Republican President William McKinley appointed Roosevelt as Assistant Secretary of the Navy. One year later, war was declared with Spain.  Many have determined that Roosevelt was instrumental in preparing the Navy for the Spanish- American War. It has been stated that he wanted to free America from European Dominion and to actually test our military forces.

 In 1897 Roosevelt resigned his position and raised a volunteer cavalry regiment to fight the Spanish in Cuba.  The First Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, also known as the “Rough Riders,” was put together by Roosevelt mostly by his personal acquaintances.  The “Rough Riders” finally saw battle in Cuba taking Kettle Hill from the Spanish. Roosevelt called this victory “The greatest day of my life,” and shortly after the battle he returned from the war as a hero.  He was nominated for the Republican candidate for governor of New York State and won the election in 1898.

 The New York Republican party believed they could influence and perhaps even control Roosevelt, but they quickly learned his reputation as an independent reformer was accurate.  By 1900 the Republicans in New York State wanted him taken out of their affairs so they nominated him for the Vice Presidential position on the ticket with William McKinley which they won.

 On September 6, President McKinley was shot and died a few days later.  Roosevelt just 42 years old, became the 26 th and youngest President in the Nation’s history.

 Roosevelt brought energy and excitement to the Presidency. He took the view that the President is the “steward of the people” and should take whatever action necessary for the public good unless expressly forbidden by the law or the Constitution. This greatly increased the power of the executive.  He believed the government should be the arbiter between capital and labor. One of his biggest achievements is emerging as a “trust buster” by forcing the break up of large national monopolies.

 Roosevelt called his domestic policy the “Square Deal.” Meaning he wanted to treat all Americans fairly. Both Big Business and citizens should have a voice.  He created the Departments of Commerce and Labor.  Early in his Presidency he invited Booker T. Washington to the White House, becoming the first president to entertain an African American as his official guest.  Roosevelt was also known for his efforts in preserving the nation’s natural resources. He added enormously to the national forest in the West, reserved lands for public use, and fostered great irrigation projects.  He created the Federal Reclamation Service, The Bureau of Forestry, and numerous reserves and monuments.  Known as the first conservationist president he established 5 new national parks and set aside over 230 million acres as protected lands including the Grand Canyon.  Congress grew agitated at his use of Presidential authority to set aside lands as reserves, so they passed a rider on a bill he could not avoid passing. But before signing the bill- he set aside an additional 16 million acres of Western forest into federal protection.

 In 1904, he won reelection by the largest popular majority up to that time. On election night he announced he would not seek reelection in which some have said weaken his powers in his second term.  Roosevelt did steer the United States more actively into world politics. He liked to quote a favorite proverb, “Speak softly and carry and big stick..”  He ensured the construction of the Panama Canal.  He declared the sole right of the United States of intervention in Latin America.  He won the Nobel Piece Prize for mediating the Russo-Japanese War.

 He was the first President to refer to the Presidential mansion as the White House.  He was the first President to travel outside the United States to Panama.  He often broke free of the confines of the White House and went-skinny dipping in the Potomac River.  Teddy Bears were named after him following an incident on a hunting trip where he refused to shoot a defenseless black bear.

 Often described as one of our greatest Presidents and is one of the faces on Mount Rushmore  Theodore Roosevelt was one of the first Presidents whose voice was recorded for posterity.

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