T Theodore Roosevelt President and Conservationist

Theodore Roosevelt
President and Conservationist
T
heodore Roosevelt, our 26th President, was like a tornado.
Strong and bursting with energy, he always shook things
up. But he wasn’t always that way. Born with severe asthma, he
was frail, nervous, and too sickly to attend school. Teddy, as his
Born: October 27, 1858,
friends called him, fought back. Determined to become strong,
in New York City
he drove himself relentlessly. He had a great love of nature
Died: January 6, 1919, at
and the outdoors. He kept reptiles in his mother’s refrigerator
home in Oyster Bay, New
and birds in his room. Eventually, he became our country’s
York
“conservationist President.” A conservationist believes in
Famous for: being the
preserving precious natural resources such as water, wilderness,
26th President; overseeing
and wildlife.
the creation of the
Panama Canal
Roosevelt’s feeling for nature was deeply personal. Tragedy
struck when his wife, Alice, and mother, Martha, died on the
same day. So he headed west to the Badlands of Dakota. This landscape of windswept rock
formations and little vegetation comforted him. Throwing himself into ranching as a way to
work out his grief, he learned how to be a regular cowboy. Teddy’s energy exhausted ordinary
people, but he always put thought and purpose behind his activity.
Educated at Harvard and Columbia Law School, Roosevelt was the author of numerous
books on wildlife, hunting, history, and politics. Teddy organized the Rough Riders, a cavalry
(horse) unit, and fought in the Spanish-American War. He returned home a hero and was
elected the governor of New York, and then vice president of the United States. When President
William McKinley was assassinated, he became President, winning election on his own in 1904.
His accomplishments included undertaking the building of the Panama Canal, connecting the
Atlantic and Pacific oceans. He introduced the idea of government inspections to keep our food
safe and declared the United States to be protector of the Western Hemisphere (North, Central,
and South America). He passed laws to keep business responsible to citizens. For ending the
Russo-Japanese War, Roosevelt earned the Nobel Peace Prize. His efforts in conservation earned
him the honor of being the only person to have a National Park named for him—Theodore
Roosevelt National Park in the Badlands of North Dakota. A carved likeness of his face, in the
company of Lincoln, Washington, and Jefferson, graces Mt. Rushmore in the Black Hills near
Keystone, South Dakota.
President Roosevelt had six children—five with his second wife, Edith Kermit Carow. He
never lost his love for the joys of childhood. Therefore, it is fitting that the most popular and
beloved toy of all time is named for him—the teddy bear.
44
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords
Name
Theodore Roosevelt
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
DOWN
13
15
16
1.President
Roosevelt is
responsible for
building the
Canal.
14
17
18
19
3.
was
the name of
Roosevelt’s first
wife.
20
5.Teddy kept
in the
family refrigerator
when he was a boy.
6.When President
became President.
7.Theodore Roosevelt was noted for being a
great
.
8.The
are windswept formations with
little vegetation.
10.The
were troops trained to fight
on horseback.
9.Teddy Roosevelt, sometimes called T. R., lived
to be
years old.
12.As a boy, Theodore suffered from severe
.
11.Teddy went to the
wife and mother died.
14.For ending the Russo-Japanese War, Roosevelt
received the
Peace Prize.
13.Roosevelt wanted the U.S. to be the protector
of the
Hemisphere.
16.Roosevelt’s family home was in
Bay, New York.
15.With his tremendous energy and power,
Roosevelt reminded some people of a
.
17.President Roosevelt made laws to keep our
safe.
4.Roosevelt studied
University.
at Columbia
Badlands after his
18.With his second wife, Edith, Roosevelt had
children.
ACROSS
2.One university Roosevelt attended was
died, Roosevelt
.
19.The
ever made.
bear is the most popular toy
20.The Rough
was the name of
Roosevelt’s cavalry unit.
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources
45
Answer Key
THEODORE
ROOSEVELT
(page 44)
Down:
1. Panama
3. Alice
5. reptiles
7. conservationist
10. cavalry
12. asthma
14. Nobel
16. Oyster
17. food
Across:
2. Harvard
4. law
6. McKinley
8. Badlands
9. sixty
11. Dakota
13. Western
15. tornado
18. five
19. teddy
20. Riders
62
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources