The Theodore Roosevelt Association was formed several days after Theodore Roosevelt died on January 6, 1919. The founders of the Association hoped to build a "movement to perpetuate the memory of Theodore Roosevelt and the principles for which he stood." The first President of this Association was William Boyce Thompson, a philanthropist and mining magnate. He was followed by poet/historian Hermann Hagedorn (1919-1957), Leslie C. Stratton (a force in the Boy Scout movement) and, in 1974, by historian John A. Gable. The first charter and trustee members came from all walks of life, including Roosevelt's camping companions, naturalists, writers, historians, politicians, and financiers.
On May 31, 1920, The Roosevelt Memorial Association (RMA) was formally incorporated by an Act of Congress. At this time, a Woman's Roosevelt Memorial Association was founded, spearheaded by Mrs. Douglas Robinson (Theodore Roosevelt's sister) and a host of other women who worked in collaboration with The Roosevelt Memorial Association. The RMA became the Theodore Roosevelt Association in 1953. In 1965, the Theodore Roosevelt Association merged with the Women's Association.
From the onset, members of the Theodore Roosevelt Association worked to build a scholarly, comprehensive collection of writings about the life and times of Theodore Roosevelt. Many items from this significant collection of books, pamphlets, manuscripts, archives, and ephemera were donated to institutions such as Harvard (Theodore Roosevelt's alma mater) and the Library of Congress.
In 1974, Director John Gable facilitated the donation of the Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection to LIU. The Symposium and Dedication marking this event was on Saturday, October 26, 1974.
The Collection is housed in Archives and Special Collections in the Library at LIU Post and is available to the academic community, scholars, and the general researcher. LIU's Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection is comprehensive with holdings of more than 3,000 books, pamphlets, documents, and archives concerning the life, times, and interests of our 26th President as well as Theodore Roosevelt's rich and prolific writings. Theodore Roosevelt was our Long Island President whose summer White House was Sagamore Hill in nearby Oyster Bay, New York.
Benefactors: Donated in 1974 by The Theodore Roosevelt Association, Oyster Bay, New York. |
Excerpt from the Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection Symposium and Dedication Brochure, Saturday, October 26, 1974: "It is a very poor thing... to advance the history of great deeds done in the past as an excuse for doing poorly in the present; but it is an excellent thing to study the history of the great deeds of the past, and of the great men who did them, with an earnest desire to profit thereby so as to render better service in the present. In their essentials, the men of the present day, and the live issues of the present can be faced to better advantage by men who have in good faith studied how the leaders of the nation faced the dead issues of the past." T.R., 1905 |
Collection Time Period: 19th - Late 20th Century |
Abstract: This is a comprehensive collection of over 3,000 books, pamphlets and documents concerning the life, times and interests of our 26th President as well as T.R.'s rich and prolific writings. |
Scope and Content: 3,000 books, pamphlets and documents |
User Restrictions: The Collection is available for viewing in the Special Collections' Reading Room. Requests for digital images are considered on a case by case basis. Please call or email us for an appointment. |
Holding's List Compilers: Graziella DiMaggio & Wesley Luce |
Follow the link below to see a list of books in the Theodore Roosevelt Association Collection that have been added to Long Island University's online catalog (LIUCat). The link will open in a new tab.
In 1905, author Seymour Eaton began to write and illustrate a humorous weekly newspaper which included poetry for children. Two of Eaton’s illustrations were of the anthropomorphic bears, Teddy-B and Teddy-G. In playful parody of Theodore Roosevelt and his adventures, these bears from Colorado wanted to travel to investigate human society. The publications augmented the Teddy Bear craze which began in 1902 when it was popularized that Roosevelt saved a bear his staff tied to a tree for his sport. For more than twenty years, the Teddy Bears created by Eaton were featured in many juvenile books. The Roosevelt Bears in the following series were originally produced in 1906 and 1907 . V. Floyd Campbell was the illustrator for the original 1906 postcards. R. K. Culver illustrated the original 1907 postcards in this series. These selected postcards are reproductions which were published in 1964, with one dated 1985.
The Theodore Roosevelt Association website can be found at:
"The TRI serves as a home for research, public seminars, workshops, educational programs, and conferences about Roosevelt, his times, and contemporaries. As a hands-on learning space, the TRI showcases many of the 26th President’s writings and collections. As a forum for academic assessment and discussion of his legacy, conferences and events led by preeminent scholars offer public access to local history and an ability to connect with that history in a very real way."
Archives and Special Collections is located on the second floor of the LIU Post Library.
Rooms: 345-346
Heather Hesse - Special Collections Assistant
Archives and Special Collections
516/299-2880
Heather.Hesse@liu.edu
Hours: 9:00-5:00, Monday-Friday