On May 15, 1898, newly commissioned Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt reported for duty in San Antonio, Texas. Serving under the command of Colonel Leonard Wood, Roosevelt took the next two weeks to train with the enlisted men and officers of the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, soon to be known as the Rough Riders.
To take up arms and fight in Cuba, thirty-nine year old TR resigned from his post as the Assistant Secretary of the United States Navy. Roosevelt's sixth child had just been born the previous November and TR's wife, Edith, was recuperating from a very difficult surgery. What compelled Roosevelt to leave the safety and comfort of home? In his own words:
"During the year preceding the outbreak of the Spanish War I was Assistant Secretary of the Navy. While my party was in opposition, I had preached, with all the fervor and zeal I possessed, our duty to intervene in Cuba, and to take this opportunity of driving the Spaniard from the Western World. Now that my party had come to power, I felt it incumbent on me, by word and deed, to do all I could to secure the carrying out of the policy in which I so heartily believed; and from the beginning I had determined that, if a war came, somehow or other, I was going to the front."
The story of Theodore Roosevelt's leadership of the Rough Riders is an amazing and inspirational tale, for battle field promotions saw Wood in command of the brigade while TR led the Rough Riders on their assualt up Kettle Hill and San Juan Heights.
I've got some of my own battles to fight today, as I imagine you might, too. Take some encouragement from the man who was willing to fight and die for what he believed to be right. Throughout his life, TR overcame tragedy and hardship by redoubling his effort, by taking action.
So, ladies and gentlemen..."Charge!"
All the best.
TR Joe
Friday, May 15, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
May 14-16, 1903 TR & John Muir Camping in Yosemite
I've always enjoyed hearing people answer the question, "With which four historical people would you like to have dinner?" I think Jesus Christ tops the list and everyone from Mother Theresa to Michelangelo and Abraham Lincoln pepper the answers. I recall PBS actually producing some of these for stage and television, of course using actors, and, today, Facebook gives one a chance to play the game with friends.
Today is the 106th anniversary of TR's visit to Yosemite and of the beginning of a three day adventure TR had there with the great naturalist John Muir. As I look forward to a summer with at least a few nights under canvass or under the stars, these two names start my list in answer to the question, "With which four historical people would you like to sit around a camp fire?"
David Brinkley, in The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America, due out in June from Harper Collins and excerpted in the May 2009 issue of Vanity Fair, recounts some of the magical moments shared by the two iconic conservationists.
One evening, Muir built a fire of fern and cedar boughs at Yosemite's Glacier Point, where the men would camp for the night. Brinkley:
"At one juncture, Muir became animated. 'Watch this,' he said. Grabbing a flaming branch from the fire, he lit a dead pine tree which was set off on its own and protected on a ledge. With a roar, flame shot like a bonfire up the dead branches. Suddenly Muir did a Scottish jig around the pine torch. Roosevelt, leaping to his feet, hopped around the flaming tree as well, shouting 'Hurrah!' over and over into the night sky. 'That's a candle,' Roosevelt told Muir, that 'took 500 years to make. Hurrah for Yosemite!, Mr. Muir.'
So, "Hurrah!" for two men who spent their lives in service to their fellows and to the cause of conservation. Under Muir's influence, TR would charge the Interior Department to see through greater Federal authority and a greater Federal footprint for Yosemite, a park that pre-dated Yellowstone, though that under California state jurisdiction.
In other issues, like the conflict between preservation advocated by Muir and his Sierra Club and the resource management viewpoint advocated by TR and his ally, Gifford Pinchot, these men would have much about which to disagree. On these nights, in the midst of the grandeur of Yosemite, away from the reporters and the dignitaries, two luminaries agreed on much. May we remember their pine candle as a symbol of the great light shone by these men in the area of conservation.
Oh, by the way, add Jesus Christ and Abe Lincoln to finish my fivesome around the fire.
Have a bully day!
TR Joe
Today is the 106th anniversary of TR's visit to Yosemite and of the beginning of a three day adventure TR had there with the great naturalist John Muir. As I look forward to a summer with at least a few nights under canvass or under the stars, these two names start my list in answer to the question, "With which four historical people would you like to sit around a camp fire?"
David Brinkley, in The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America, due out in June from Harper Collins and excerpted in the May 2009 issue of Vanity Fair, recounts some of the magical moments shared by the two iconic conservationists.
One evening, Muir built a fire of fern and cedar boughs at Yosemite's Glacier Point, where the men would camp for the night. Brinkley:
"At one juncture, Muir became animated. 'Watch this,' he said. Grabbing a flaming branch from the fire, he lit a dead pine tree which was set off on its own and protected on a ledge. With a roar, flame shot like a bonfire up the dead branches. Suddenly Muir did a Scottish jig around the pine torch. Roosevelt, leaping to his feet, hopped around the flaming tree as well, shouting 'Hurrah!' over and over into the night sky. 'That's a candle,' Roosevelt told Muir, that 'took 500 years to make. Hurrah for Yosemite!, Mr. Muir.'
So, "Hurrah!" for two men who spent their lives in service to their fellows and to the cause of conservation. Under Muir's influence, TR would charge the Interior Department to see through greater Federal authority and a greater Federal footprint for Yosemite, a park that pre-dated Yellowstone, though that under California state jurisdiction.
In other issues, like the conflict between preservation advocated by Muir and his Sierra Club and the resource management viewpoint advocated by TR and his ally, Gifford Pinchot, these men would have much about which to disagree. On these nights, in the midst of the grandeur of Yosemite, away from the reporters and the dignitaries, two luminaries agreed on much. May we remember their pine candle as a symbol of the great light shone by these men in the area of conservation.
Oh, by the way, add Jesus Christ and Abe Lincoln to finish my fivesome around the fire.
Have a bully day!
TR Joe
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
The White House Conference on the Conservation of Natural Resources
On May 13, 1908, Theodore Roosevelt ushered the conservation agenda into the modern era, when he hosted the three day White House Conference on the Conservation of Natural Resources. The meeting was attended by governors and scientists and chaired by Gifford Pinchot, Chief Forester of the United States. In 1908, many of the attendees were hunters and outdoor enthusiasts.
The Roosevelt Administration had a tremendous record on conservation. Even the casual observor must be amazed at the record: 230 million acres of national forests, national parks, national monuments and wildlife refuges added to the public trust. The Newlands Reclamation Act, the Inland Waterways Commission and the establishment of an independent Forest Service all date to TR's time at the helm.
Today, we are called to meet new challenges. In 2008, the White House Conference on North American Wildlife Policy was held in Reno, Nevada, hometown, by the way, of Congressman Francis G. Newlands, author of the namesake bill which saw the rivers of the west tamed for the goals of settlement and agriculture. TR and later administrations saw to it that many of the reservoirs created by the works of the Reclamation Act became the backbone of our Midwestern and Western migratory bird refuges.
As in 1908, many of the attendees in Reno were hunters and outdoor enthusiasts. In 2008, thank goodness, there were many more women in attendance. The conference produced a series of recommendations, especially for the federal government and its departments and agencies that play important roles in wildlife management. In the spirit of TR and the 1908 conference, I commend your time and attention to the proceedings and the recommendations of the 2008 conference here:
http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/environment/wildlife/index.html
Have a great, green day!
TR Joe
The Roosevelt Administration had a tremendous record on conservation. Even the casual observor must be amazed at the record: 230 million acres of national forests, national parks, national monuments and wildlife refuges added to the public trust. The Newlands Reclamation Act, the Inland Waterways Commission and the establishment of an independent Forest Service all date to TR's time at the helm.
Today, we are called to meet new challenges. In 2008, the White House Conference on North American Wildlife Policy was held in Reno, Nevada, hometown, by the way, of Congressman Francis G. Newlands, author of the namesake bill which saw the rivers of the west tamed for the goals of settlement and agriculture. TR and later administrations saw to it that many of the reservoirs created by the works of the Reclamation Act became the backbone of our Midwestern and Western migratory bird refuges.
As in 1908, many of the attendees in Reno were hunters and outdoor enthusiasts. In 2008, thank goodness, there were many more women in attendance. The conference produced a series of recommendations, especially for the federal government and its departments and agencies that play important roles in wildlife management. In the spirit of TR and the 1908 conference, I commend your time and attention to the proceedings and the recommendations of the 2008 conference here:
http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/environment/wildlife/index.html
Have a great, green day!
TR Joe
Friday, May 1, 2009
Celebrating the Battle of Manila Bay
"You may fire when ready, Gridley." On this day in 1898, Commodore George Dewey, aboard his flag ship cruiser, the U.S.S. Olympia, commanded the United States Asiatic Squadron as it destroyed the Spanish naval forces in the Battle of Manila Bay. According to many Roosevelt biographers, the young Assistant Secretary of the Navy had much influence on seeing the strategic command given to Dewey the previous year.
Today, you can see the U.S.S. Olympia, beautifully restored and cared for by the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia. Tours are open to the public for a small charge which provides admission to the nearby museum as well. The museum features a great interpretive display about the ship, the Spanish-American War and the Battle of Manila Bay. In later years it was the Olympia that carried back from Europe the remains of World War I's Unknown Soldier whose final resting place would be in Arlington National Cemetery and the heart of every true American.
Any trip to or through Philly deserves a stop here. http://www.phillyseaport.org/ships_olympia.shtml
Today, you can see the U.S.S. Olympia, beautifully restored and cared for by the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia. Tours are open to the public for a small charge which provides admission to the nearby museum as well. The museum features a great interpretive display about the ship, the Spanish-American War and the Battle of Manila Bay. In later years it was the Olympia that carried back from Europe the remains of World War I's Unknown Soldier whose final resting place would be in Arlington National Cemetery and the heart of every true American.
Any trip to or through Philly deserves a stop here. http://www.phillyseaport.org/ships_olympia.shtml
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
March 4, 1909 - TR's last day as President
This is it. The final day celebrating the centennial of TR's Presidency. On this day one hundred years ago, William Howard Taft took the oath of office as our 27th President. The Roosevelt Administration was over. The Roosevelt Era was still at hand.
Weeks later, TR and Kermit were hunting in Africa. A year later, TR and Edith were touring Europe where great crowds came out to meet and listen to the Cowboy President. TR accepted the Nobel Peace Prize, awarded in 1906 for settling the Russo-Japanese War with Treaty of Portsmouth the previous year and made his Man in the Arena Speech (Citizenship in a Republic) at the Sorbonne.
Throughout 1910, TR toured the United States, promoting his viewpoints and his favorite candidates. Republicans lost the Congress that November and the split between TR and Taft widened. By 1911, TR and Taft were at such odds that a Republican Primary contest was in the works. The 1912 contests for the Republican nomination and the TR versus Taft versus Wilson general election came to pass. The publication of an autobiography and the beginning of an exploration of an uncharted Amazonian river followed in 1913 and 1914.
The year that saw Europe explode, first saw the waters and ships flowing through TR's Panama Canal. Certainly, TR would have wished to be at the helm when the canal and the navy were poised to play such an important part in the war to come. Instead, Wilson worked his way to re-election with the yellow phrase - "He kept us out of war."
TR criticized the Wilson Administration, especially regarding its lack of war preparedness. When war finally came, Wilson refused to appoint Roosevelt to command the four volunteer cavalry regiments authorized by Congress. "It is rather up to us to do what father preaches," said his youngest, Quentin, destined to die in the air above the French River Marne.
After his presidency, preaching a New Nationalism and a thorough devotion to victory over Germany, TR strode mightily for another decade across the America he loved, passing in his sleep on Epihany Day, January 6, 1919. He like his beloved people at peace after the long battle.
His great American journey of sixty years certainly inspired our family journey of the past 13 months. We have travelled the fifty states. I have brought TR to life from TR's birthplace to the White House, from Olympic National Park to Key West National Wildlife Refuge, from the USS Missouri anchored at Pearl Harbor to Katahdin, highest point in Maine and hundreds of beautiful and interesting places in between.
The weeks ahead will take me and sometimes my girls to Florida, North Carolina, New York and beyond. I hope that I can bring TR to life for you and yours someday soon. On this the day when we remember the seven and a half years that he wielded the Big Stick as president, I give thanks for all that was Theodore Roosevelt and all that is his legacy for the people of the world.
Weeks later, TR and Kermit were hunting in Africa. A year later, TR and Edith were touring Europe where great crowds came out to meet and listen to the Cowboy President. TR accepted the Nobel Peace Prize, awarded in 1906 for settling the Russo-Japanese War with Treaty of Portsmouth the previous year and made his Man in the Arena Speech (Citizenship in a Republic) at the Sorbonne.
Throughout 1910, TR toured the United States, promoting his viewpoints and his favorite candidates. Republicans lost the Congress that November and the split between TR and Taft widened. By 1911, TR and Taft were at such odds that a Republican Primary contest was in the works. The 1912 contests for the Republican nomination and the TR versus Taft versus Wilson general election came to pass. The publication of an autobiography and the beginning of an exploration of an uncharted Amazonian river followed in 1913 and 1914.
The year that saw Europe explode, first saw the waters and ships flowing through TR's Panama Canal. Certainly, TR would have wished to be at the helm when the canal and the navy were poised to play such an important part in the war to come. Instead, Wilson worked his way to re-election with the yellow phrase - "He kept us out of war."
TR criticized the Wilson Administration, especially regarding its lack of war preparedness. When war finally came, Wilson refused to appoint Roosevelt to command the four volunteer cavalry regiments authorized by Congress. "It is rather up to us to do what father preaches," said his youngest, Quentin, destined to die in the air above the French River Marne.
After his presidency, preaching a New Nationalism and a thorough devotion to victory over Germany, TR strode mightily for another decade across the America he loved, passing in his sleep on Epihany Day, January 6, 1919. He like his beloved people at peace after the long battle.
His great American journey of sixty years certainly inspired our family journey of the past 13 months. We have travelled the fifty states. I have brought TR to life from TR's birthplace to the White House, from Olympic National Park to Key West National Wildlife Refuge, from the USS Missouri anchored at Pearl Harbor to Katahdin, highest point in Maine and hundreds of beautiful and interesting places in between.
The weeks ahead will take me and sometimes my girls to Florida, North Carolina, New York and beyond. I hope that I can bring TR to life for you and yours someday soon. On this the day when we remember the seven and a half years that he wielded the Big Stick as president, I give thanks for all that was Theodore Roosevelt and all that is his legacy for the people of the world.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
The Great White Fleet
One hundred year ago, today, February 22, 1909, the Great White Fleet returned to the U.S. Naval base at Hampton Roads/Norfolk, Virginia. President Theodore Roosevelt greeted the returning fleet and spoke on board the U.S.S. Connecticut.
This is Washington's birthday, too often blurred in the celebration of Presidents Day. When the fleet returned on Washington's birthday, TR, his presidency in its final weeks, enjoyed this capstone achievement.
In the journey of the Great White Fleet, the United States demonstrated to the world that we could do in peace what might be necessary to do in war.
In 1897, as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, TR went to the US Naval War College and said that America had only given lip loyal service to the Washingtonian maxim that the most effectual means of preserving the peace was preparing for war. With the journey and the sacrifice of the Great White Fleet our loyalty to Washington's wisdom became the bond of deeds over words.
God bless the United States Navy.
This is Washington's birthday, too often blurred in the celebration of Presidents Day. When the fleet returned on Washington's birthday, TR, his presidency in its final weeks, enjoyed this capstone achievement.
In the journey of the Great White Fleet, the United States demonstrated to the world that we could do in peace what might be necessary to do in war.
In 1897, as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, TR went to the US Naval War College and said that America had only given lip loyal service to the Washingtonian maxim that the most effectual means of preserving the peace was preparing for war. With the journey and the sacrifice of the Great White Fleet our loyalty to Washington's wisdom became the bond of deeds over words.
God bless the United States Navy.
Monday, January 12, 2009
The Great Man and the Grand Canyon
On January 11, 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt established the Grand Canyon National Monument. TR saw the Grand Canyon for the first time in 1903, when he spoke these words:
"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which, so far as I know, is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. I want to ask you to do one thing in connection with it in your own interest and in the interest of the country - to keep this great wonder of nature as it now is.
I was delighted to learn of the wisdom of the Santa Fe railroad people in deciding not to build their hotel on the brink of the canyon. I hope you will not have a building of any kind, not a summer cottage, a hotel, or anything else, to mar the wonderful grandeur, the sublimity, the great loneliness and beauty of the canyon.
Leave it as it is. You can not improve on it. You can only mar it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you, as one of the great sights which every American if he can travel at all should see.
We have gotten past the stage. my fellow-citizens, when we are to be pardoned if we treat any part of our country as something to be skinned for two or three years for the use of the present generation, whether it is the forest, the water, the scenery. Whatever it is, handle it so that your children's children will get the benefit of it."
"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which, so far as I know, is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. I want to ask you to do one thing in connection with it in your own interest and in the interest of the country - to keep this great wonder of nature as it now is.
I was delighted to learn of the wisdom of the Santa Fe railroad people in deciding not to build their hotel on the brink of the canyon. I hope you will not have a building of any kind, not a summer cottage, a hotel, or anything else, to mar the wonderful grandeur, the sublimity, the great loneliness and beauty of the canyon.
Leave it as it is. You can not improve on it. You can only mar it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you, as one of the great sights which every American if he can travel at all should see.
We have gotten past the stage. my fellow-citizens, when we are to be pardoned if we treat any part of our country as something to be skinned for two or three years for the use of the present generation, whether it is the forest, the water, the scenery. Whatever it is, handle it so that your children's children will get the benefit of it."
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