Your TR Source
President Roosevelt returns Major Munson’s letter, which he found interesting. The letter confirmed what Roosevelt and Caspar Whitney have discussed about wolves. Roosevelt has heard of the existence of both white and black wolves on the Little Missouri River, and he has seen a picture by John James Audubon of a wolf pack with a white wolf.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-08-31
President Roosevelt thanks Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor, editor of National Geographic Magazine for the letter and copy of the magazine. Roosevelt has been encouraging George Shiras to write a full book to preserve his photographs and observations of wildlife in a more permanent manner.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-07-15
W. G. Avery offers his seven-volume set of John James Audubon’s Birds of America to Theodore Roosevelt. He does not want to sell them as they were part of his family’s library, but poor health compels him. If Roosevelt is interested, Avery’s friend James B. Dayton will make arrangements.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-07-28
Joseph Wilmer describes what he has learned about the pigeons that “Dick” reported seeing near Wilmer’s home, Plain Dealing, in Virginia. Wilmer believes the birds were in fact passenger pigeons. Wilmer is gratified that President Roosevelt finds relaxation at Pine Knot.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-06-07
Chronology of the daily life of Theodore Roosevelt from January 1871 to December 1878. Notable events include the Roosevelt family’s trip to Europe and Egypt, Roosevelt’s entrance to Harvard, the death of Theodore “Thee” Roosevelt, Roosevelt’s trip to Maine, and Roosevelt meeting Alice Hathaway Lee.
Theodore Roosevelt Association
1985
Moore, Robert J. (Robert John), 1956-; Theodore Roosevelt Association
Duane G. Jundt chronicles Theodore Roosevelt’s life-long fascination with birds, extending from his youth to his executive action as president in establishing the nation’s first fifty-one bird preserves. Jundt highlight’s Roosevelt’s penchant for identifying birds by their songs and calls, and he notes Roosevelt’s fondness for the meadowlark and his ability to observe and write eloquently about the birds he encountered. Jundt describes the context that led Roosevelt to establish bird refuges, including the threat to birds posed by the women’s hat industry and his views on presidential power. Jundt concludes his essay with a discussion on Roosevelt’s fondness for birding at his Long Island home, Sagamore Hill.
Two photographs, two Power Point slides created by Jundt, four antique bird conservation card illustrations, and a stereoscope card populate the essay.
Paul Russell Cutright examines Theodore Roosevelt’s first two published works: lists of birds found in the Adirondack mountains and in Oyster Bay, New York. Cutright explores Roosevelt’s friendship with H.D. Minot who coauthored The Summer Birds of the Adirondacks in Franklin County, N.Y., and he also looks at Roosevelt’s Notes on Some of the Birds of Oyster Bay, Long Island. Cutright reviews the field work that went into each pamphlet, discusses some of the birds found in each, and compares the information found in them to observations in Roosevelt’s natural history notebooks. He also highlights the publications in which the pamphlets have been reprinted, and he lists the museums, libraries, and institutions that have these rare works in their collections. Two pages of endnotes and a biography of Cutright supplement the text.
The first page of The Summer Birds of the Adirondacks in Franklin County, N.Y. appears twice in the article along with a photograph of the Snow owl donated to the American Museum of Natural History by Roosevelt.
This edition of “News and Notes” highlights some of the ceremonies marking the 125th anniversary of Theodore Roosevelt’s birth. It details some of the content and arguments put forth in Paul Schullery’s American Bears: Selections from the Writings of Theodore Roosevelt, provides a report on the donations and finances of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) for fiscal year 1982, and reviews a colloquium on historic preservation held at Sagamore Hill National Historic Site. The column also covers Roosevelt birthday celebrations in Buffalo, New York, and Tampa, Florida, the annual meeting of the committee overseeing the Theodore Roosevelt Collection at Harvard University, and the TRA Public Speaking Contest for the New York public high schools. The column concludes with a notice about the Centennial of Medora, North Dakota.
A photograph of Selwa Roosevelt and the logo of the Medora, North Dakota, Centennial appear in the column.
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal
1983
William J. Kolodnicki praises Paul Russell Cutright and Michael J. Brodhead for their biography of Elliott Coues, an important figure in the history of American ornithology whose Key to North American Birds helped develop the birding skills of Theodore Roosevelt. John A. Gable reviews Howard W. Allen’s Poindexter of Washington: A Study in Progressive Politics about Miles Poindexter and his transformation from progressive to conservative in the first quarter of the twentieth century. David G. McCullough asserts that a photograph of a young Roosevelt that is usually captioned as Roosevelt preparing to box actually shows him dressed to row.
A full page photograph of Roosevelt dressed to row with McCullough’s explanatory caption makes up the third page of the “Book Notes” column.
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal
1982
Paul Russell Cutright examines the thirteen natural history notebooks that Theodore Roosevelt kept during his childhood and young adult years. He notes the dates, the subjects, and the locations of the observations kept in each notebook. Cutright focuses on Roosevelt’s love of birding and most of the notebook excerpts deal with this subject. He highlights Roosevelt’s skill at identifying birds by their calls and songs, notes his considerable observation skills, and credits various naturalists and friends who influenced Roosevelt.
Two photographs of Roosevelt as a child and young man and a full-page picture of a mounted snowy owl that Roosevelt prepared accompany the article.
A listing of the officers of the Theodore Roosevelt Association along with the members of the executive, finance, and Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace committees is on page two of the article.
John A. Gable examines Theodore Roosevelt’s connections to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. He looks at its founding by Roosevelt’s father, notes the many specimens donated by Roosevelt, and highlights contributions made to the museum in various capacities by other members of the Roosevelt family. Gable details the design, construction, and contents of the museum’s Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall, including its murals and dioramas featuring scenes from Roosevelt’s life and work.
Photographs of the interior and exterior of the Memorial Hall as well as one of James Earle Fraser’s equestrian statue of Roosevelt outside of the museum accompany the article. A full page photograph of one of the dioramas, depicting a scene near Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch, is also found in the article.
A listing of the officers of the Theodore Roosevelt Association as well as the members of its executive, finance, and Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace committees is found on the second page of the article.
In “The Sighting at Pine Knot, Virginia,” Alton A. Lindsay explores the question of whether Theodore Roosevelt was the last person to report a credible sighting of the extinct passenger pigeon near his presidential retreat, Pine Knot in Virginia, in 1907. Lindsay provides a history of Pine Knot and also looks at the making of Roosevelt as a naturalist going back to his childhood. He notes some of the defining experiences in Roosevelt’s life that made him a naturalist and conservationist, such as his time in the Dakota Badlands. Like other scholars he pushes back against the idea that Roosevelt was merely a man of action and asserts that he “was a man of intellect.”
He details Roosevelt’s sighting of a small flock of passenger pigeons in May 1907, and argues that Roosevelt’s history and experience as a naturalist and ornithologist lend credibility to his claims to have seen the birds.
A photograph of President Roosevelt and another showing the Pine Knot cabin from the side and rear accompany the article.
C. Hart Merriam examines whether the system of classifying species is satisfactory or not. It will be years before it can be said with certainty that forms “do or do not intergrade.” A fixed nomenclature will be impossible until that point. Merriam concludes his argument by urging museums, sportsmen, and naturalists “to secure and preserve specimens of our larger mammals from remote parts of their ranges.” A handwritten note dated May 13 from the editor of Science asks whether the recipient would like to discuss Merriam’s position further.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1897-05-14