TR Anniversary at Marcy

[--M.]

This Day In History (as seen in today's Boston Globe)
"On this day in 1901, President McKinley died in Buffalo of gunshot wounds inflicted by an assassin. Vice President Theodore Roosevelt succeeded him."

From Schneider's "The Adirondacks: A History of America's First Wilderness" (page 269):
"The then Vice President Teddy Roosevelt, who was a member of the Tahawus Club, was lunching near the summit of Mount Marcy on September 13, 1901 [sic-- somebody's got it wrong], when a guide rushed out of the woods with a telegram: President McKinley, who had been shot by an anarchist the week before, had taken an unexpected turn for the worse. After a breakneck descent back to the club and a hellish midnight buckboard ride that took five hours and exhausted three teams of horses and guides, Roosevelt arrived at the North Creek station and was administered the oath of office on a special train that was there waiting for him. His driver on the last leg of the trip, a guide named Mike Cronin, became a national hero."

I note this as a fan of TR's, one of our brightest lights and someone who clearly "got it."

A visit to Newcomb, New York, will provide commemoration of his entry to (and exit from) the region.

That is all,

--Mike

 

[Jay H]

Regarding the date, I googled it and it mentioned McKinley was shot on Sept 5th, 1901, however, McKinley did not actually die of his wounds til Sept 14th. And in any case, there wasn't any instant notification nor cell phones back then, so conceivable, perhaps it took 8 days for somebody to realize, "perhaps we should notify TR" and to get over to the ADK high peaks from Buffalo or perhaps Washington...

Jay

 

[Puck]

Regarding the date, I googled it and it mentioned McKinley was shot on Sept 5th, 1901, however, McKinley did not actually die of his wounds til Sept 14th. And in any case, there wasn't any instant notification nor cell phones back then, so conceivable, perhaps it took 8 days for somebody to realize, "perhaps we should notify TR" and to get over to the ADK high peaks from Buffalo or perhaps Washington...

Jay

He was shot and underwent surgery that night operating by hand held light. The surgeon was an obstetrician. They cleaned him up pretty well but they never found the bullet. Edison was in Buffalo and wanted to donate a xray with a technician machine to help. He was refused. Days after he was shot there were about half a dozen physicians in attendence.

The President was coming along well. People were told that he was on the road to recovery...go home and wait. That is why Roosevelt was in the Mountains. McKinley took a fast turn for the worst and was dead in a day. The internal wound from the bullet had become infected. He went into septic shock and died.

BTW there is a great bluegrass song called either Mckinly Blues or White House Blues. It was recorded by Norman Blake, Tut Taylor, David Holland and Vasser Clemens.

 

[Mark Schaefer]

TR had been in Vermont on a speaking engagement at the time of the shooting. http://www.nps.gov/thri/EdRPreInaugEvents.htm

He was summoned to Buffalo and met with members of President McKinley's cabinet. After being advised McKinley would recover, he travelled from Buffalo for the Adirondacks on Sept 10. A summary of the events is here. http://www.nps.gov/thri/viscen.htm

 

[--M.]

BTW there is a great bluegrass song called either Mckinly Blues or White House Blues. It was recorded by Norman Blake, Tut Taylor, David Holland and Vasser Clemens.

Hey, thanks for the tip. It's almost Kevin-Bacon-esque given Clements' recent departure. I'll check it out.

I wondered if this thread would generate any pro- or anti-TR hiking sentiment; I guess not.

See ya.

 

[WBB]

I saw this yesterday:

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who played eccentric aviation pioneer Howard Hughes in Martin Scorsese's last film "The Aviator," is ready to charge up San Juan hill as Teddy Roosevelt in the director's next movie.
Paramount Pictures said on Monday it has optioned rights to the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of the 26th U.S. president, "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt," by Edmund Morris. Scorsese will direct and DiCaprio will star in the title role.
Screenwriter Nicholas Meyer, whose recent feature credits include "The Human Stain," will adapt the book for the big screen, a spokeswoman for the Viacom Inc.-owned studio said.
The Morris biography focuses on Roosevelt's youth and his personal journey from frail child of privilege to Spanish-American War hero as commander of the Rough Riders cavalry regiment, which set the stage for his celebrated political career.
As U.S. vice president under William McKinley, Roosevelt became the youngest man ever to assume the presidency after McKinley's assassination in 1901.
"His life reads like a movie that requires a big bag of popcorn," Meyer told Hollywood trade paper Daily Variety," which first reported Paramount's book deal.

 

[--M.]

That's huge. Totally rocks.

Yes, there're things not to like about TR, to say nothing of Leonardo DiCaprio (who really can't even be compared to a figure like Roosevelt), but including Scorsese, there's enough in these three people to tell a good story. I just hope Teddy's true history doesn't get distorted too badly in the process, whatever it may be.

I'd be interested to hear any good titles for reading up on TR; he was such a dynamic man.

--M.

 

[Puck]

I would also like to read more on this guy....I think he did alot of flyfishing on the Battenkill. I have also read that he was an avid birder. More then once during staff meetings in the oval office he would stare out the window to watch migrating birds flittering in the bushes.

 

[WBB]

Edmund Morris' two volume set: "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" and Theodore Rex" is the best place to start. The Adirondack MuMuseum has a good exhibt. I have thought that a trip retracing his route from Marcy to the Wilcox Mansion in Buffalo(the site of his oath of office) would be fun.