Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

Correspondence of Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), President of the United States.

Correspondence of Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States.

This collection of Roosevelt manuscripts was assembled mainly by Paul V. Bunn, who first came to Roosevelt's attention in 1893 as a civil service examiner when Roosevelt was commissioner. A fervent admirer of Roosevelt, Bunn was a St. Louis hardware dealer and secretary of the local Chamber of Commerce. In 1912 Roosevelt described him as an old and valued friend, and a 'foursquare North Carolina ex-Democrat.' Carbon copies of Bunn's letters to Roosevelt and Roosevelt's usually brief replies are included.

Additional Roosevelt letters are addressed to William Rockhill Nelson, publisher of the Kansas City Star; William H. Moody, United States Attorney General and Supreme Court justice; and Henry B. Needham, journalist and special commissioner to investigate conditions in the Canal Zone in 1908. The remainder of the collection is a group of miscellaneous letters and notes related to Roosevelt's career as civil service commissioner, governor of New York, assistant secretary of the navy, president, and presidential candidate in 1912.

One distinct group of materials is the contents of a (disbound) scrapbook kept by U.S. Representative from Indiana James McClellan Robinson (1861-1942) and his wife Lillian Robinson (1872-1939). They include printed tickets (untorn) and a program for the Presidential inauguration of March 4, 1901; an invitation and program to the Presidential inauguration of March 4, 1905; two invitations for Mr. and Mrs. Robinson to receptions at the White House, 1904; two invitations/cards for visiting Mrs. Roosevelt "At Home"; a typed signed letter from Cornelia Cole Fairbanks (1852-1913) to Lillian Robinson, December 31, 1902; a card with mourning borders from Mary Simmerson Cunningham Logan (1838-1923) to Lillian Robinson inviting her to attend a National Theatre performance "Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch" to benefit the Garfield Hospital, February 17, 1903; and a calling card of "Liliuokalani. of Hawaii" (Queen Lili'uokalani [1838-1917]), inviting the Robinsons to attend a musicale at the Ebbitt House, Washington, D.C., May 1902.

The United States Presidents collection contains materials authored by, signed by, or related to presidents of the United States of America.

The United States Presidents collection consists of single items authored by, signed by, or related to presidents of the United States of America. Including personal correspondence, land deeds, official appointments, and various manuscript and printed documents, the United States Presidents collection touches broadly on presidential politics, social activity, and national affairs from 1784 to 1992.

• A manuscript description of an exchange between a Revolutionary War soldier and Andrew Jackson in 1832, in which Jackson was presented with a candle originally used to commemorate General Charles Cornwallis's defeat, intending that he should now use it to honor the victory at the Battle of New Orleans
• A handwritten eulogy for President Benjamin Henry Harrison, describing his life, career, and character
• Three letters by William Howard Taft, documenting the legal dispute over whiskey production in 1909
• Nine letters written by Herbert Hoover to Wilson W. Mills between 1923 and 1952, relating to Michigan banks, and state and national politics
• Eight Associated Press teletypes reporting on the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963

The United States Presidents collection contains a diverse array of materials that reflects broadly on personal, presidential, and national affairs. See the Detailed Box and Folder Listing for more information about each item.