[doublejm1]

I find Teddy Roosevelt to be one of the most fascinating presidents of all time. He led the Rough Riders, dismantled monopolies as a trust buster, and spearheaded the building of the Panama Canal. I can't learn enough about this guy.

I found an article that highlights 18 little-known facts about Teddy: http://socyberty.com/history/18-fascinating-things-you-didnt-know-about-teddy-roosevelt/

But I'm sure this article is missing interesting facts not covered in the history books. Can any of you guys share something noteworthy about T.R. that even history buffs might not know? If you know an interesting if little known fact about any of the other presidents, feel free to share those as well.

[Potemkin]

But I'm sure this article is missing interesting facts not covered in the history books. Can any of you guys share something noteworthy about T.R. that even history buffs might not know? If you know an interesting if little known fact about any of the other presidents, feel free to share those as well.

It's a little-known fact that Teddy Roosevelt actually won World War II. He invented a time machine in his garden shed and travelled forward in time to 1945. In that timeline, the Allies were losing the War and Western civilisation was collapsing. Roosevelt swam across the Atlantic Ocean, walked into the Reichs Chancellery with his giant pet grizzly bear at his side, and punched Hitler the fuck out. Game over. Cue ticker-tape parade in Washington DC. The truth was hushed up, of course, due to Roosevelt's innate modesty, and the Soviets agreed to take the credit. True story. What a guy!

[doublejm1]

haha....clever. Seriously, though, do you find Teddy to be one of the more interesting presidents in our nation's history?

[Far-Right Sage]

That was after he erected the Statue of Liberty with painted eggshells from his daily 1000-egg breakfast however, Potemkin.

In all seriousness, he is one of our only proper national fathers; longtime my favorite commander-in-chief above all.

[Locke II]

FDR wasn't actually related to TR. a fellow politician jokingly called FDR Franklin Delano Roosevelt and he found it a very useful pseudonym when he ran for president, and he eventually changed his name to match.

[doublejm1]

I recently saw a documentary on FDR. It turns out that FDR's idol was none other than Teddy. Like Theodore, Franklin D. Roosevelt served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy and Governor of New York. In addition, both men dropped out of Columbia Law School.

[doublejm1]

I just learned two Teddy-related facts not mentioned in the article:

1. He was the first president to fly in an airplane.

2. He was the first president to travel abroad while in office.

[Potemkin]

1. He was the first president to fly in an airplane.

That was staged for the cameras. In reality, the airplane was merely a mock-up made of cardboard held together with chewing gum which Roosevelt got into and levitated by the power of his mind alone. What a guy!

2. He was the first president to travel abroad while in office.

That would be the whole swimming the Atlantic and punching Hitler the fuck out thing, right?

[doublejm1]

In all seriousness, he is one of our only proper national fathers; longtime my favorite commander-in-chief above all.

Agreed. Did you guys know that it was Teddy who renamed the Executive Mansion the White House?

[doublejm1]

Teddy was also the first president to be submerged in a submarine.

[Potemkin]

Teddy was also the first president to be submerged in a submarine.

Submarine? That was a penny farthing bicycle which Teddy had adapted into the world's most powerful submarine in his garden shed. It could dive to 5,000ft and travel at up to 30 knots, powered only by his own intestinal gases. What a guy!

[AuContraireVoltaire]

This doesn't belong in early-modern

[Potemkin]

This doesn't belong in early-modern

Sure it does - Teddy Roosevelt always got up bright and early at 5am every morning, and he was a modern up-to-the-minute kind of guy.

[AuContraireVoltaire]

Sure it does - Teddy Roosevelt always got up bright and early at 5am every morning, and he was a modern up-to-the-minute kind of guy.

Very droll

[doublejm1]

haha...lol.. I'd bet he was the rise-and-shine type of guy. How on earth did he manage to stay energized all the time? From what I've read, he was a coffee addict.

[doublejm1]

Does anyone else know of any cool Teddy facts? I'm sure there is so much more to learn about him.

[doublejm1]

Today I read that TR carried a gun with him for protection at all times. Can anyone corroborate this?

[doublejm1]

I also found out that at his inauguration T.R. wore a ring that had one of Abe Lincoln's hairs on it.

[Potemkin]

Hopefully not one of his pubic hairs....

[ThirdTerm]

In 1907, Alice Roosevelt travelled to Asia as a part of the diplomatic corps called "Imperial Cruise" and TR appointed her a goodwill ambassador and she enjoyed the experience being treated as Princess Alice. A horse-drawn carriage ride through the streets in Tokyo made her feel like a real princess to her great delight and during the cruise to Japan, she made a splash by jumping into the ship's pool fully clothed. Her pro-Japanese view may have influenced the Roosevelt administration's foreign policy towards Japan and the US and Imperial Japan reached an agreement to respect each other's colonial possessions in Asia.

The tour took place against the backdrop of diplomatic efforts to end the Russo-Japanese War. President Roosevelt had been actively engaged since the spring of 1905 in proposing a peace treaty, which was subsequently signed on September 5th at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Taft accompanied the party to share his expertise on the Philippines with the legislators, having spent 1901 to 1904 there as President of the Philippine Commission, and then as Civil Governor. Not public however, was another mission assigned by the President - that during the goodwill visit to Japan, Taft engage in unofficial diplomatic conversations with Count Katsura, the Prime Minister. After a brief stopover in Hawaii, the Taft party arrived in Tokyo on July 25. The secret "Taft-Katsura Memorandum" was formulated on July 29, cabled to the Secretary of State, and confirmed by the President in a return telegram on July 31st. The memorandum stated that cooperation between the U.S. and Japan was necessary "for maintenance of peace in the Far East". The U.S. assented to Japanese suzerainity over Korea, precluding Korea from entering into treaties which could upset a complex power balance involving China, Japan and the Western Powers. In return, Japan indicated it had "no aggressive designs whatsoever on the Philippines". The agreement remained secret until 1925. There were many official parties and banquets for the delegation, including a lunch with the Emperor Meiji and a garden party at the American legation.
http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/Straight/aroosevelt.html