![]() ![]() At age nine he wrote his first long-form essay, “The Natural History of Insects.” This essay shows the observation and extraordinary memory for details that would be hallmarks of Roosevelt as a politician later in life. It was around this time that the young TR started to write natural history essays, which are the first examples of serious scientific scholarship on his part. As he recalled later, it all started when he was walking up Broadway and saw a dead seal which raised questions in the young boy’s mind: Where had it been caught, how long was it, what species of seal was it? He managed to acquire the seal’s skull, the first specimen in what he called the “Roosevelt Museum of Natural History.” At the age of seven, he began his career as a zoologist. It was on a summer trip to the country that five year old TR began to hunt for plants and animals to study. His father, one of the founders of New York City’s Natural History Museum, encouraged his son’s curiosity. Long before he considered a career in politics, he had a fascination with the natural world and thought he would be a naturalist. Nature was Theodore Roosevelt’s first passion. As a naturalist crusader, TR’s impact went far beyond the simple accomplishments it resulted in changing the way people thought about the need to preserve America’s natural treasures. Forest Service, and sat aside 150 national forests he signed the Antiquities Act and pursuant to it created the first 18 national monuments, including the Grand Canyon and Muir Woods an ardent ornithologist, he set up the first 51 federal bird reservations he named five national parks, and added lands to a sixth – Yosemite by executive order he established the first four national game preserves, including the National Range and the instituted first 24 reclamation, or federal irrigation, projects. As president, Roosevelt provided federal protection for almost 230 million acres of land, an area equivalent to the entire Eastern Seaboard from Maine to Florida. president is more popularly associated with nature and wildlife than is Theodore Roosevelt – life-long naturalist, prodigious hunter, tireless adventurer, and visionary conservationist. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |