Bishop, Joseph Bucklin, 1847-1928

James M. Strock examines Theodore Roosevelt’s approach to leadership by identifying and exploring twenty tenets of Roosevelt’s leadership style. Among these are seizing the initiative, hiring talented subordinates, and delegating authority. Strock draws extensively from Roosevelt’s leadership of the Rough Riders and his management of the Panama Canal construction for examples with which to illustrate Roosevelt’s leadership, and he cites Elihu Root and Gifford Pinchot as examples of talented subordinate leaders. Fifteen of the twenty tenets offer examples of how Roosevelt managed those who worked for him in various capacities.  

Six photographs populate the article, including ones of Roosevelt, Root, and Pinchot. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2007

Three recently published books are reviewed in this issue of the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal, and all are found to be admirable works. The newly published edition of Theodore Roosevelt’s Letters to His Children, edited by Joan Kerr, is a worthy update, and contains a number of new letters. Kerr includes several letters focusing on Alice Roosevelt Longworth that had not been previously published. Henry Kissinger’s Diplomacy examines international relations broadly, but gives special attention to Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson by using them to frame the evolution of diplomacy. Art Ronnie’s Counterfeit Hero: Fritz Duquesne, Adventurer and Spy, finally, presents a biographical look at a man who “was one of the most exceptional individuals of [the twentieth] century,” and who, among other adventures in a full life, campaigned on behalf of Theodore Roosevelt during the 1912 presidential campaign.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1996

Creator(s)

Gable, John A.; Hendrix, Henry J.; Manson, Michael L., 1936-

In a conversation with Joseph Bucklin Bishop shortly before leaving the Police Commissionership of New York City, Theodore Roosevelt expressed a belief that it would be the last political office he would hold because he had offended so many powerful people and interests.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1988

Creator(s)

Unknown

Joe F. Decker provides a comprehensive bibliography of the various accounts of Theodore Roosevelt’s attempt to form a volunteer division during World War I. Decker begins with Roosevelt’s own first account in 1917 and concludes with John Milton Cooper’s version in The Warrior and the Priest of 1983. Decker examines books, book chapters, and articles on the subject, and finds that the story still has not been “dealt with satisfactorily.” Decker points out the biases and the shortcomings of some of the authors, and notes that many of the accounts strongly favor either Roosevelt or his antagonist President Woodrow Wilson.

A full page-photograph of Roosevelt and General Leonard Wood accompanies the article. A photograph of Harrison Engle and Sidney D. Kirkpatrick who directed documentary films on Roosevelt is featured, along with three photographs of Roosevelt from newsreel footage used in the film The Indomitable Teddy Roosevelt.

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 on page two of the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

John A. Gable reviews Nathan Miller’s The Roosevelt Chronicles, a history of the Roosevelt family in America. He acknowledges that Miller covers the lives of the well known Roosevelts: Theodore, Franklin, Eleanor, and Alice Longworth, but he believes that the real value of the book comes from its examination of lesser known members of the famous family. Gable looks at four of these figures: Nicholas Roosevelt, a pioneer in steamboats; James Roosevelt Bayley, an important figure in the hierarchy of the Catholic Church; Robert B. Roosevelt, Theodore’s uncle, who was a conservationist; and Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., Theodore’s son, who would earn the Medal of Honor for his actions on D-Day, 1944.

Frederick W. Marks describes the research he undertook for his book Velvet on Iron, and surveys the historiography of Theodore Roosevelt beginning in the 1920s. He argues that there persists a divide between his record as a restrained diplomat and the perception “of him as bellicose and impulsive.

A photograph of Marks accompanies his article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

In the “Book Notes” column, John A. Gable reviews two books that cover different aspects of the era of Theodore Roosevelt. He praises David McCullough’s The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914 for its “careful research, balanced judgment, and good prose.” Gable compares McCullough’s verdict on Roosevelt’s actions regarding the Canal with the work of other Roosevelt scholars, and he gives over much of his review to an extended quote from a letter McCullough wrote to President Jimmy Carter supporting passage of the 1977 Canal treaties.

Gable endorses, with some reservations, They Were Ragtime, a popular history of the United States in the Progressive era written by Warren Forma. Gable lists many of the personalities from entertainment, the arts, and the business world who populate Forma’s work, and he argues that the work is valuable for its look at popular culture in turn of the twentieth-century America. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Senator Eugene Hale would like to be advised as soon as possible the exact duties that Joseph Bucklin Bishop would perform as Isthmian Canal Commissioner. He expects to be questioned “very sharply” about it on the Senate floor. William Loeb has arranged a meeting between Hale and President Roosevelt at 9:30 Sunday evening. Hale also remarked that there are continuous complaints about the accommodations for Senators at the Executive Office, and says he is considering adding a provision to the appropriation bill that would build a second story.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-12-28

Creator(s)

Loeb, William, 1866-1937

Statement listing the responsibilities that Joseph Bucklin Bishop will be expected to carry out as secretary of the Isthmian Canal Commission.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-01

Creator(s)

Unknown

The article outlines the previously unknown ways that ex-President Grover Cleveland aided President Roosevelt in mediating the Anthracite Coal Strike. In response to accusations that Roosevelt exceeded his powers as president, the writer of the article discloses that Cleveland wrote to Roosevelt in support of his actions and offered to chair the commission that would mediate an end to the strike. Cleveland ultimately was not chosen because the coal mine operators objected.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-09-15

Creator(s)

Unknown

This newsletter, available free of charge to employees of the Isthmian Canal Commission and the Panama Railroad Company, reports on various happenings in the Canal Zone, including updates on progress, revenue, mosquitoes, sports, and excavation. It also includes a directory of names at the end.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-09-11

Creator(s)

Unknown

President Roosevelt sends the recipient an enclosure “which explains itself” and shows how important it is to have someone in Washington to keep Congress well informed of actual conditions in the Panama Canal zone. A note at the bottom explains that the enclosure was an offer from the New York Herald to sell newspapers a story, very unfavorable, on the conditions in Panama.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-04-13

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Nicholas Murray Butler comments on a newspaper article reporting that Edward C. O’Brien has withdrawn candidacy for secretary of the Panama Canal Commission and declined to go as minister to San Domingo.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-04-29

Creator(s)

Butler, Nicholas Murray, 1862-1947

Nicholas Murray Butler has spoken with Joseph Bucklin Bishop and they can both visit the White House on Saturday. Butler looks forward to discussing the party’s platform for the Republican National Convention.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-04-18

Creator(s)

Butler, Nicholas Murray, 1862-1947

Governor Odell wrote to President Roosevelt requesting consideration of General Edward C. O’Brien for Secretary of the Isthmian Canal Commission. Odell had heard gossip about the possibility of Joseph Bucklin Bishop being appointed instead.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-23

Creator(s)

Odell, Benjamin B. (Benjamin Barker), 1854-1926

William Barclay Parsons discusses the selection of a secretary for the Isthmian Canal Commission.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-16

Creator(s)

Parsons, William Barclay, 1859-1932

C. Grant La Farge passed on President Roosevelt’s instruction for the Isthmian Canal Commission to William Barclay Parsons. La Farge encloses a letter from Parsons that indicates that the Commissioners believed Joseph Bucklin Bishop was the most qualified of the three candidates for secretary.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-18

Creator(s)

La Farge, C. Grant (Christopher Grant), 1862-1938

C. Grant La Farge discusses a conversation with Joseph Bucklin Bishop about the prospect of his appointment as secretary to the Panama Canal Commission. La Farge wishes the commission would find a way to make the appointment while making it clear that President Roosevelt had not interfered.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-15

Creator(s)

La Farge, C. Grant (Christopher Grant), 1862-1938

Nicholas Murray Butler questions Charles W. Fairbanks as President Roosevelt’s vice presidential choice. He recommends Joseph Bucklin Bishop to the Isthmian Canal Commission.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-09

Creator(s)

Butler, Nicholas Murray, 1862-1947

William Emlen Roosevelt reports on the condition of his mother, Elizabeth Norris Emlen Roosevelt. Roosevelt mentions that Sagamore Hill’s superintendent Noah Seaman is “improving,” and reviews his conversation with Joseph Bucklin Bishop, stating that the “Townsend boys” are interested in building a hotel in Oyster Bay, New York.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-03-02

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, William Emlen, 1857-1930

Scrapbook primarily consisting of newspaper clippings and magazine articles related to the death and memorializing of Theodore Roosevelt. There are also several articles related to the activities of Roosevelt family members in the years after Roosevelt’s death.

Collection

Newberry Library

Creation Date

1919-1925

Creator(s)

Unknown