North Dakota--Medora

Listing of books and articles related to the Marquis de Morès and Theodore Roosevelt’s time in Medora, North Dakota, and the North Dakota badlands.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

Unknown

Two versions of an article written for North Dakota History magazine. The first, by Olaf T. Hagen, focuses on the history of Theodore Roosevelt’s time in the Dakota Badlands. The latter, revised and expanded by Ray H. Mattison after Hagen’s death, describes the history of the region from Custer’s time through the 1890s. Mattison’s revision focuses more on the arrival of the railroad and its effects on the game in the region, which had been plentiful but declined rapidly as hunters and adventurers decimated the herds.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1949

Outline for a research project on cowboy attire and equipment in the region of Medora, North Dakota, from 1882 to 1887.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

Unknown

Historian Don Rickey reviews his visits to several museums while researching cowboy dress and equipment for the project at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The museums are unwilling to loan their “cowboy relics” and Rickey believes that the best method to build a collection is through a campaign in the Medora area.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1957-05-17

Historian Don Rickey encloses his report on cowboy clothing and equipment used in the 1880s Medora area.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1957-06-25

Regional Chief Gregg requests that a copy of Historian Don Rickey’s report on cowboys of the 1880s Medora area be forwarded to the Washington office.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-03-10

Louis Kirk requests Historian Rickey’s advice for verifying and acquiring objects for the new museum in Medora.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-04-28

Louis Kirk provides an update on the status of potential items for the Medora museum collection, including estimated costs associated with each acquisition.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-05-03

Highlights of an interview with William Eaton, including biographical information and his recollections of Medora, North Dakota.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1958-01-15

Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park Superintendent Jay encloses several documents regarding Medora, North Dakota, and the badlands area so that Historian Rickey can familiarize himself with the area prior to interviewing William Eaton.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Creation Date

1957-12-18

Chronology of the daily life of Theodore Roosevelt between January 1879 to December 1883. Notable events include Theodore Roosevelt’s engagement and marriage to Alice Hathaway Lee, his appointment to the New York State Legislature, and his first visit and buffalo hunt in North Dakota.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association

Creation Date

1985

Chronology of the daily life of Theodore Roosevelt from January 1884 to December 1891. Notable events include the deaths of Alice Lee Roosevelt and Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, Roosevelt’s time on his ranch, the completion of Sagamore Hill, Roosevelt’s engagement and marriage to Edith Kermit Carow, Theodore “Ted” Roosevelt’s birth, the “Great-Dieup” of cattle in North Dakota, and the founding of the Boone and Crockett Club.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association

Creation Date

1985

Duane G. Jundt finds flaws and strengths in two books that chronicle Theodore Roosevelt’s time in the Dakota Badlands. Jundt notes that Michael F. Blake’s The Cowboy President: The American West and the Making of Theodore Roosevelt lacks historical objectivity and contains numerous factual errors while Christopher Knowlton’s Cattle Kingdom: The Hidden History of the Cowboy West places Roosevelt and his ranching experience in the wider context of the American West. Jundt highlights both books’ treatment of Owen Wister’s 1902 novel The Virginian. Jundt also examines certain aspects of these books against works by other Roosevelt biographers, and he asserts that both books emphasize the importance of Roosevelt’s time in Dakota to developing his conservation conscience.

The front cover illustrations for both works under review and a postcard of a cattle branding scene accompany the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

A panoramic postcard depicting Medora, North Dakota, appears on the front cover of this issue while the back cover features a stereograph card from 1889 with the title “A real live cowboy.” A typical cowboy on horseback appears on the front of the card, and the reverse of the card has a description which alludes to the cowboy’s resemblance to Theodore Roosevelt.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1898

The Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal (TRAJ) publishes a quote from Theodore Roosevelt about the meaning of patriotism and criticism of the President of the United States, and the Theodore Roosevelt Association announces that its 2021 annual meeting will be held in Dickinson and Medora, North Dakota. A text box lists the President and Chief Executive Officer of the TRA, along with those responsible for assembling its journal, guidelines for submitting manuscripts, and information regarding the governance of the TRA.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2020

In the first of two essays in the “Book Review” section, Duane G. Jundt dismisses Arthur G. Sharp’s The Everything Theodore Roosevelt Book as unworthy of serious consideration because of its juvenile language, numerous factual errors, and plagiarism. James F. Vivian recalls the work of Hermann Hagedorn in his review of Roger L. Di Silvestro’s Theodore Roosevelt in the Badlands. Vivian believes that Di Silvestro’s work does not supplant Hagedorn’s Roosevelt in the Badlands, but rather adds to the story of the young Roosevelt because of Di Silvestro’s mining of the evidence made available since Hagedorn’s book was published in 1921.

The front covers of the Sharp and Di Silvestro books appear in the section along with a text box containing the vision statement of the Theodore Roosevelt Association. 

Report on the 2011 annual meeting of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) held in Medora and Dickinson, North Dakota. The report highlights the various venues for the meeting including Dickinson State University, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and Medora, and it notes the winners of three awards conferred by the TRA. Thirty-eight photographs comprise most of the report, including twenty-six of the various guests, dignitaries, and speakers as well as twelve photographs of the North Dakota Badlands.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2012

Jim Fuglie lavishes Rolf Sletten’s Medora: Boom, Bust, and Resurrection with praise in his brief review. Fuglie lists some of the familiar Badlands characters who make appearances, and he focuses on the efforts of North Dakota businessman Harold Lyle Schafer to bring Medora, North Dakota, back to life as a tourist destination. The book’s front cover illustration, two photographs of Theodore Roosevelt’s Maltese Cross cabin, two photographs of landmark buildings in Medora rebuilt by Schafer, and a letter from Roosevelt to his first wife Alice Lee Roosevelt enhance the essay. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2013

Obituary for Harold Lyle Shafer who resurrected the town of Medora, North Dakota, and transformed it into the number one tourist attraction in North Dakota. The obituary traces Shafer’s hard scrabble childhood, his family’s frequent moves, and his relentless hard work, and it follows the rise and success of his Gold Seal Company, the vehicle he used to transform Medora. The obituary highlights his generosity, and it notes many of the awards he received in his lifetime, including those from the state of North Dakota and the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA).

In addition to a photograph of Shafer and his wife Sheila Shafer, two text boxes supplement the obituary: one notes that this issue of the journal is dedicated to Shafer while the other promotes the TRA’s website. 

P. James Roosevelt confers the Theodore Roosevelt Distinguished Service Medal on Harold Lyle Schafer and Sheila Schafer. Roosevelt quotes extensively from Theodore Roosevelt in his remarks in which he notes the philanthropic work done by the Schafers, the roots of their success in the Gold Seal Company, and their restoration of the town of Medora, North Dakota.

A photograph of the Schafers with Roosevelt and William Davison Johnston of the Theodore Roosevelt Association accompanies the citation. A text box with the “Vision Statement of the Theodore Roosevelt Association” supplements the speech. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal