Historic buildings--Research

Memorandum from Howard W. Baker to Allyn F. Hanks

Howard W. Baker summarizes the discussion he had with Ray H. Mattison concerning his report “Study of the Authenticity of the Maltese Cross Cabin.” Baker suggests breaking down the research program into several individual projects unless it is just one overall historical study. In that case, he suggests putting together several studies under one cover. Baker also suggests adding information to the report about the origin of the term “Maltese Cross” and why Theodore Roosevelt adopted it for his ranch. Baker would like the timbers used to build the cabin identified by a professional forester. He understands Russell Reid is already working towards this goal. Baker is also considering hiring an architect to do a measured drawing of the cabin to add to the report.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1950-03-29

Letter from Ruel P. Tolman to Nora E. Cordingley

Ruel P. Tolman informs Nora E. Cordingley that although the official catalog of the Lewis and Clark Exposition was examined, no mention of Richard La Barre Goodwin was found. Tolman includes an excerpt from the Lewis and Clark Journal, V.3, No. 5, May 1905 (page 5) that notes the arrival and reconstruction of the Roosevelt Cabin from North Dakota on the exposition grounds on April 20.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1946-02-28

Maltese Cross cabin brochure

The brochure for Theodore Roosevelt’s Maltese Cross Cabin at the Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park was published by the Theodore Roosevelt Nature and History Association in cooperation with the National Park Service sometime after 1959. It features photographs of the cabin and the items that were left in the there that belonged to Roosevelt. William Barnhart describes the history of Roosevelt’s cabin and how it came to part of the of the National Park Service.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

Unknown

Memorandum from Newton Bishop Drury to Lawrence C. Merriam

National Park Service Director Drury highlights the investigatory process of locating the Elkhorn Ranch and provides several recommendations for further inquiry.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1948-04-21

Memorandum from Allyn F. Hanks to Jerome C. Miller

Superintendent Hanks offers the regional director an update on the visit of the agency director to the Elkhorn Ranch and the belief that the ranch site is the correct location.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1948-07-23

Archeological investigations of the Elkhorn Ranch Site

Study summarizing the findings of the 1959 archaeological excavation of Theodore Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch. Dee Calderwood Taylor of Montana State University offers background information on the ranch, building diagrams, and a complete list of items found during excavation.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1959

Memorandum from Allyn F. Hanks to Lawrence C. Merriam

Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park Superintendent Hanks encloses an incomplete copy of park historian Ray H. Mattison’s study on the Elkhorn Ranch, seeking critical feedback from the regional office.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1949-12-07

Memorandum from Ray H. Mattison to John W. Jay

Historian Ray H. Mattison encloses a floor plan of the Elkhorn Ranch cabin that may have been drawn by Theodore Roosevelt. According to a sketch made by Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt and letters written by William Wingate Sewall, the completed cabin appears to have departed from the original plan.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1959-02-10

Letter from Chester L. Brooks to Henry J. Walz

Historian Chester L. Brooks thanks Henry J. Walz for his helpful letter. He requests further information on the condition of the Elkhorn Ranch cabin around 1899 and if E. S. Foley ever published his book.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1953-04-20

Memorandum from Paul L. Beaubien to Conrad Louis Wirth

At the request of historian Lee A. Wallace, Paul L. Beaubien sends material that will help design an Elkhorn Ranch diorama.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-07-07

Memorandum from Lee A. Wallace to John W. Jay

Historian Lee A. Wallace and the Museum Laboratory of the National Park Service are collecting data for the Elkhorn Ranch diorama. They need a map of the ranch buildings, preferably with each building’s distance from the river.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-06-24

Memorandum from Merrill J. Mattes to Allyn F. Hanks

Regional historian Merrill J. Mattes asks Superintendent Hanks to send a copy of Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt’s letter to her sister, which contains a map of the Elkhorn Ranch cabin, to the regional office. Mattes also requests a copy of Chester L. Brooks’s research to date. Original and copy.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1952-02-01

Memorandum from Paul L. Beaubien to Merrill J. Mattes

Paul L. Beaubien reports on his preliminary archaeological study of the Elkhorn Ranch. He offers an opinion of where the ranch buildings were located. Beaubien also visited other local sites and provides several photographs from the Elkhorn Ranch site.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1950-08-25

Memorandum from Stanley C. Joseph to Allyn F. Hanks

Stanley C. Joseph encloses copies and original photographs loaned to the National Park Service by John H. Reid, former owner of the Elkhorn Ranch. He also sends an article by Acting Regional Historian Merrill J. Mattes from 1946 that includes an interview with Reid.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1949-10-14

Memorandum from Ray H. Mattison to Allyn F. Hanks

Park historian Ray H. Mattison summarizes a trip to the Ralph Mosser and Elkhorn ranches with T. Frank Roberts and George R. Osterhout. There is some evidence that the Ralph Mosser ranch house was built from logs taken from the Elkhorn. There is general agreement that the National Park Service has correctly identified the site of the Elkhorn Ranch but the disposition of the buildings is disputed. Two photographs from the trip are included.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1949-10-10

Letter from Ray H. Mattison to Albert T. Volwiler

Although his research is not complete, historian Ray H. Mattison believes that the Maltese Cross cabin is authentic.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1949-08-19

Elkhorn Ranch plan

Extract from a letter written by Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt that contains a sketch of the Elkhorn Ranch cabin.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

Unknown

Elkhorn Ranch house, from architect’s drawing

Floor plan of the Elkhorn Ranch house.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

Unknown