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Theodore Roosevelt, 1858-1919
Twenty-sixth president, 1901–1909
An outsize personality who preached the benefits of the "strenuous life" while also being among themost learned of presidents, Theodore Roosevelt gained national prominence as a civil service reformer, a hero of the Spanish-American War, and a proactive governor of New York. After William McKinley was assassinated in 1901, Roosevelt took office and initiated one of American history's most reform-oriented presidencies. His contributions would include implementing efforts to conserve the nation's disappearing natural heritage, instituting some of the first significant curbs on the excesses of big business, and building the Panama Canal.
Despite having progressive views on labor and consumer issues, Roosevelt maintained conservative views on a number of social issues. For example, he felt convinced that a declining birthrate among old-stock Americans threatened the nation as a whole and therefore opposed immigration, birth control, and the redefinition of women's roles. Roosevelt was a fascinating bundle of contradictions, above all as a patrician who realized that unless essential reforms were initiated by government, American democracy was likely to fail.
Adrian Lamb, after Philip de Laszlo, 1967, after the 1908 original |