Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt. Citizen Soldier, Steward to the Nation. , Citizen Soldier , “I waved my hat and went up the hill with a rush.” , In 1898, Roosevelt resigned as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, volunteered for service in the Spanish-American War and became Lieutenant Colonel of the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry. On July 1, 1898, he led the “Rough Riders” up Cuba’s Kettle Hill and returned home a national hero. After the war, Roosevelt’s name was put forth for New York’s governorship. , [image] Colonel Roosevelt with his children (from the left are Ethel, Ted Jr., Kermit and Alice) and officers at Camp Wikoff in Montauk, 1898. , Colonel Roosevelt at Montauk, Long Island, shortly before his regiment was mustered out of service in 1898. , “The object of government is the welfare of the people.” , Steward of the Nation , At age 42, following President McKinley’s assassination in 1901, Roosevelt was inaugurated the 26th and youngest president of the United States in Buffalo. He established the model for the modern presidency, building upon programs created while governor of New York State. , ★ He was the first president to mediate a labor dispute. , ★ He championed legislation regulating the railroads, interstate commerce, labor and the food and drug industries. , ★ He helped protect the Americas from European invasion with a corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. , ★ He began construction on the Panama Canal, heralding a new era in foreign affairs and international trade. , ★ He negotiated the end of the Russo-Japanese War. As a result, in 1908, he became the first American to win the Nobel Peace Prize. , ★ He built up the Navy, helping to make it the “big stick” of international diplomacy. , [image] Roosevelt delivers a fiery oration at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, in 1903. . This historical marker was erected by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. It is in North Creek in Warren County New York