Vivian, James F.

A collection of Theodore Roosevelt’s speeches in North Dakota and two novels, a Western and an account of the Spanish American War in Cuba, comprise the works under scrutiny in the “Book Reviews” section. John A. Gable praises James F. Vivian’s The Romance of My Life: Theodore Roosevelt’s Speeches in North Dakota because it brings to life speeches which had not previously been published and because it demonstrates Roosevelt’s “long and affectionate relationship with the state and people of North Dakota.” Elizabeth E. Roosevelt likes Brian Garfield’s Western “Manifest Destiny” which portrays the people and events of Roosevelt’s time in Dakota from 1884 to 1886, with the Marquis de Mores playing the role of the villain. Perry D. Floyd also likes Remember Santiago, which he calls “fictional oral history,” despite the fact that Roosevelt and his Rough Riders are largely absent from the story.

Gable concludes the section with an essay, “TR in Fiction,” in which he argues that the revival of interest in Roosevelt has led to his appearance in many novels and may lead to readers searching out more nonfiction titles about him. But Gable also warns that there is a danger that the fictional portrayals will lead to a distorted picture of Roosevelt in the public mind.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1989

Six of the ten pages of this edition of the “News and Notes” column are devoted to the visit of a delegation from the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) to the Netherlands in October 1989. The TRA, for the first time, held its annual meeting and dinner outside of the United States. The column notes the group’s visit to various sites across the Netherlands, describes the activities of the Roosevelt Study Center, and discusses fundraising efforts to support the Center. The column also discusses efforts to increase the endowment for the TRA and to establish an endowment for the Theodore Roosevelt Collection at Harvard University.

The column is illustrated with fifteen photographs from the TRA’s visit to the Netherlands and two more from the fundraising dinner held to support the endowment of the Roosevelt collection at Harvard.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1989

The “Book Reviews” section examines two books in detail while providing short notices of five others under the heading “New Books of Interest.” Matthew J. Glover reviews Selwa Roosevelt’s chronicle of her seven year stint as Chief of Protocol for the United States during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. New books given brief notices include a study of President Theodore Roosevelt’s diplomacy in the Caribbean basin and an examination of Roosevelt as a speaker. The section also notes the publication of a paperback version of Sylvia Jukes Morris’s biography of Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt and a paperback of Theodore Roosevelt’s Outdoor Pastimes of an American Hunter. The section praises James F. Vivian’s collection of Theodore Roosevelt’s speeches in North Dakota and closes with a review of William Davison Johnston’s history of the Oyster Bay, New York, Presbyterian Church.

Photographs of Selwa Roosevelt and Richard H. Collin appear in the section as does a text box noting that this issue of the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal is “dedicated to the memory of Archibald B. Roosevelt, Junior,” husband of Selwa Roosevelt.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1990

Two books undergo scrutiny in this edition of the “Book Reviews” section while ten others are mentioned in a “Book Notes” subsection that lists recently released or reissued titles. Elizabeth E. Roosevelt reviews Richard H. Collin’s Theodore Roosevelt’s Caribbean and gives a brief overview of each of the work’s four sections, praising the book for its portraits of key players involved in the various diplomatic tussles of the Roosevelt administration in the Caribbean basin. The review is followed by seven excerpts from Collin’s book, ranging from a single sentence to short paragraphs. Donald F. Kirkpatrick reviews Ralph H. Lutts’s The Nature Fakers which chronicles Theodore Roosevelt’s fight with William J. Long and other nature writers who attributed human traits to animals.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1991

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Elizabeth E.; Collin, Richard H.; Kirkpatrick, Donald F.; Unknown

Joyce M. Bisso opens this edition of “News and Notes” with a report on the effort to gather library books from the greater Oyster Bay, New York, area to build a library for the sailors aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt. The task fell to students from Oyster Bay High School and local public libraries. Bisso quotes the two sailors from the ship, Petty Officer Timothy L. Blackstone and Senior Chief Edward J. Tessier, who came to Oyster Bay to collect the books and other materials gathered by the community. The article also reprints a letter from Captain Paul W. Parcells, Commanding Officer of USS Theodore Roosevelt, to William Davison Johnston, the President of the Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA). A photograph of students examining books; one of Blackstone and Tessier; and another of the two sailors with Oyster Bay High School students appear in the article. 

 

The section also contains a report on the natural history research grants awarded from the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Fund by the American Museum of Natural History in New York City for 1986. The report notes the members of the TRA who serve on the awards committee, lists the winner of the largest award, Mark L. McKnight, and it provides a history of the involvement of Theodore Roosevelt and his father with the museum. A chart listing the number of award applications, the number of awards, and the value of the grants from 1961 to 1986 appears in this section.

 

“News and Notes” also reports that Elizabeth E. Roosevelt of the TRA will volunteer at the Roosevelt Study Center in the Netherlands when it opens in the fall of 1986. The section notes that Edmund Morris will be one of the speakers at the Center’s opening, and it relays the purpose and the location of the Center. The section discusses the work of several Roosevelt historians and biographers, including Sylvia Jukes Morris, John Milton Cooper, and Kathleen Dalton. “News and Notes” closes with an obituary of Julian K. Roosevelt who was an accomplished yachtsman and a member of the International Olympic Committee.