North Dakota--Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Posted envelope for the 25th anniversary of Theodore Roosevelt National Park signed by Alice Roosevelt Longworth.

Collection

Marple Collection

Creation Date

1972-04-25

A timeline of major milestones and events at Sullys Hill National Game Preserve from 1867 to 1995.

Collection

White Horse Hill

Creation Date

1995

Michael F. Moran chronicles the Strenuous Life Adventure trip to South Dakota, Wyoming, and North Dakota undertaken by members of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) in September 2018. Moran notes the many sites connected to Theodore Roosevelt visited by the group, including Jewel Cave and Devils Tower National Monument, and Wind Cave and Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Moran provides details about the group’s visits to each of these sites along with its stop at Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Moran notes Roosevelt’s friendship with Seth Bullock and highlights Fritz R. Gordner’s climb of Devils Tower.

The text is supplemented with thirteen color photographs and is followed by a nine page photo gallery of fifty-four color photographs.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Lowell E. Baier describes the importance of Theodore Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch to the formation of Roosevelt’s environmental awareness, and subsequently to the emergence of the nation’s conservation movement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Baier provides a brief history of the conservation movement in the United States before Roosevelt’s emergence as its leader, and he argues that the conservation effort stemmed in part from the nation’s desire to preserve parts of its frontier past. Baier quotes Roosevelt biographer Edmund Morris in emphasizing the importance of the Elkhorn to Roosevelt’s environmental beliefs, and he highlights efforts to secure the protection of lands directly across the Little Missouri River from the Elkhorn ranch house.

A photograph of Roosevelt with two of his ranch hands and three historic photographs of the Elkhorn Ranch buildings populate the essay along with two contemporary color photographs of the site. The essay also features illustrations of Roosevelt’s cattle brands, sketches of the Elkhorn ranch buildings by Frederic Remington, and a large map showing the various units of Theodore Roosevelt National Park and surrounding lands.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Bruce M. Kaye relays the efforts to establish Theodore Roosevelt National Park in western North Dakota. Kaye looks at the various studies, plans, and entities that imagined a national park in the Badlands. He also highlights the opposition to a park, including from the National Park Service. Kaye notes the various government bureaus who managed the land before it became a park, and he singles out the efforts of Congressman William Lemke in passing legislation creating the national park. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1998

In an address marking the 50th anniversary of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, Theodore Roosevelt, great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt, recalls his great-grandfather’s time in the Badlands. He notes how Roosevelt gained in health, earned the respect of his cowboy peers, and witnessed the decimation of the land and its wildlife. Roosevelt calls for increased funding for public lands management, criticizes Congressman Don Young of Alaska for his environmental views, and says that the United States should consider a mandatory public service program. 

Two photographs of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, a photograph of Theodore Roosevelt on his favorite horse Manitou, and a photograph of the author from 1977 supplement the address. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

This edition of “News and Notes” features an obituary of Jessica Van Ausdall Kraft who served as the personal secretary to Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt, Curator of Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, and in various roles with the Theodore Roosevelt Association. The section also explains the decision of Harold and Sheila Schafer of Medora, North Dakota, to found the Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation to run the various motels and shops in the tourist town formerly run by Harold Schafer’s Gold Seal Company. “News and Notes” closes with an announcement about a new musical, “Teddy and Alice,” which depicts the life of President Theodore Roosevelt and his daughter Alice Roosevelt Longworth in the White House.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1987

John A. Gable provides a comprehensive accounting of the conservation record of President Theodore Roosevelt, and in ten quotations dating from 1905 to 1912, Roosevelt explains his philosophy of conservation. Roosevelt stresses that natural resources must be carefully managed for future generations and that conservation is the most important issue facing the country. Gable lists the 21 reclamation projects, 150 national forests, 51 bird refuges, and 4 national game preserves established by Roosevelt during his presidency. Gable also lists the 5 national parks and 18 national monuments created during Roosevelt’s tenure. He also notes the 7 different commissions and conferences called by Roosevelt during his presidency to study issues related to conservation and natural resources.

Photographs of Roosevelt at the dedication of the Roosevelt Dam in Arizona, at a federal bird refuge in Louisiana, and on horseback supplement the text.

A listing of the officers of the Theodore Roosevelt Association along with the members of its executive, finance, and Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace committees is included in the article.

History of Medora, North Dakota, to mark its Centennial celebration in 1983. The article focuses on Theodore Roosevelt’s time as a rancher in the Badlands surrounding Medora, its decline, and its subsequent resurrection as a tourist gateway to Theodore Roosevelt National Park due to the efforts of Harold and Sheila Schafer and the Gold Seal Company.

The logo of the Medora Centennial and photographs of the Rough Rider Hotel in Medora, the Schafers, and The Medora Musical accompany the article.

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 found on the second page of the article.

Description of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota which details the landscape, wildlife, and historic structures found at the North and South Units and the Elkhorn Ranch site. The article concludes with a look at the conservation measures undertaken by President Theodore Roosevelt.

A photograph of Roosevelt on horseback is featured on the first page of the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Article about the Centennial of the town of Medora, North Dakota, which provides a brief history of the community, including its importance to the life of Theodore Roosevelt.

The logo of the Medora Centennial occupies half of the first page of the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Advertisement and order form for a commemorative plate with Theodore Roosevelt at its center, surrounded by depictions of five historic sites associated with his life along with the front and back of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) medallion. In an accompanying letter, John A. Gable, Executive Director of the TRA, writes Kieran Kreiss of the Kreisshaus firm producing the plate and offers the TRA’s endorsement of the plate.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1982

Report on two meetings of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) held in October 1981 in Oyster Bay, New York and Washington, D.C. The article highlights the reports given by the leadership of the TRA at the Oyster Bay meeting, and quotes extensively from remarks given by TRA President William Davison Johnston at both meetings. The speakers for the gatherings, David McCullough and Edmund and Sylvia Morris, are discussed as are their works on Theodore Roosevelt.

Fourteen photographs (two from the Oyster Bay meeting and twelve from the Washington, D.C. meeting) showing some of the guests, dignitaries, speakers, and members of the leadership of the Theodore Roosevelt Association accompany the article.

John A. Gable acknowledges the various authors who have essays appearing in this issue of the Journal, and he quotes from several reviews of David McCullough’s biography of Theodore Roosevelt, Mornings on Horseback. Gable also notes the opening of a new visitor center at the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in Medora, North Dakota, and he highlights the ceremonies surrounding eightieth anniversary of Roosevelt’s inauguration at the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1981

Excerpt from Joseph Bucklin Bishop’s Theodore Roosevelt and His Time about the October 1912 assassination attempt on Theodore Roosevelt in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Bucklin covers the shooting, Roosevelt’s speech, his hospitalization, and the motivations of the shooter, John Schrank.

A drawing of Roosevelt’s speech showing the hole made by the assassin’s bullet accompanies the excerpt.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

John A. Gable provides a comprehensive report on the work of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) in 1980. He details the TRA’s work to rebuild a bandstand in Oyster Bay, New York, and notes the association’s financial support of Youngs Memorial Cemetery, the adjacent Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary in Oyster Bay, and the American Museum of Natural History. Gable also reports on the association’s support of student essay and speaking contests, additions to the Theodore Roosevelt Collection at Harvard University, and the Roosevelt Genealogical Project. He notes the growth in membership and dues for the TRA, and he details the assistance the TRA has given to numerous scholars and writers and lists the publications that have emerged from their work. Gable closes by citing examples of the TRA’s support of the various historical sites associated with the life of Theodore Roosevelt.

A photograph of some of the leaders of the Theodore Roosevelt Association along with officials from the Town of Oyster Bay, New York is found on the third page of the report.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

John A. Gable elaborates on the visit by members of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) to Medora, North Dakota, and on the Edward S. Curtis photography exhibit in Sea Cliff, New York. He endorses Edmund Morris’s The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt,  notes Theodore Roosevelt books by Nathan Miller and Jerome Alden, and discusses the extensive Theodore Roosevelt collections of Governor James Thompson of Illinois and his friend Daniel Weil. Gable closes with a paragraph discussing the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal, the work of the TRA, and the need to grow the association’s membership.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1979

Article about the visit to Medora, North Dakota and Theodore Roosevelt National Park by the leadership and some members of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) in August 1979. The article discusses the importance of the Badlands experience for Theodore Roosevelt, gives a brief history of Medora, and lists the sites seen by the group. The article names the thirty-four members of the TRA who made the trip to North Dakota.

Eleven photographs showing members of the TRA visiting the Medora area attractions and others showing some of the landmark buildings in town accompany the article.

Guide to thirteen different sites associated with Theodore Roosevelt from historic homes to national parks and small towns. Many of the sites are administered by the National Park Service. The directory names each site, gives a brief description and history, and provides directions for visitors.  

Photographs of the front of the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site and of the equestrian statue of Theodore Roosevelt in front of the American Museum of Natural History, both in New York City, accompany the guide. The statue was removed in January 2022.

In “The Sighting at Pine Knot, Virginia,” Alton A. Lindsay explores the question of whether Theodore Roosevelt was the last person to report a credible sighting of the extinct passenger pigeon near his presidential retreat, Pine Knot in Virginia, in 1907. Lindsay provides a history of Pine Knot and also looks at the making of Roosevelt as a naturalist going back to his childhood.  He notes some of the defining experiences in Roosevelt’s life that made him a naturalist and conservationist, such as his time in the Dakota Badlands. Like other scholars he pushes back against the idea that Roosevelt was merely a man of action and asserts that he “was a man of intellect.”

He details Roosevelt’s sighting of a small flock of passenger pigeons in May 1907, and argues that Roosevelt’s history and experience as a naturalist and ornithologist lend credibility to his claims to have seen the birds.