TR Encyclopedia
Culture and Society
During the Progressive Era, reformers focused on social, political, and industrial problems in America. Roosevelt’s interests in reform were varied and included many issues pertaining to religion, fine arts, and education. Learn more about the important initiatives of Roosevelt’s time, as well as the celebrity aspect of his presidency and his relationship with journalists.
Berryman, Clifford
Clifford Berryman created the iconic teddy bear cartoon that is forever linked with Theodore Roosevelt.
Boy Scouting
Boy Scouting was founded in England by British war hero Robert Baden-Powell in 1908, the same year that Theodore Roosevelt left the presidency.
Charles Lang Freer Collection
When Charles Lang Freer expressed an interest in donating his collection of Asian art to the Smithsonian Institution, President Roosevelt was one of the figures recognizing the value of the collection. His efforts helped convince the institution to accept the materials, leading to the establishment of the Smithsonian’s first art museum.
Coinage Crisis of 1907
The Coinage Crisis of 1907 was the result of a proposal to remove the words “In God We Trust” spiraling into a major political episode.
Football
Collegiate football was less than a decade old in the United States when Theodore Roosevelt saw his very first game as a Harvard College undergraduate in 1876. This young sport soon came to be known for several troubling aspects, including excessive violence during play, fatalities on the field, the use of non-student athletes, recruiting scandals, and corrupt referees.
Groton School
Groton School is a prestigious, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in the city of Groton, in far northern Massachusetts.
How the Other Half Lives
How the Other Half Lives is an 1890 work by Jacob Riis that uses photographs and accompanying descriptions to shed light on the poverty and squalor that developed within metropolitan America–and especially New York City–around the turn of the twentieth century.
Louisiana Purchase Exposition
The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, commonly known as the St. Louis World’s Fair, took place in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1904. The Exposition commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase, coincided with the 1904 Olympic Games, and celebrated the United States’ new role as a world player.
The Man in the Arena
Theodore Roosevelt delivered “Citizenship in a Republic” in Paris on April 23, 1910. The speech is popularly known as “The Man in the Arena,” after its most revered passage.
Muckraker
Muckraker is the word used to describe any Progressive Era journalist who investigated and publicized social and economic injustices.
Our Teddy
Released to cinematic audiences two weeks after Theodore Roosevelt died on January 6, 1919, Our Teddy was the first commercial feature-length motion picture about the former president.
Riis, Jacob
Jacob Riis, a Danish immigrant, arrived in the United States in 1870 when he was twenty-one years old. Riis deplored the social conditions of the poor in New York City, and was active in bringing about anti-child labor and tenement reform laws.
Saint-Gaudens, Augustus
Augustus Saint-Gaudens was, according to Theodore Roosevelt, “a very great sculptor.” The two men met in 1901 and the new president would later tap Saint-Gaudens to create his 1905 inaugural medal and to redesign the country’s coinage.
Teddy Bear
The Teddy Bear, so beloved of children everywhere, was named for Theodore Roosevelt after he refused to shoot a defenseless bear on a hunting trip.