Page 17 - Jan Feb 2022 Mag. Base.indd

and sent home to be preserved for the Smithsonian
Institution and the American Natural History Museum in Addendum
New York City. Roosevelt wrote of his adventures in his
book “African Game Trails,” one of 18 books he would Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., fought in the
write. First and Second World Wars. Roosevelt would be the only
general on D-Day to land by sea with the fi rst wave of troops
By 1912 he was dismayed with Taft’s record as President on Utah Beach. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for
and decided late to run on his own 3rd party ticket as a his for gallantry and intrepidity at risk of his life above and
Progressive. When asked how his health was, Roosevelt beyond the call of duty while in command of the 4th Infantry
responded “I’m as healthy as a Bull Moose.” His party Division in France on June 6, 1944. He repeatedly led groups
was called the” Bull Moose Party” from that time on. from the beach over the seawall and established them
In the end, Roosevelt failed to win the Presidency. That inland. His valor, courage, and presence in the very front of
honor went to Woodrow Wilson. Roosevelt had divided the att ack and his complete unconcern at being under heavy
the Republican Party voters, getting more votes than Taft fi re inspired the troops to heights of enthusiasm and self-
but allowing Wilson to take office as a minority president. sacrifi ce. Under his unfaltering leadership, assault troops
Again Roosevelt went into retirement with a near death reduced beach strong points and rapidly moved inland with
expedition up the Amazon River in South America. Sick minimum casualti es. He thus contributed substanti ally to the
and injured, Roosevelt almost died. Following his return successful establishment of the beachhead in France. The
to the U.S. and the outbreak of World War I, Roosevelt Medal of Honor was posthumously awarded on September
volunteered to recruit a Division and lead it in Europe, but
Wilson would have none of it and refused. In declining 28, 1944, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
health, TR passed away in January 1919 at age 60 at
his home on Long Island. Upon his death, V-P Thomas
Marshall of Columbia City, Indiana, said that “Death had
to take Roosevelt sleeping, for if he had been awake,
there would have been a fight.”

Roosevelt was one of those people in history that was
bigger than life. Perhaps the greatest measurement of
a man was to look at his legacy. Roosevelt was truly a
progressive, someone willing to do the right thing, fight
the good fight, for those who needed protecting. He saw
the U.S. as a world leader and helped prepare and propel
America to that end. He saw the office of the Presidency
as being center stage, and when he was the President,
he was. Maybe the greatest compliment is that Roosevelt
could see into the future, and he took giant steps to make
that a better place for all of us.

Oh, and as you might expect, Roosevelt was also a
Mason. In 1902 he said, “One of things that attracted me
so greatly to Masonry…that it really did live up to what
we, as a government, are pledged to - - of treating each
man on his merits as a Man.”Theodore Roosevelt is the
only President to be awarded the Medal of Honor. Almost
50 years later, following President Roosevelt's acti ons in
Cuba, his son, Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr.,
was also awarded the Medal of Honor.

President Roosevelt was awarded the Medal of Honor for
his acti ons during the Spanish-American War. Lieutenant-
Colonel Theodore Roosevelt disti nguished himself through
acts of bravery on July 1, 1898, while leading a bold charge
on San Juan Hill, Cuba. Lt Colonel Roosevelt had initi ally
been nominated for the Medal of Honor; however, the
Army passed him over, citi ng a lack of evidence for his
heroic acti ons at San Juan Hill. He received a posthumous
Medal of Honor from President Bill Clinton in 2001.

Montana Freemason Page 17 Jan/Feb 2022 Volume 98 No.1