-
TR Named President
Roosevelt campaigned vigorously, and the McKinley–Roosevelt ticket won a landslide victory based on a platform of victory, peace, and prosperity. Roosevelt assumed the presidency at age 42 after McKinley was assassinated in September 1901. -
Coal Strike
On October 23, 1902, the miners returned to work after both sides agreed to settle the strike based on the recommendations of the Anthracite Coal Commission, a body appointed by the president. Ultimately, the miners won a ten percent increase in pay and a nine-hour workday. -
National Reclamation Act
Congress passed the Reclamation Act of June 17, 1902. The Act required that water users repay construction costs from which they received benefits. In the jargon of that day, irrigation projects were known as "reclamation" projects. The concept was that irrigation would "reclaim" arid lands for human use. -
The Elkins Act
The Elkins Act was intended to prohibit railroads from providing rebates to preferred customers. -
TR Runs for presidency in Bull-Moose Party
In the 1912 election, Roosevelt won 27.4% of the popular vote compared to Taft's 23.2%, making Roosevelt the only third-party presidential nominee to finish with a higher share of the popular vote than a major party's presidential nominee. -
Wins first full term as President
Incumbent Republican President Theodore Roosevelt defeated the Democratic nominee, Alton B. Parker. Roosevelt's victory made him the first president who ascended to the presidency upon the death of his predecessor to win a full term in his own right. -
TR and the Northern Securities Case
Roosevelt's Department of Justice prosecuted the Northern Securities Company for violating the Sherman Act. In 1904, the Supreme Court agreed with the administration's position and ordered the Northern Securities company dissolved. For Roosevelt, this proved a great victory. -
Passage of Pure Food And Drug Act
The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 prohibited the sale of misbranded or adulterated food and drugs in interstate commerce and laid a foundation for the nation's first consumer protection agency, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Pure Food and Drug Act regulated such items shipped through interstate commerce. -
Meat Inspection Act
The Meat Inspection Act of 1906 was a piece of U.S. legislation, signed by President Theodore Roosevelt on June 30, 1906, that prohibited the sale of adulterated or misbranded livestock and derived products as food and ensured sanitary slaughtering and processing of livestock. -
Yosemite under Federal Control
On October 1 of the following year, Congress set aside over 1,500 square miles of land (about the size of Rhode Island) for what would become Yosemite National Park, America's third national park. In 1906, the state-controlled Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove came under federal jurisdiction with the rest of the park. -
Leaves presidency, Visits Africa
Former president Theodore Roosevelt's safari into Africa. Landing in Mombasa in 1909, Roosevelt spent months in the wilds of East Africa, hunting big game in parts of what is now Kenya and Uganda. Its purpose was to collect specimens for the Smithsonian's new Natural History Museum, now known as the National Museum of Natural History. -
The Rough Rider at San Juan Hill
The Rough Riders were a diverse group of volunteer cavalry soldiers who served during the Spanish-American War in 1898. The men were led by the tireless Teddy Roosevelt (1858-1919) and are best known for their overwhelming victory at San Juan Hill in Cuba.