A century ago Sunday, President Theodore Roosevelt bid the world adieu. By the time he died at age 60 on Jan. 6, 1919, the 26th president had dramatically changed the political landscape while also preserving the country’s natural landscape for future generations to enjoy.
America is still contemplating the whirlwind of action from his presidency, including the scope of the natural resources he conserved. During two terms in office, Roosevelt designated 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reservations, four national game preserves, five national parks, and 18 national monuments.
But Roosevelt did more than save trees and watch birds. He used his bully pulpit to sell the importance of conservation to the public.
“We are prone to speak of the resources of this country as inexhaustible; this is not so,” said Roosevelt in 1907.
Even the charismatic Roosevelt couldn’t do the job by himself. Such notable conservation figures as Gifford Pinchot, his chief forester, and Frederick Newell, a pioneer in the reclamation movement, provided assistance. The Roosevelt Cabinet included two Interior secretaries, James R. Garfield and Ethan Allen Hitchcock, who helped their leader in battles with the ranchers, mine operators, lumber interests, and power companies seeking to exploit the continent’s resources.
These national advocates also enlisted support at the state level. Roosevelt sold his concepts to the nation’s governors, who attended a White House conference on conservation in the spring of 1908.
The conservation effort had its detractors. In his self-appointed role as chief steward of the nation’s lands and streams, Roosevelt was labeled a dictator. His reliance on experts and bureaucrats left the administration open to attacks that his policies failed to represent the views of the people most affected by them.
The president believed that natural resources existed to be used. But they had to be used wisely, as Roosevelt biographer H.W. Brands described, like a “regular surplus that might be employed to human benefit.”
Despite the critics, Roosevelt’s approach has largely stood the test of time. Harold Evans, author of The American Century, is among those who give Roosevelt high marks: “No president before or since has had a better intellectual grasp of the relationship between an expanding economy and the environment, or the subtle interactions of the national environment.”
The discussion continues over the Roosevelt legacy. Federal, state, and local officials still grapple with tough choices as conservationists and developers share different visions for the future.
As we mark the centennial of Roosevelt’s death, we should be grateful for all the treasures he and other visionaries left behind. Without leaders like Roosevelt, the precious resources we cherish today would have disappeared long ago. Had they not made controversial decisions back then, there wouldn’t be anything left to debate about.
Instead, we can savor the same solace, satisfaction, and replenishment in nature that Roosevelt found in his darkest hours. Today’s policymakers will be challenged as they contemplate whether our heirs will enjoy the same opportunities a century from now.
They should heed the words of Theodore Roosevelt: “The prosperity of our people depends directly on the energy and intelligence with which our natural resources are used.”
Kendall Wingrove is a freelance writer from Okemos, Mich.
CORRECTION: In a previous version of this story, the Washington Examiner erroneously reported Thedore Roosevelt died a year ago Sunday. He died a century ago Sunday. The Washington Examiner regrets the error.
