Theodore Roosevelt

26th President of the United States (1901-1909)

Theodore Roosevelt was an energetic and dynamic leader who gave the 
nation a square deal. During his presidency to a position of internatio
nal leadership.

Roosevelt belonged to an aristocratic New York family. He attended 
Harvard Univerity. Theodore Roosevelt fought in the Spanish-American 
war with the Rough Riders at the battle of San Juan Hill. He had served 
as police commissiores of New York, assistant secretary of the navy, 
governor of New York, and vice president of the United States. When 
president McKinley was assassinated on September 14, 1901, Theodore 
Roosevelt became, at the time, the youngest (43 years) president in 
hist ory.

The president saw himself as a man of the middle who would meditate the 
struggle between capital and labor. He said that business must be 
protected against itself and he tended to favor regulatory commissions 
that provided nonpartisan supervisi on by experts of business 
practices. As president he succeeded in getting additional authority 
over the railroads for the interstate commerce commission. He was also 
instrumental in the passage of the meat inspection act and the pure 
food and drug act. Ro attitude toward the poor and towards the labor 
movement was that of an enlightened conservative. He supported many 
labor demands such as shorter hours for women and children, employers' 
liability laws and limitations on the use of injunctions against 
workers in labor disputes.

In reform, Roosevelt wanted gradual change. He moved in the direction 
of the reformers and ended up as the candidate of the progressive party 
in the Bull Moose presidential campaingn in 1912. He had broken with 
the Repub lican party.

In 1907 immigration reached its all-time high 1,285,000 in one year. 
Theodore Roosevelt said, "There can be no divided allegiance here. Any 
man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an 
American at all. We have ro om but for on language here and that is the 
English language, for we intend to see that the crucible turns our 
people out as Americans, of American nationality; we have room for but 
one soul loyalty, and that is loyalty to the American people."

Ro l ed the United States into continous armed interventions in the 
caribbean. In 1906 an insurrection in Cuba caused the United States to 
intervene in its affairs. The American government withdrew its power 
when ordr was restored.

In the Philippines c ivil government was put into operation, and a 
communications cable was laid across the Pacific.

Roosevelt intervened in the war betwwen Russia and Japan. He invited 
the Russian and Japanese governments to send peace commissioners to 
America where a peace treaty was sighned in 1905. The following year 
the president was awarded the nobel peace prize.

People had wanted a canal connectiong the Atlantic and Pacific for 
hundreds of years. A French company, which went bankrupt, had started 
the pro ject. The company sold the panamanian rights to build the canal 
to the United States government. Colombia, whose territory included 
Panama, didn't agree to the terms offered by the Uninted States. Ro did 
not think much of he of Latin Americans to begin with. He called he 
colombians "foolish and homicidal corruptionits." The Roosevelt 
administration supported a revolt by the Panamanians against Colombia. 
The new country of Panama signed a canal treaty favorable to the United 
States in 1903. The Pana ma canal was completed August 15, 1914.

President Theodore Roosevelt died at Sagamore hill, his home at oyster 
bay, New York, on January 6, 1919.