Teddy Roosevelt

[rwsmith]

H wasn't born that way.......

'Vigorous living" was his credo. He made himself an outdoorsman and refused to let ill health stand in his way. A 'Bully' President for sure. To me, one of the 'Bullyest'

 

[eveled]

I remember an episode of the Grizzly Adams show. I young aszmatic green horn wandered through at the end of the show you realized he was TR.

As a young asthma sufferer myself it sort of sparked my interest in TR, he was quite a man. Doesn't seem like he let anything hold him back.

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[Absalom]

Most people aren't aware that TR was also our "writingest" president, the one with the most books and other publications to his credit.

He wrote not just classic accounts of his own adventures like "Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail" and the above-mentioned "African Game Trails", but also serious scholarly history like his series "The Winning of the West" and his naval history of the War of 1812.

And on a different note, if you haven't seen it yet, be sure to watch the late Brian Keith's performance as TR in "The Wind and the Lion" from 1975, one of the best portrayals of any president in a movie (even though the storyline was heavily fictionalized). Lots of period-correct guns, too.

 

[ParadiseRoad]

...Theodore and Elliot Roosevelt...1880...

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[ParadiseRoad]

...President Theodore Roosevelt and naturalist John Muir on Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park, 1906...

 

[ParadiseRoad]

 

[M_conrad_0311]

His 1899 FNH Browning that he was known to keep with him at all times after McKinley was assassinated. "They got McKinley, they won't get me" was his reply to those that suggested he not carry.

https://cdn.outdoorhub.com/wp-conte...lts-personal-firearms-2015-06-23_19-10-49.jpg

 

[M_conrad_0311]

Conrad, you wanna call that an "unpublished" photo, above. Neat pic.

I will definitely have to retract the "unpublished" part. Just recapitulated how it was sold to me.

 

[Inusuit]

On October 14, 1912 Theodore Roosevelt (yes, he hated being called Teddy), was shot in the chest with a Colt revolver (caliber unspecified) as he prepared to give a speech In Milwaukee. Refusing medical treatment, he gave a 90 minute address. The bullet was slowed by the folded copy of the speech in his breast pocket and a steel eyeglass case.

My only argument with TR is his shabby treatment of daughter Alice after the death of his first wife shortly following the daughter's birth. TR's wife and mother died within 24 hours and he was devastated. Alice was a thorn in TR's side for most of his life.

 

[Texas Star]

In some photos, the stock of the M-1876 Winchester seems cracked. Seems as if he wouldn't have tolerated that for long.

I don't know where Dwalt saw that he had a Remington Model 8 in Africa, but he could have, and ranges then were usually under 200 yards on most game, so it'd have been pretty effective on many animals, many no larger than a US deer. Would also be effective on such animals as warthog and leopard.

TR said his son Kermit had a M-95 Winchester in, I think, .30 Army caliber. TR may not have had a .30 version, himself. He certainly had the .405 model, seen in some photos above. The gun in the elephant photo is probably the .450 gift from a group of white hunters.

 

[Bullet Bob]

For the readers among you, I can recommend TR's book African Game Trails about his safari after leaving office. It was published in 1909/1910. I bought this copy at a library used book sale, I can't remember if it was in the 1990's, or 2000's. Sadly, it had not been checked out since 1953.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Imagine if we had a presidential candidate with his credentials these days...

 

[Absalom]

Another part of TR's life that gets little attention but is quite interesting is his brief stint as police commissioner in New York City in the 1890s.

During his tenure, New York became the first or at least one of the first major metropolitan departments to introduce a standard service sidearm. The "Roosevelt Colts", approximately 5000 .32 Colt New Police revolvers inscribed "New York Police" on the backstrap, are a classic among collectors. I believe our member Charles (policerevolvercollector) has got one.

The corruption in urban police departments of that era was almost legendary, and TR's attempts to clean up the NYCPD were valiant but ultimately annoyed so many people that the political machines that ran the city were happy when he got promoted out of there to Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1896.

A good book about "TR vs. NYC" is Richard Zacks' "Island of Vice".

 

[klondike]

"His 1899 FNH Browning that he was known to keep with him at all times after McKinley was assassinated. 'They got McKinley, they won't get me' was his reply to those that suggested he not carry."

I read somewhere, that the women sitting behind TR in church were horrified to see that he carried a pistol to church. They complained to no avail.

 

[DWalt]

"I don't know where Dwalt saw that he had a Remington Model 8 in Africa, but he could have, and ranges then were usually under 200 yards on most game, so it'd have been pretty effective on many animals, many no larger than a US deer. Would also be effective on such animals as warthog and leopard."

See: Going Into Africa Poster - thegreatmodel8.remingtonsociety.com Especially the last posting of the thread. Notice TR's shadow below the first camel. He forbade showing any personal connection with advertising for the guns (he didn't want to be seen as endorsing anything), but the shadow implied it. Winchester also ran a similar advertisement for the Model 1895, which strongly alluded to Roosevelt's use of it on his safari, but without specifically showing or saying that Roosevelt used it.