Roosevelt, Alice Lee, 1861-1884

Kathleen Dalton explores “a little known side of” Theodore Roosevelt: his love of telling stories. Dalton identifies ghost stories, animal and hunting stories, tales from his days as a cowboy, and stories involving the Rough Riders as some of Roosevelt’s favorite topics. She also says that he liked to talk about his own adventures, such as hiking in Rock Creek Park, or discussing his political friends and foes, and she says that Roosevelt’s favorite audience for his stories was his children. Dalton identifies a number of people who were subjects of Roosevelt’s tales or who, like Rudyard Kipling, were captivated by listening to his stories.

Two photographs of Roosevelt, and an illustration of him telling a camp fire story to children, supplement the article which also has two text boxes with information about the Theodore Roosevelt Association.

This edition of “Book Notes” lives up to its billing as it features two brief reviews and notes about five other works previously reviewed in the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal. The section praises two new works, a biography of Alice Lee Roosevelt and a study of the Rough Riders from New Mexico, and it promotes Joseph R. Ornig’s study of the River of Doubt expedition and three books on Theodore Roosevelt’s tenure as Police Commissioner of New York City.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1994-1995

Creator(s)

Unknown

William Davison Johnston, President of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA), opens this lengthy and crowded edition of the “News and Notes” section by praising the documentary “The Indomitable Teddy Roosevelt,” noting the opening of the Roosevelt Study Center in the Netherlands, and discussing the role of the TRA in the commissioning of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt. The section covers the conferring of two awards sponsored by the TRA: the TRA Police Award and the Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Naval History Prize. Officer Vivian F. Picciarelli won the Police Award for 1986 and was the first woman to do so while Ronald H. Spector won the Naval History Prize for his book Eagle Against the Sun. “News and Notes” also discusses the work of historians Edmund Morris and Joe F. Decker on Theodore Roosevelt’s political language, and it notes the recent publications of TRA Executive Director John A. Gable on Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, and Amos Pinchot.

“News and Notes” also covers the death of David Russell Roosevelt, a great grandson of Theodore Roosevelt, the reprinting of Sagamore Hill: An Historical Guide by the TRA, efforts to mark the spot of Roosevelt’s famous bear hunt of 1902 in Mississippi, and the various student contests and awards for high school students sponsored by the TRA. The section also examines the donation of letters to Harvard University by Joanna Sturm, Alice Roosevelt Longworth’s granddaughter. Letters to and from Theodore Roosevelt with Alice Hathaway Lee, his first wife, and Longworth, his daughter, make up most of the donation. An exhibit at Harvard and an article, both based on the correspondence, are also covered. The section closes with a report on three benefits, two balls and a reception, held in July and August 1986, to benefit the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The historic locations for the events, the involvement of the Roosevelt family, and the officers of the ship who attended are all discussed.

A photograph of Harrison Engle and Sidney D. Kirkpatrick working on the documentary “The Indomitable Teddy Roosevelt,” an illustration of both sides of the TRA medallion, an illustration of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, and the Roosevelt family coat of arms appear in “News and Notes.”

Leslie G. Foschio explains how the home of Ansley Wilcox of Buffalo, New York, became, over time, the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site. Foschio provides an overview of Roosevelt’s career, looks at the history of the Wilcox Mansion, and explores intersections in the lives of Roosevelt and Wilcox. Foschio documents how the house was saved from the wrecking ball more than once, and he details the efforts of local politicians and volunteers who rallied in the 1960s to save the home and secure it a place in the ranks of National Park Service sites.

A drawing of the Wilcox Mansion and an illustration of Roosevelt in a dynamic speaking pose supplement the text.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1983-10-26

Photograph showing three-quarter length portrait of Alice Lee Roosevelt.

Collection

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Creation Date

1880-1884

Creator(s)

Unknown

Four brief book reviews comprise the “Book Notes” column. John A. Gable reviews Michael Teague’s oral history of Alice Roosevelt Longworth and praises it for its use of 170 photographs, and he also examines Stephen Fox’s John Muir and His Legacy which not only looks at Muir’s life and work, but at many lesser known conservationists who comprise Muir’s legacy. Elizabeth E. Roosevelt reviews Thomas G. Dyer’s Theodore Roosevelt and the Idea of Race and finds its chapters on Native Americans and African Americans valuable while Janice Marino finds William L. DeAndrea’s novel The Lunatic Fringe worthless.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1981

Creator(s)

Gable, John A.; Roosevelt, Elizabeth E.; Marino, Janice, 1931-2017

Obituary of Alice Roosevelt Longworth, the first born and last to die of Theodore Roosevelt’s children. The obituary details her celebrity status during her father’s presidency, her wedding to Congressman Nicholas Longworth, and his career in the House of Representatives. The notice also examines Alice Longworth’s decades long position as a Washington, D.C. power broker and socialite, and it notes her friendship with presidents, journalists, and celebrities. Her work in compiling an anthology of American poetry, her relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt, and her efforts to memorialize her father are also covered. The obituary notes her love of reading, acerbic wit, and sense of humor.

Four photographs accompany the article: the first shows Alice in 1904; the second shows the entire Roosevelt family, Theodore and Edith Roosevelt and all of their children and Alice’s husband, Nicholas Longworth, at the White House; the third shows Alice with her sister Ethel Derby and her brother Archibald Roosevelt at Theodore Roosevelt Island in Washington, D.C.; and the fourth is of Alice late in life.

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

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

John A. Gable opens this edition of “News and Notes” by quoting from the notice placed in the New York Timesby the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) upon the death of Alice Roosevelt Longworth. He notes the recent work of biographers, historians, and journalists on Theodore Roosevelt, and he details some of his work as Executive Director of the TRA, giving lectures to high school students, taping a cable television program on Roosevelt, and conducting tours of Youngs Cemetery and Sagamore Hill. Gable highlights the support of the Pizza Hut restaurant chain for the Roosevelt Genealogical Project.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1980

Creator(s)

Gable, John A.

John A. Gable begins the “Book Notes” column with a review of Sylvia Jukes Morris’s biography Edith Kermit Roosevelt: Portrait of a First Lady. In doing so, he provides a shorter, but still complete examination of Roosevelt’s life, and highlights the research Morris did utilizing letters, Roosevelt’s diary, and interviews.

Three pictures of Edith Roosevelt are included in the review: one considered the favorite of her husband, Theodore Roosevelt; a drawing by John Singer Sargent; and a third of Edith Roosevelt with Lou Henry Hoover, the wife of Herbert Hoover.

In Gable’s following review of Frederick W. Mark’s Velvet on Iron: The Diplomacy of Theodore Roosevelt, Gable places the work in the context of other studies of Roosevelt and argues that it represents a further step in an ongoing reappraisal of Roosevelt. He quotes extensively from Marks and from Edmund Morris’s review of the work.

A picture of Roosevelt at his desk at Sagamore Hill accompanies the review.

A listing of the officers and the members of the executive, finance, and Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace committees of the Theodore Roosevelt Association is included among the reviews.

Edmund Morris argues that “the more one analyzes Theodore Roosevelt in the harsh light of historical research, the more authentic an American hero he becomes.” Morris looks at different episodes in Roosevelt’s life, such as his service during the Spanish-American War, to make his case, and he compares Roosevelt’s life to heroic figures from mythology and literature such as Hercules, Beowulf, and King Lear.  

Homer Davenport’s famous cartoon, “He’s good enough for me,” featuring Uncle Sam and Theodore Roosevelt is on the first page of the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Obituary for Ethel Roosevelt Derby, Theodore Roosevelt’s eldest daughter, written by John A. Gable. Gable quotes from various newspapers reporting her death, describes the funeral service, and lists the all male pallbearers. In addition to naming her siblings and her own children, he describes Ethel’s service in World War I as a nurse and her long years of service to the American Red Cross. Gable details her work with the American Museum of Natural History in New York City and her role in preserving Sagamore Hill National Historic Site.

Three photographs accompany the obituary: one shows Ethel Roosevelt as a child at the White House in 1902; another shows her with First Lady Rosalyn Carter at the White House in 1977 and the third shows the entire Theodore Roosevelt family (along with Congressman Nicholas Longworth) at the White House in an undated photo.  

A listing of the officers of the Theodore Roosevelt Association is found on the first page of the obituary.

Reprint of an article that originally appeared in Ms. Magazine in August 1976. Author Harriet Shapiro interviewed Theodore Roosevelt’s daughter Ethel Roosevelt Derby at her home in Oyster Bay, New York. Much of the piece is devoted to Ethel’s memories of life with her family at their family home Sagamore Hill. She relates how her parents, Theodore Roosevelt and Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt, dealt with the children, and she notes how the Roosevelt siblings paired off, and she talks of her relationship with her older sister Alice Roosevelt Longworth.

A familiar picture of the assembled Roosevelt family and a close-up of Ethel Roosevelt Derby accompany the article.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1977

The Bismarck Tribune reports on the death of Theodore Roosevelt at his home in Oyster Bay, New York, early on the morning of January 6, 1919. His secretary Josephine M. Stricker, who reported it to the press, received the news from Roosevelt’s wife Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt. It is believed that Roosevelt passed away painlessly, and that his death was due to inflammatory rheumatism. News of Roosevelt’s death quickly drew a large number of telegrams expressing condolence and sympathy, and both houses of Congress adjourned out of respect for Roosevelt. Following this article, The Bismarck Tribune also presents a brief biography of Roosevelt’s life and political achievements. Apart from news of Roosevelt’s death, the paper also has several articles related to North Dakota politics, a brief mention of troop movements occurring in Europe, and a comment on the success of a recent Liberty Loan drive for the Ninth federal reserve district.

Collection

Dickinson State University

Creation Date

1919-01-06

Creator(s)

Unknown

This draft of the Environmental Statement for the proposed Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park includes four parts: a summary and description of the proposal for Congress to designate 28,335 acres as wilderness, a description of the environment including geology and plant and animal life, an outline of environmental impact, and an outline of mitigating measures.

Collection

Denver Public Library

Creation Date

1972-09-10

Creator(s)

United States. Department of the Interior

Assemblyman Roosevelt was grateful for the sympathy expressed by H. D. Minot on the death of Alice Lee Roosevelt. Presently, Roosevelt cannot bear to see much of anyone but hopes that soon he will see much of his old friend, Minot.

Collection

Massachusetts Historical Society

Creation Date

1884-02-21

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Assemblyman Roosevelt was glad to hear from H. D. Minot and expects to see him at Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, this summer. Roosevelt intends to call his daughter Alice by the name Lee as, after the death of his wife Alice Lee Roosevelt, he could not have another, “not even her own child, bear her name.”

Collection

Massachusetts Historical Society

Creation Date

1884-03-09

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Sheet music for “Alice Roosevelt March.” The cover displays a black and white photograph of Roosevelt with a parrot.

Collection

Dr. Danny O. Crew Theodore Roosevelt Sheet Music Collection

Creation Date

1905

Creator(s)

Miles, H. R. W.

Diary of Theodore Roosevelt for the year 1880. Major events include Roosevelt’s graduation from Harvard, entry into Columbia Law School, and a Midwestern hunting trip with Elliott Roosevelt. Roosevelt also engaged, married, and honeymooned with Alice Lee Roosevelt. The diary concludes with notes on Roosevelt’s personal finances and “game bag” totals for several years.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1880

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Diary of Theodore Roosevelt for the year 1879. Roosevelt attended Harvard College, spent the summer in Oyster Bay, New York, and went on two expeditions to Maine. The diary concludes with notes on Roosevelt’s personal finances and his “game bag” for the year.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1879

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Diary of Theodore Roosevelt for the year 1882. Diary only contains entries through February. Roosevelt spent the majority of time in Albany, New York, as a member of the New York State Assembly.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1882

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919