Ricard, Serge

William N. Tilchin charts the path to publication of the translation of a French booklet about Theodore Roosevelt by Leon Bazalgette. The 1905 tract was translated by Roosevelt biographer Edmund Morris and offered to John A. Gable, editor of the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal (TRAJ), in 2001. Tilchin describes the rediscovery of the translation by Gregory A. Wynn and the subsequent enlistment of the French Roosevelt scholar Serge Ricard to assist in the publication and contextualization of the translation. The front cover illustrations from works by Ricard and Morris supplement the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2020

Creator(s)

Tilchin, William N., 1950-

At the London book launch for A Companion to Theodore Roosevelt, Douglas Eden provides an overview of Theodore Roosevelt’s foreign policy, noting its main tenets and its achievements, and he highlights how Roosevelt’s policies came to influence his presidential successors. Eden also reviews the historiography of Roosevelt, demonstrating the renewed appreciation for Roosevelt since the low point of the 1930s. Eden asserts that A Companion to Theodore Roosevelt demonstrates that many scholars are now interested in studying Roosevelt, a marked change from when he began his work.  

A photograph of four of the contributors to the book, its front cover, and its table of contents accompany the text. A text box contains the mission statement of the Theodore Roosevelt Association.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2012

Genna Rollins, Secretary of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA), highlights the ceremonies and speeches that marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the founding of the Roosevelt Study Center (RSC) in Zeeland, the Netherlands, on September 19, 2011. Rollins notes the various speakers from the United States and Holland, and she briefly summarizes their remarks. Rollins also provides a history of the RSC, with an emphasis on its relationship with the TRA, which included funding, donations of books and materials, and providing speakers such as John A. Gable, longtime executive director of the TRA. In one of her endnotes, Rollins examines the history of the Roosevelt family in the United States, noting the the two branches headquartered in Oyster Bay and Hyde Park, New York. 

Six photographs populate the essay, including three of the speakers at the anniversary celebration.

In his “Faithfully yours” column, William N. Tilchin introduces and reprints a letter from President Theodore Roosevelt to the French writer Frederic Mistral. In the December 15, 1904, letter, Roosevelt asserts that while the accumulation of wealth and industrial power is important to a nation, attention should also be given to “the things of the spirit.” Roosevelt believes that virtues like courage, love, and appreciation for beauty must also be cultivated by a people. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2014

Creator(s)

Tilchin, William N., 1950-

Tweed Roosevelt provides two lists of books about Theodore Roosevelt. He lists what he considers to be the five best books to introduce Roosevelt to newcomers, and he also lists fifty books that he classifies as essential to those wanting “a well-rounded education” on Roosevelt. He lists the five books for newcomers in a a paragraph in the text, but the fifty essential books are numbered and placed in alphabetical order by the author’s or editor’s last name with publication dates ranging from 1906 to 2010. The front cover illustrations to four titles supplement the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2011

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Tweed

In his review of Henry J. Hendrix’s Theodore Roosevelt’s Naval Diplomacy, William N. Tilchin examines each of the seven chapters of the book, highlighting both the issues where he disagrees with Hendrix and praising him for “a well-crafted narrative account” of diplomatic milestones in Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency. Tilchin challenges Hendrix on the latter’s account of the Venezuelan crisis of 1902 – 1903, and he takes exception with one of the conclusion’s assertions, but he finds great value in Hendrix’s chapters on the Panama Canal, the Ion Perdicaris affair, the Treaty of Portsmouth, and Roosevelt’s transformation of the United States Navy. Tilchin’s review includes a number of references to prior works on Roosevelt’s diplomacy, highlighting the historiographical debates which have marked issues addressed by Hendrix. 

Three photographs of naval commanders under Roosevelt and two illustrations, including the book’s cover, supplement the text. An advertisement for chocolate bars from The Chocolate Lady of Oyster Bay, New York, appears at the end of the review.

The Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) announces that it has conferred the title of “Director Emeritus” on Hermann Hagedorn an John A. Gable. The TRA also announces that with this issue of its journal it will inaugurate regular columns from both the editor, William N. Tilchin, and the executive director, Terrence C. Brown, and it notes that TRA members Michael Kort and Tilchin will present papers at a Theodore Roosevelt conference in Paris, France. The section includes a text box listing the President and Executive Directors of the TRA, along with those responsible for assembling its journal, and guidelines for submitting manuscripts.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2010

Creator(s)

Theodore Roosevelt Association

William N. Tilchin provides a detailed look at the 2007 annual meeting of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) in Boston, Massachusetts. Tilchin notes the committee and leadership meetings of the TRA, and he highlights the field trips to the USS Constitution, Harvard University, and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Tilchin’s account also covers the awards presented by the TRA, including the police award for Boston, the Bertha B. Rose Award, and the USS Theodore Roosevelt Junior Officer Leadership Award. Tilchin also notes the various speakers and the topics they addressed in different venues during the weekend meeting.

Fifty photographs populate the report, including five pages with six photographs each, which show the various guests, dignitaries, award winners, speakers, and TRA leaders.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2008

David H. Burton reviews Artists of Power: Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Their Enduring Impact on U.S. Foreign Policy. Burton notes the contributions of eight historians to the work, and he stresses that although Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson are often seen at odds, the two presidents both wanted to see the establishment of some kind of international organization to secure global peace after World War I. Burton acknowledges that Roosevelt and Wilson had major impacts on American diplomacy and security and that their policies led to a larger role for the United States in global affairs.

A photograph of Roosevelt with his right hand resting on a large globe illustrates the review.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

2007

Twelve books compete for space and attention in this crowded edition of the “Book Reviews” section which includes four feature reviews, two brief children’s book reviews, and notices about six other titles. Matthew Glover counters some of the assertions made by Louis Auchincloss in his Theodore Roosevelt by citing the work of historian John Milton Cooper. John A. Gable provides profiles of Alice Roosevelt Longworth and Eleanor Roosevelt, the subjects of Linda Donn’s The Roosevelt Cousins, and he notes the outsize influence that Theodore Roosevelt had on the extended Roosevelt clan. An anonymous review of Theodore Roosevelt, the U.S. Navy, and the Spanish-American War lists the nine chapters that resulted from a conference of the same name, and it notes some of the authors’ ties to the Theodore Roosevelt Association. 

Gable identifies four themes found in the ten essays that make up European Perceptions of the Spanish-American War of 1898, including most European nations’ hostility to the United States in the conflict, and he emphasizes the role played by the Roosevelt Study Center in fostering the emergence of a cohort of European scholars of American history. Two books aimed at children are reviewed in the “Kids Corner” section, and “Other New Books” highlights six titles published in 2001-2002, including new paperback editions of the Roosevelt biographies written by Edmund Morris and his wife Sylvia Jukes Morris. 

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Four books are featured in this edition of the “Books” section with a lengthy book review essay, a brief review, and two notices that act as endorsements for the respective works. In “Serge Ricard on Theodore Roosevelt’s Foreign Policy,” William N. Tilchin examines Ricard’s Theodore Roosevelt: Principles and Practice of a Foreign Policy. Tilchin notes that Ricard’s work is free of much of the ideological baggage that marked his previous work on Roosevelt’s diplomacy, and he carefully lays out the organization of the book, highlighting the main points of each part. Tilchin notes the policies and actions for which Ricard praises Roosevelt, such as his preparation of the United States Navy for war while Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and he also criticizes Ricard for some of his assertions. Tilchin concludes that Ricard’s work “is among the most ambitious and important books ever written on Roosevelt’s foreign policy.”

The section features five brief excerpts from Theodore Roosevelt: Many-Sided American and six excerpts from Nathan Miller’s biography Theodore Roosevelt: A Life. “Books” closes with an anonymous review of Matinecock Light, a history of the Oyster Bay, New York, Masonic Lodge which counted Roosevelt as one of its members. An illustration and a photograph of Roosevelt appear in the section.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1992

Buildings connected to Theodore Roosevelt make up much of this edition of the “News and Notes” section. The Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) acquired Roosevelt’s presidential retreat in Virginia, Pine Knot, and the federal government renamed the building housing the Office of Personnel Management the Theodore Roosevelt Federal Building. “News and Notes” also highlights the premiere of a PBS documentary on the 1992 Rio Roosevelt Expedition; discusses the foreign policy focus of this issue TRA Journal; and notes the inauguration of President Bill Clinton.

Two photographs of Pine Knot and three photographs of the ceremonies at the Theodore Roosevelt Federal Building appear in the section.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1992

William N. Tilchin surveys the major works on President Theodore Roosevelt’s foreign policy from 1956 to 1986, looking at nine books and one article. Tilchin provides detailed reviews of eight of the books, and highlights the discussion of diplomacy in the ninth. In doing so, Tilchin addresses the historiography of Roosevelt and his foreign policy, and he demonstrates how Roosevelt’s reputation as a diplomat grew from the low point it reached with Henry F. Pringle’s biography of 1931. Tilchin touches on the major international crises and issues of Roosevelt’s presidency, including the Philippine American War, the creation of the Panama Canal, and the voyage of the Great White Fleet. The essay is supported by 183 endnotes and includes a listing of publications about Roosevelt’s diplomacy not addressed in the text.

The article also contains three text boxes: one lists the leadership of the Theodore Roosevelt Association; another, “About the Author,” notes Tilchin’s work as a teacher and historian; and a third says that this issue of the journal “is dedicated to the people of the State of North Dakota.” A portrait of Roosevelt and a photograph of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt with elements of her air wing illustrate the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1989

This edition of the “News and Notes” section opens with a report on the annual meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA). The report notes the election of new members and classes of the Board of Trustees and of the TRA’s leadership for 1985-1986. The section also covers the TRA’s involvement in the Outward Bound program and the granting of the first Theodore Roosevelt Scholarship for that program, the results of the Theodore Roosevelt Public Speaking Contest for the New York City public high schools, and the passing of Philippa Jeffries Roosevelt. 

The section also covers the “first scholarship conference devoted entirely to TR” at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, which was held in October 1985. It also notes new works on Theodore Roosevelt, a panel on Roosevelt’s foreign policy to be held at the meeting of the Organization of American Historians, and highlights the work of Frederick W. Marks and Serge Ricard on Roosevelt’s diplomacy found in this issue. The section closes with a notice that Edmund Morris has signed a contract to write a biography of President Ronald Reagan. 

Photographs of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site, and of Edmund Morris are included in the section.

This edition of the “News and Notes” section features a report on an exhibition entitled Theodore at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum. The report lists the various entities that donated materials to the exhibition, quotes from the catalog introduction written by John A. Gable of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA), and notes some of the other exhibitions hosted by the Johnson Library. Readers are also reminded that two documentary films about Roosevelt, My Father the President and The Indomitable Teddy Roosevelt, are available for sale. The report provides more information about each film as well as contact information to enable purchases.

“News and Notes” also highlights the lectures and appearances of Gable and TRA President William Davison Johnston at various schools, notes the passing of Jean Schermerhorn Roosevelt, and praises the work of Nicholas LaBella, the Superintendent of Youngs Memorial Cemetery in Oyster Bay, New York. This issue of the Journal is dedicated to LaBella. The section closes with a reminder that there are still aspects of Roosevelt’s life that need study, and it declares that the TRA is open to helping those who wish to pursue this work.

Two photographs are found in the section: one of Roosevelt standing in the back of an open car and another of LaBella. A detail of the Roosevelt photograph appears on the front cover of this issue.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

This “News Notes” column covers the latest in Theodore Roosevelt scholarship from contributions to the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal to the issuance of paperback versions of books on Roosevelt to listing the latest articles published on Roosevelt in historical journals. It also notes speeches and an interview given by the executive director of the Theodore Roosevelt Association, John A. Gable.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1982

Creator(s)

Unknown