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William K. Bixby sends Theodore Roosevelt a copy of the Itinerarium of Dr. Alexander Hamilton, written in 1744 but not printed until recently. Bixby notes that Hamilton’s account of the customs of early settlers in Albany and elsewhere may be of interest to Roosevelt.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-09-12
Britannia, carrying a large white flag labeled “Civilization” with British soldiers and colonists behind her, advances on a horde of natives, one carrying a flag labeled “Barbarism.” Caption: Though the process be costly, the road to progress must be cut.
This cartoon is a virtual poster, or an emblem, of the colonialist mentality of the day. Africa is the setting. The British had just subdued the Dutch-descended Boers, in southern Africa. In the rest of the continent, the Belgians brutally dealt with uprisings in the Congo; and the German government gobbled up what practically was the last “free” land for colonials in southwest Africa. Almost exactly eight years subsequent to this cartoon’s publication, former president Theodore Roosevelt emerged from a long safari in Africa and, invited to speak in Cairo, Egypt, lectured the British about proper colonial administration — “or leave Egypt.”
Theodore Roosevelt has enjoyed H. Rider Haggard’s book Rural Denmark. He agrees with Haggard regarding the land and those who live on it. Roosevelt comments on settlement patterns and their relations to agriculture and English speaking, as seen in the United States, Canada, Australia, and England. He compares the seemingly transient English settlers in East Africa with the Boers. While Denmark has done well, Roosevelt was puzzled by a particular “queer social growth” during his visit. He understands Haggard’s discouragement in trying to teach people “what is vital for them to learn and what they refuse to learn,” and advises him to approach the task. Roosevelt apologizes for writing “an unconscionably long letter.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1911-08-22
The United States Congress amends a previous agreement between the United States Government and the Sisseton, Wahpeton, and Cut-Head bands of Sioux on the Devils Lake Reservation. The amended treaty makes provision for the disposal of a large parcel of land that was mistakenly omitted from the previous treaty.
1904-04-27
Clarece Martin describes the experience of the Reverend Archibald Stobo, the fourth great grandfather of Theodore Roosevelt, as an immigrant to Panama at the end of the seventeenth century. She details the failure of the Scottish colony in Panama, Stobo’s move to South Carolina, and his ties to the Bulloch family of Georgia.
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal
1981
Sheet music for “The Golden West,” which celebrates the 300th anniversary of the landing of America’s “First settlers in Virginia, April 26, 1607.” President Roosevelt opened the 1907 Jamestown Exposition with a naval review at Hampton Rhodes, Virginia. The cover features a photograph with several ships, and according to a handwritten note, Roosevelt was present at the review aboard the presidential yacht, Mayflower.
Dr. Danny O. Crew Theodore Roosevelt Sheet Music Collection
1907
A colonist barters with Natives outside a stockade in the winter. He is offering them a small piece of brightly colored cloth and a clay pipe in exchange for game including deer, turkey, fish, and ducks or geese.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1913-12-03
Frederick Courteney Selous endeavors to answer some of Governor Roosevelt’s question about the South African War. Selous lived for many years in South Africa and had a lot of contact with Boer hunters and frontiersmen. He provides a comprehensive history of the “Transvaal Boers” and factors which led to their current conflict with the British.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1900-03-04