Miles, Nelson Appleton, 1839-1925

President Roosevelt is frustrated with the controversy involving General Miles and Admiral Schley. He believes that individuals involved on both sides have behaved poorly, but especially the people who support Schley. They simply will not listen to reason. Roosevelt feels that instead of court-martialing several men an “effort was made to make things pleasant for everybody.” No good has come of the situation.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1901-12-31

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

President Roosevelt hopes Robert Wilson Patterson can discuss the matter in person as it is of such high importance. He believes Patterson will agree that General Miles’s actions should be severely reprimanded. Roosevelt will give the matter concerning Admiral Schley his utmost attention, but emphasizes the case will be decided only on its merits. Popular opinion will not be taken into consideration.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1901-12-21

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

George Brinton McClellan Harvey thanks President Roosevelt for the information surrounding General Leonard Wood’s recent promotion, and promises that while he still believes “so rapid and great promotion is unwarranted and harmful,” he will try to be fair. Harvey quotes what he wrote about why he believed General Nelson Appleton Miles was passed over for promotion, namely that he “has been a thorn in the flesh of the administration,” and gathers that from what Roosevelt tells him this was approximately correct. He encloses an upcoming article that Roosevelt may be interested in reading.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-01-28

Creator(s)

Harvey, George Brinton McClellan, 1864-1928

Henry Cabot Lodge is sorry that President Roosevelt does not agree with him about immigration but believes Roosevelt is likely right on the matter. Lodge has read Roosevelt’s letter to Nelson Appleton Miles and shares his views on the matter. Lodge has looked over the papers of the “Agricultural Implement people” and comments on lumber, cattle, manufacturing, and tariffs in the industry. Lodge has enclosed a letter regarding a civil service matter that he thinks should be looked into. Lodge praises Robert Bacon.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-08-18

Creator(s)

Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924

Finley Peter Dunne thanks President Roosevelt for supporting his writing. Dunne mentions several events that were subjects of his articles and expresses a humorous frustration with the state of journalism and certain political figures.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-12-28

Creator(s)

Dunne, Finley Peter, 1867-1936

Commissioner of Pensions Ware does not think that General Nelson Appleton Miles should be chosen as the Grand Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic this year and suggests promising the position to Miles next year. Ware believes that Wilmon Whilldin Blackmar could be elected.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-07-30

Creator(s)

Ware, Eugene F., 1841-1911

This exhaustively illustrated account of the Spanish-American war seeks to present the official history of the war according to the United States War Records Office. It encompasses the events leading up to the war, the war itself, as well as its resolution and aftermath. While it mentions the various engagements taking place during the war, most of the focus is on Cuba and the action of the United States Navy and Army in fighting Spanish forces there in support of Cuban rebels. It additionally includes general information on the theaters of war, including Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines.

Collection

Smithsonian

Creation Date

1900

Creator(s)

Wright, Marcus J. (Marcus Joseph), 1831-1922

Louis B. Livingston examines why President Theodore Roosevelt chose retired general John McAllister Schofield to command the troops needed to seize coal mines during the anthracite coal strike of 1902. Livingston chronicles Schofield’s military service, and he details his command of troops during five labor disputes during the late nineteenth century. Livingston contends that Roosevelt was drawn to Schofield’s exemplary record, his support of Army reforms, and the restraint he showed during previous strikes. Livingston suggests that Roosevelt’s threat to seize the mines moved the parties, the mine owners and the United Mine Workers, to accept arbitration. Livingston also explores other aspects of the strike negotiations such as Roosevelt’s poor relationship with General Nelson Appleton Miles and the degree to which Roosevelt kept his plans to seize the mines if necessary a secret. 

Four illustrations and a photograph supplement the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2013

Gary Ross Mormino explores the relationship between Florida, Cuba, and the Spanish-American War. Mormino describes the enclaves of Cuban immigrants in Florida, and he notes that cities like Key West, Florida, were home to revolutionary movements and figures like Jose Marti. Mormino examines the influx of soldiers into Florida cities such as Tampa, Lakeland, and Miami, and he details the not unexpected difficulties with drink, women, and race relations between white and African American soldiers. Mormino also describes the chaotic mustering and departure of the troops from Florida, and he asserts that while much of Florida may have experienced a temporary economic boost from the war, it had “little long-term impact” on the state.

Eight photographs and five illustrations populate the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2009-10-24

Leslie H. Southwick provides a comprehensive history of the 1904 presidential election, surveying the Republican and Democratic candidates as well as those of the Socialist, Populist, and Prohibition parties. Southwick describes Theodore Roosevelt’s path to securing his election, touching on his service as Vice President, his political battles with Senator Marcus Hanna, and his selection of George B. Cortelyou as his campaign manager. Southwick also covers Alton B. Parker’s path to the Democratic nomination, highlighting the roles played by former nominees William Jennings Bryan and Grover Cleveland. Southwick describes the dull fall campaign, enlivened by the musings of Finley Peter Dunne’s fictional barkeeper, Mr. Dooley, which Southwick quotes frequently in the course of the article.

Photographs of the four candidates for president and vice president of the Republican and Democratic parties appear in the article, along with an electoral map of the election, and Homer Davenport’s famous cartoon endorsing Roosevelt.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2004

James B. Martin examines the tumultuous relationship between Lieutenant General Nelson A. Miles and President Theodore Roosevelt during the first two years of Roosevelt’s administration. Martin details Miles’s impressive record as a field officer, earning the Medal of Honor during the Civil War, and he shows how he was not as well prepared to fight bureaucratic battles in Washington, D.C., as the Commanding General of the Army. Martin looks at the issues that caused a breach between Miles and Roosevelt, including Miles’s criticism of American actions in the Philippines. Martin covers the role played by Secretaries of War Russell A. Alger and Elihu Root, and he lays most of the blame for the Miles-Roosevelt dispute at the feet of Miles, but he does note that Roosevelt’s large ego and decision not to forcibly retire Miles contributed to the feud.

Photographs of Miles and Root appear in the article. An article box on page eleven notes that this issue of the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal is dedicated to Oliver R. Grace.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1987

Collection of newspaper clippings of articles, photographs, and maps showing some of the actors, naval vessels, and events making up parts of the Spanish-American war. Includes some handwritten notes and hand-colored photographs.

Collection

Dickinson State University

Creation Date

1898

Creator(s)

Jacobi, Joseph B. (Joseph Benedict), 1881-1958

A number of men are in a wagon driven by a donkey. General Nelson Appleton Miles looks backward while the trusts hold Alton B. Parker in his lamp. August Belmont and David B. Hill are up front directing the donkey. A Tammany tiger sits beside Parker.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-07-21

Creator(s)

Davenport, Homer, 1867-1912

Lieutenant General Nelson Appleton Miles sits astride a horse and presents his sword to Father Time, who holds that hourglass reading “64.” There is a sign in the upper left-hand corner: Nelson A. Miles. Lieut. Gen. U.S.A. Retired Aug 6th 1903.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1903-08-06

Creator(s)

Bush, Charles Green, 1842-1909

Lieutenant General Nelson Appleton Miles holds a paper that reads, “Order of retirement from active service,” as he walks away from Adjutant General Henry Clark Corbin and President Roosevelt, who both hold papers that say, “Git!”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1903-08

Creator(s)

Bradford, Walter R., 1872-1925

Uncle Sam stands beside President Roosevelt and points to Lieutenant General Nelson Appleton Miles being hoisted on the shoulders of two men from the Grand Army of the Republic. A paper is at the foot of the stairs: “Roosevelt’s snub to Gen Miles.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1903-08-11

Creator(s)

DeMar, John L., 1865-1926

Secretary of War Root sends two copies of the proposed letter to General Nelson Appleton Miles. He has arranged a meeting at his house at Ireland.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1901-12

Creator(s)

Root, Elihu, 1845-1937

There is a movement to make General Nelson Appleton Miles the commander of the Grand Army of the Republic and then the Democratic Vice Presidential candidate. As commander, Miles could create problems for the Republican Party by making “demands on the Pension Office and posing as the friend of the soldier.” President Roosevelt considers Miles a self-interested liar and traitor. The financial situation is “ugly” and Roosevelt blames the panic on “speculative watering of stocks on a giant scale.”

Collection

Massachusetts Historical Society

Creation Date

1903-08-06

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

President Roosevelt goes over the events in the controversy at the Government Printing Office. He is pleased that the situation with Wall Street has improved. Roosevelt is annoyed over the public outcry that emerged when no special commendation was offered to General Nelson Appleton Miles upon his retirement. Such a commendation would have been unprecedented and Roosevelt continues to have a very low opinion of Miles.

Collection

Massachusetts Historical Society

Creation Date

1903-09-03

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Sheet music for the patriotic song “For Victory of Our Country’s Flag,” which celebrates the American military heroes of the Spanish-American War. The song is dedicated to the United States Army and Navy. The cover features a large American flag and photographs of prominent individuals from the war, including Governor Roosevelt.

Collection

Dr. Danny O. Crew Theodore Roosevelt Sheet Music Collection

Creation Date

1899

Creator(s)

Boex, Andrew J., 1859-1909