1858

October 27. Theodore Roosevelt born 7:45 p.m. in brownstone townhouse at 28 East 20th Street, New York City (now Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site), son of Martha Bulloch Roosevelt and Theodore Roosevelt, Senior.

1876

Enters Harvard College

1880

June 30. Graduates with B.A., magna cum laude, from Harvard College. October 27. TR married to Alice Hathaway Lee of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, in Unitarian Church, Brookline, Massachusetts.

1881

November 8. Elected as Republican from twenty-first district, New York City, to New York State Assembly. Reelected 1882, 1883; serves in Assembly 1882-1884; Minority Leader 1883.

1882

The Naval War of 1812, TR's first book, published by G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York.

1883

TR goes west to Badlands, Dakota Territory in September; buys partnership in Maltese Cross Ranch (also known as Chimney Butte Ranch), near what is now Medora, North Dakota.

1884

February 12. Daughter Alice Lee Roosevelt born in New York City. February 14. TR's wife Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt dies of Bright's Disease at 2:00 p.m.; TR's mother Martha Bulloch Roosevelt died, on same day in same house in New York City, of Typhoid Fever at 3:00 a.m. June. TR is delegate to Republican National Convention, Chicago. June. TR goes to Badlands to be cattle rancher; establishes second open-range ranch, Elkhorn Ranch, near Medora.

1884-1886

TR is rancher in Badlands. Today some 75,000 acres of the Badlands near Medora form Theodore Roosevelt National Park. TR's Maltese Cross cabin preserved at park

1885

TR's house, "Sagamore Hill,” on Cove Neck, Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York, completed on land purchased in 1883.

1886

October. TR nominated as Republican candidate for Mayor of New York City.
November 2. TR comes in third for Mayor behind winning Democrat, Abram S. Hewitt, and Labor candidate, Henry George. December 2. TR married to Edith Kermit Carow in St. George's Church, Hanover Square, London. 

1887

Theodore and Edith Roosevelt take residence at Sagamore Hill. They have five children: Theodore, Junior (born 1887), Kermit (1889), Ethel Carow (1891), Archibald Bulloch (1894), and Quentin (1897).

1889

May 7. TR appointed one of three members of the United States Civil Service Commission in Washington by President Benjamin Harrison; reappointed by President Grover Cleveland.

1889 – 1895

TR serves in Washington as U.S. Civil Service Commissioner.

1889 – 1896

The Winning of the West, Roosevelt's history of the American Frontier from 1763 to 1807, published in four volumes.

1895

April 25. TR resigns as Civil Service Commissioner, effective May 5.

1895

May 6. TR takes office after appointment as one of four members of Board of Police Commissioners of New York City, and on May 6 is elected president of the board.

1895-1897

TR serves as President of Board of Police Commissioners, New York City.

1897

April 6. TR appointed Assistant Secretary of the Navy by President William McKinley. April 17. Resigns as Police Commissioner, effective April 19. April 19. Begins duties in Navy Department, Washington.

1897-1898

TR serves as Assistant Secretary of the Navy.

1898

April 24. Spain declares war on United States in dispute over independence of Cuba. Spanish-American War begins.
April 25. TR appointed Lieutenant Colonel, and Leonard Wood named Colonel, of First United States Volunteer Cavalry regiment, known as the "Rough Riders."
May 6. Roosevelt resigns as Assistant Secretary of the Navy.
May 15. TR arrives San Antonio, Texas, where Rough Rider regiment is assembled.
June 14. Rough Riders embark for Cuba from Tampa, Florida.
June 22. Rough Riders land at Daiquiri,  Cuba.
June 24. Rough Riders in Battle of Las Guasimas.
June 30. TR becomes Colonel of Rough Riders when Leonard Wood promoted to brigade commander. July 1. Rough Riders in Battle of San Juan Hill. TR leads charges on Kettle Hill and San Juan Hill. August 15. Rough Riders land at Montauk, Long Island, New York.
September 16. Rough Rider regiment mustered out at Montauk after 137 days of service in Army. September 27. TR nominated by Republican Party for Governor of New York State.
November 8. TR elected Governor of New York with 661,715 votes over Democrat Augustus Van Wyck with 643,921 votes.
December 31. TR takes oath of office as Governor of New York.

1898-1900

TR serves as Governor of New York.

1900

June 21. TR nominated for Vice President at Republican National Convention, Philadelphia as running mate of President William McKinley. November 6. Republican ticket of McKinley-Roosevelt elected with 7,219,530 votes to 6,358,071 for Democrats William Jennings Bryan and Adlai E. Stevenson. December 31. TR's term as Governor ends.

1901

March 4. TR takes oath of office as Vice President of the United States. September 6. President William McKinley shot at Pan-American Exposition, Buffalo, New York. September 14. McKinley dies in Buffalo. TR summoned to Buffalo from Mount Tahawus in Adirondacks. TR takes oath of office as twenty- sixth President of the United States at about 3:15 p.m. in house of Ansley Wilcox, 641 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, now the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site. At 42, TR is the youngest President in history, before or since.

1901-1909

TR serves as President of the United States.

1901

October 16. Booker T. Washington, Negro educator and leader, has dinner at the White House with Roosevelt family, leading to bitter attacks on TR by white Southerners. TR's subsequent appointments of blacks to office in South result in further attacks on Roosevelt administration.

1902

February 19. TR orders antitrust suit under Sherman Act to dissolve Northern Securities Company; beginning of "trust-busting" policy. Roosevelt administration subsequently brings antitrust suits against Swift and Company, Standard Oil, American Tobacco, DuPont, and other companies, for a total of 45 antitrust suits in 1902-1909.
May 22. Crater Lake National Park established in Oregon, the first of five national parks created by TR.
June 17. Newlands Reclamation Act signed, leading to first federal irrigation projects, including what is now Theodore Roosevelt Dam in Arizona.
July 4. TR proclaims amnesty and institutes civil government in Philippines at end of insurrection against American rule.
October. TR settles Anthracite Coal Strike.
December. TR enforces Monroe Doctrine against Germany in dispute over Venezuela.

1903

February 14. Department of Commerce and Labor created.
February 20. Elkins Antirebate Act for railroads signed. March 14. TR establishes Pelican Island, Florida as first federal bird refuge. TR created a total of 51 bird reservations in 1903-1909.
October 17. Alaskan boundary dispute with Canada settled in London in favor of the United States. November 3. Panama declares independence from Colombia after Colombia rejects treaty with United States for building canal in Panama. U.S. recognizes Panama's independence on November 7.
November 18. Panama Canal treaty signed between Panama and United States. Panama Canal completed in 1914.

1904

June 23. TR nominated for President, and Charles W. Fairbanks of Indiana for Vice President, at Republican National Convention, Chicago.
November 8. Roosevelt and Fairbanks elected with 7,628,834 votes to 5,084,491 for Democrats Judge Alton B. Parker and Henry G. Davis.
December 6. TR proclaims "Roosevelt Corollary" to Monroe Doctrine in his annual message, defining police role of United States in Latin America.

1905

January. Agreement made with Dominican Republic to resolve crisis over foreign debts.
January 24. Wichita Game Preserve established in Oklahoma, first federal game preserve. TR subsequently created federal game preserves at the Grand Canyon, Fire Island in Alaska, and National Bison Range in Montana.
February 1. United States Forest Service established. Under the Roosevelt administration, federal forest reserves increased from about 43,000,000 acres to approximately 194,000,000 acres. March 4. Roosevelt inaugurated for second term.
August 5. TR meets in Oyster Bay, Long Island with Russian and Japanese envoys to begin negotiations to end Russo-Japanese War.
August 25. TR goes down in and pilots Navy submarine Plunger in Long Island Sound.
September 5. Treaty of Portsmouth signed ending Russo-Japanese War. TR awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for his mediation between Russia and Japan. 1906 January. Algeciras Conference opens to resolve crisis between France and Germany over Morocco. TR successfully mediates dispute.
June 8. Antiquities or National Monuments Act signed. Under this law, TR created by proclamation 18 protected "national monuments," 1906- 1909, including Devils Tower (the first, September 24, 1906) in Wyoming, Arizona's Petrified Forest, the Gila Cliff Dwellings in New Mexico, Muir Woods in California, the Grand Canyon, and Mount Olympus in Washington.
June 11. Employers' Liability Act passed for interstate commerce. Overturned by Supreme Court, an amended act passed April 22, 1908, which was upheld by Supreme Court.

1906

June 29. Hepburn Act passed, giving authority to Interstate Commerce Commission to regulate railroad rates.
June 30. TR signs Pure Food and Drug Act. June 30. TR signs bill which includes federal meat inspection law.
August 3. Negro soldiers accused of shooting up town of Brownsville, Texas on night of August 3. Roosevelt discharges without honor three companies of black troops, although no soldiers are convicted. Leads to bitter civil rights controversy.
November 8-26. Mr. & Mrs. Roosevelt go to Panama to inspect building of Canal; first time a President leaves the United States while in office. Arrive in Panama November 14; depart for Puerto Rico November 17.
December 10. TR awarded Nobel Peace Prize for ending Russo-Japanese War in 1905. TR first American to win Nobel Peace Prize and a Nobel Prize in any field. Gives prize money to charity. TR delivers acceptance speech in Europe in 1910

1907

March 14. TR appoints Inland Waterways Commission to study river systems, water power, flood control, reclamation. TR as President makes use of study commissions, appointing six, Commission on the Organization of Government Scientific Work (1903), Public Lands Commission (1903), Keep Commission on government administration (1905), Inland Waterways Commission (1907), National Conservation Commission (1908), and Country Life Commission (1908).
June 15. Second Hague Peace Conference opens. TR was first world leader to call for this conference. United States insists Central and South American nations be included. U.S. attempts to strengthen court of arbitration fail. Conference fails to limit naval arms race. Drago  Doctrine against use of force in collection of foreign debts adopted.
October-November. "Panic of 1907" in stock market and banks. November 16. Oklahoma admitted as forty-sixth state.
December 16. American "Great White Fleet," part of TR's policy of "speak softly and carry a big stick," departs on good will cruise around world.

1908

May 13-15. Conference of Governors, called by TR to consider conservation, meets at White House, attended by governors, Supreme Court, cabinet, and other leaders. Leads to inventory of natural resources, creation of state conservation commissions, annual governors' conferences.
June 8. National Conservation Commission appointed by TR, as result of governors' conference, to inventory natural resources of United States.
August 10. TR appoints Country Life Commission to study rural problems. November 30. United States signs Root- Takahira agreement with Japan in attempt to resolve many problems between the two countries.
December 8. TR addresses Joint Conservation Congress of leaders, which meets in Washington to receive report of National Conservation Commission.

1909

February 18. North American Conservation Conference convenes at White House. February 22. TR greets Great White Fleet on return from world cruise. March 4. Roosevelt administration ends. Republican successor, President William Howard Taft, inaugurated.

1909-1914

TR is Contributing Editor of Outlook magazine. 1909 March 23. TR sails for East Africa to lead expedition for Smithsonian Institution. April 21. Arrives Mombasa. Remains in Africa, traveling in Kenya, 

1909

Uganda, Congo, Sudan, Egypt, until March 30,

1910. 1910

March 30. Sails from Alexandria for Naples, where he lands April 2.
April-June. TR tours Europe, visiting Rome, Venice, Vienna, Budapest, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Berlin, London, other cities.
April 23. Speaks at Sorbonne, Paris. May 5. Delivers Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Oslo.
May 12. Speaks at University of Berlin.
May 20. American ambassador at funeral of King Edward VII, London.
June 7. Delivers Romanes Lecture at Oxford.
June 10. Sails from Southampton for United States.
June 18. Greeted by parade in New York City on return from African and European trip.
August 31. Delivers "New Nationalism'' speech, Osawatomie, Kansas, on tour to promote progressive principles.
September 27. Elected chairman of New York State Republican convention, Saratoga.
September-November. Campaigns for Republican candidates. On November 8 Democrats win U.S. House for first time since 1892.

1912

February 21. TR announces candidacy for Republican nomination against President William Howard Taft, saying "my hat is in the ring."
February-June. TR campaigns for Republican nomination; wins 278 delegates in direct primaries to Taft's 48, but loses in many state and district conventions; 254 seats to Republican National Convention contested, Taft awarded 235 by Republican National Committee in June.
June 18-22. Republican National Convention meets in Chicago. Taft nominated June 22.
June 22. Roosevelt supporters bolt Republican convention, charging "theft" of nomination, meet in rump convention, found new party. TR agrees to run on new party ticket.
August 5-7. Convention of Progressive Party meets in Chicago. TR delivers "Confession of Faith" speech August 6. TR nominated for President, and Governor Hiram W. Johnson of California for Vice President, and reform platform, "contract with the people," adopted, on August 7.
October 14. TR shot in Milwaukee, makes scheduled speech before accepting medical treatment; taken by train to Chicago hospital, where he remains until October 21. Returns to campaigning October 30.
November 5. Democrat Woodrow Wilson elected with 6,301,254 votes to Roosevelt's 4,127,788 and Taft's 3,485,831. TR wins six states, Taft two, Wilson 40. Democrats win with split in normal Republican vote between TR and Taft.
December 27. TR elected President of American Historical Association.

1913

May 26-31. Trial of Roosevelt vs. Newett in Marquette, Michigan. TR wins libel suit against George A. Newett, newspaper editor who called TR a drunk. TR asks for six cents damages, minimum under Michigan law.
October 4. TR sails for South America.
October 21. Arrives Rio de Janeiro. Remains in South America, traveling in Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and on expedition in Brazil, until May 7, 1914. Delivers speeches in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Santiago.

1914

February 27-April 27. Roosevelt-Rondon Expedition sponsored by American Museum of Natural History and Brazilian government explores Brazil's "River of Doubt," over 900 miles in length, now named the "Rio Roosevelt" or "Rio Teodoro."
May 7. TR sails for United States; arrives New York City May 20.

1914

May 30-June 24. Trip to Europe for wedding of son Kermit in Spain, lecture on Brazil to Royal Geographic Society, London.
June-November. Campaigns for Progressive Party candidates. November 3. Progressive Party defeated in state and Congressional elections.
December. Signs contract to contribute articles to Metropolitan magazine.

1915

April 19-May 22.Trial of Barnes vs. Roosevelt, Syracuse, New York. New York Republican leader William Barnes, Jr. sued TR for libel as the result of attacks on Barnes during 1914 campaign. TR wins case.

1916

June 7-10. Republican and Progressive national conventions meet in Chicago at same time in different halls in hope of joint nomination.
June 10. Progressive Party nominates TR for second time; John M. Parker of Louisiana nominated for Vice President. Republican convention nominates Charles Evans Hughes minutes after Progressives nominate TR. TR in telegram declines Progressive nomination. Progressive convention refers question of nomination to Progressive National Committee.
June 26. Progressive National Committee meets in Chicago. Letter from TR, dated June 22, asks for endorsement of Hughes on issues of military preparedness and World War I against President Woodrow Wilson. Committee endorses Hughes by 32-6, with nine declining to vote. Progressive Party disbanded.
July-November. TR campaigns for Hughes. Wilson reelected November 7.

1917

April 6. United States declares war on Germany, enters World War I.
April 10. TR meets at White House with President Wilson to ask permission to raise and lead division for service in France. TR had offered to raise troops in letter to Secretary of War Newton D. Baker on February 2.
May 19. Wilson refuses Roosevelt's offer to raise and lead division. TR is forced to spend war writing articles and speaking for Liberty Loan and other war activities. TR's four sons serve in France.
September 17. Begins publishing wartime editorials in Kansas City Star.

1918

July 14. Quentin Roosevelt, TR's youngest son, killed as fighter pilot in France.
October 28. TR, speaking at Carnegie Hall, New York City, for Republicans, denounces Wilson's appeal for Democratic Congress. Republicans win Congress on November 5 for first time since 1908. By end of 1918, TR widely viewed as probable Republican candidate in 1920.

1919

January 6. Theodore Roosevelt dies in his sleep at Sagamore Hill at approximately 4:15 a.m., age 60, from coronary embolism.
January 8. Roosevelt's funeral at Christ Church, Oyster Bay, New York, and burial in Youngs Memorial Cemetery, Oyster Bay.