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As a Colonel in the U.S. Army, Roosevelt led his volunteer cavalry unit, the "Rough Riders," in the decisive battle of the Spanish-American War in Cuba. The hero-status he gained from this dramatic and highly publicized charge was instrumental in launching his political career, first as Governor of New York and later as Vice President. -
TR was sworn in as the 26th U.S. President after President William McKinley was assassinated. At age 42, he became the youngest person to hold the office, immediately injecting a vigorous, progressive energy into the presidency and vowing to continue McKinley’s policies while launching his own "Square Deal" reform agenda. -
A massive strike by the United Mine Workers threatened to cut off heating coal for the upcoming winter. In an unprecedented move, Roosevelt intervened—not to break the strike, but to mediate and threaten to seize the mines with the U.S. Army. This was the first time a president acted as a neutral arbiter between labor and capital, ultimately forcing a settlement that was part of his "Square Deal" principle of fairness. -
This law was a major step in Roosevelt’s conservation efforts, It dedicated funds from the sale of public lands to finance large-scale irrigation projects, such as dams and canals in 16 arid Western states, enabling agricultural development and settlement through federal scientific management. -
This law was championed by Roosevelt to strengthen federal regulation of railroads. It outlawed the practice of granting and accepting rebates (secret kickbacks) between railroad companies and large corporations like Standard Oil. By penalizing both the carrier and the shipper, the Act aimed to eliminate price discrimination and ensure fair shipping rates for all businesses. -
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of the government in this landmark case, ordering the breakup of the Northern Securities Company, a giant railroad holding company. This was Roosevelt's first major victory in using the Sherman Antitrust Act and earned him the nickname "trust-buster," establishing the federal government's authority to break up corporate monopolies that restrain trade. -
Roosevelt won a decisive victory in the general election against Democrat Alton B. Parker. This victory validated the reform agenda he had pursued since assuming office in 1901, giving him a powerful mandate from the American people to escalate his progressive policies during his full term. -
Following his famous 1903 camping trip with naturalist John Muir, Roosevelt signed legislation that returned control of the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias from the state of California back to the federal government. This action consolidated the entire region under federal control, completing the establishment of the modern Yosemite National Park. -
Signed simultaneously with the Meat Inspection Act, this law forbade the manufacture, sale, or transportation of mislabeled or adulterated food and drug products in interstate commerce. It laid the foundation for the modern Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and was a key achievement of the Progressive Era in protecting public health. -
This was one of two major consumer protection laws signed on the same day. It established strict cleanliness requirements for meatpackers and created a program of continuous federal inspection of all meat sold in interstate commerce. It was passed largely due to the public outrage stirred by Upton Sinclair’s muckraking novel, The Jungle. -
After his hand-picked successor, William Howard Taft, was inaugurated, Roosevelt immediately left the country. The purpose of his year-long trip was the Smithsonian-Roosevelt African Expedition, an adventure to collect scientific specimens for the Smithsonian Institution. Politically, the journey allowed him to step out of the spotlight and give Taft space to establish his own presidency. -
Frustrated with Taft's conservative direction, Roosevelt launched a third-party bid under the banner of the Progressive Party, nicknamed the "Bull Moose" Party. The split in the Republican vote between Roosevelt and Taft ensured a victory for Democrat Woodrow Wilson, but the party's platform of "New Nationalism" introduced many ideas that would later become law.