Theodore Roosevelt

Childhood and education

Roosevelt was born at 28 East 20th Street in the modern-day Gramercy section of New York City on October 27, 1858, as the second of four children of Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. (1831–78) and Martha Bulloch (1834–84). His father was a New York City philanthropist, merchant, and partner in the glass-importing firm Roosevelt and Son. Martha Bulloch was a homemaker and former Southern belle who was raised in Georgia and had Confederate sympathies.

Related Topics:
28 East 20th Street - Gramercy - New York City - October 27 - 1858 - Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. - 1831 - 78 - Martha Bulloch - 1834 - 84 - Philanthropist - Glass - Roosevelt and Son - Georgia - Confederate

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Sickly and asthmatic as a youngster, Roosevelt had to sleep propped up in bed or slouching in a chair during much of his early childhood and had frequent incidences of diarrhea, colds, and other ailments. It is believed he attended Friends Seminary, a private Quaker school on 16th Street, for a short period of time in spite of his physical condition. He was a hyperactive and oftentimes mischievous young man. His lifelong interest in zoology was first formed at age seven upon seeing a dead seal at a local market. After obtaining the seal's head, the young Roosevelt and two of his cousins formed what they called the "Roosevelt Museum of Natural History". Roosevelt filled his makeshift museum with many animals that he caught, studied, and prepared for display. At age nine he codified his observation work on insects with a paper titled "The Natural History of Insects."

Related Topics:
Asthma - Diarrhea - Colds - Friends Seminary - Quaker - 16th Street - Zoology - Seal - Museum - Animal - Insect

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To combat his poor physical condition, his father compelled young Roosevelt to take up exercise at Wood's Gym and with equipment at his home. A couple of his peers beat him during this time, and as a result Roosevelt started boxing lessons. Two trips abroad also had a great effect on this part of his life;

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• From 1869 to 1870 his family toured Europe and spent Christmas in Rome, where Roosevelt kissed the hand of Pope Pius IX.
• From 1872 to 1873 the Roosevelt family traveled in Egypt, the Holy Land, and spent several months in Dresden, Germany. "Teedie" (his childhood nickname) also climbed to the top of the pyramids.

Soon he became a sporting and outdoor enthusiast, something that would stick with him until his last years.

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Except for a few months at Professor McMullen's school, young Teedie was too sickly to attend school and thus was taught by a string of tutors. The first was Annie Bulloch, his maternal aunt. She was followed by others, including a teacher of taxidermy who helped nourish his propensity toward natural history. Fraulein Anna, a tutor of German and French while the family was in Dresden, remarked, "He will surely one day be a great professor, or who knows, he may become president of the United States."

Related Topics:
Taxidermy - German - French

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After his family returned to their home in New York, Roosevelt started intensive tutoring under Arthur Hamilton Cutler in preparation for the Harvard University entrance exam. He passed the exam in 1875 and entered as a freshman the next year. Also in 1876 he participated in a torchlight demonstration for Rutherford B. Hayes' presidential bid. Roosevelt did well in science, philosophy, and rhetoric but did not do well in classical languages. Professor J. Laurence Laughlin and Roosevelt's girlfriend (and future wife) Alice Hathaway Lee convinced him to turn his career intentions away from natural history and toward politics.

Related Topics:
Arthur Hamilton Cutler - Harvard University - 1875 - 1876 - Rutherford B. Hayes - Science - Philosophy - Rhetoric - Classical languages - J. Laurence Laughlin - Alice Hathaway Lee - Politics

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While at Harvard his student memberships included:

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• editor of the student newspaper, the Advocate;
• vice-president of the Natural History Club;
• member of the Porcellian Club;
• secretary of the Hasty Pudding Club;
• founder of the Finance Club;
• member of the Nuttall Ornithological Club.

He found time for boxing and was runner-up for the Harvard boxing championship, losing to C.S. Hanks. The sportsmanship Roosevelt showed in that fight was long remembered.

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He graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude (21st of 177) from Harvard University in 1880 and entered Columbia Law School that same year. Finding law school tedious, however, Roosevelt found other diversions, including the completion of his first published book, The Naval War of 1812 (1882). Unable to stomach a career as a corporate lawyer, and presented with an opportunity to run for a New York State Assembly man position in 1881, he dropped out of school to pursue his new goal of entering public life.

Related Topics:
Phi Beta Kappa - 1880 - Columbia Law School - War of 1812 - 1882 - Assembly - 1881

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