Kermit Roosevelt Sr. MC (October 10, 1889 – June 4, 1943) was an American businessman, soldier, explorer, and writer. A son of

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

, the

26th President of the United States Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York politics, including serving as t ...

, Kermit graduated from Harvard College, served in both World Wars (with both the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and U.S. Armies), and explored two continents with his father. He fought a lifelong battle with depression and died by suicide while serving in the US Army in

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

.William E. Lemanski, ''Lost in the Shadow of Fame: The Neglected Story of Kermit Roosevelt: A Gallant and Tragic American'' 2011.

Childhood and education

Kermit was born at

Sagamore Hill Sagamore Hill was the home of the 26th president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, from 1885 until his death in 1919. It is located in Cove Neck, New York, near Oyster Bay on the North Shore of Long Island, east of Manhattan. It is n ...

, the family estate in

Oyster Bay, New York The Town of Oyster Bay is the easternmost of the three Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns that make up Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, United States. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is ...

, the second son of Theodore Roosevelt, (1858–1919) and Edith Kermit Carow (1861–1948). He had an older half-sister Alice Lee Roosevelt (1884–1980), from his father's first marriage to

Alice Hathaway Lee Alice Hathaway Roosevelt (; July 29, 1861 – February 14, 1884) was an American socialite and the first wife of President Theodore Roosevelt. Two days after giving birth to their only child, she died from undiagnosed Bright's disease. Early lif ...

(1861–1884), an elder brother, Theodore III (1887–1944), a younger sister, Ethel Carow Roosevelt (1891–1977), and two younger brothers; Archibald Bulloch "Archie" Roosevelt (1894–1979) and

Quentin Roosevelt Quentin Roosevelt (November 19, 1897 – July 14, 1918) was the youngest son of President Theodore Roosevelt and Edith Roosevelt. Inspired by his father and siblings, he joined the United States Army Air Service where he became a pursuit pilot ...

(1897–1918). Kermit Roosevelt and his dog Jack

As a child, he had little resistance to illness and infection. He had a flair for language, however, and read avidly. He showed a writing talent that led to recording his experiences in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

in a book. After attending the

Groton School Groton School is a Private school, private, college-preparatory school, college-preparatory, day school, day and boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, United States. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcop ...

, he enrolled at

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

. In 1909, as a freshman, he and his father (recently out of office as president)—both of whom loved nature and outdoor sports—went on a year-long expedition in Africa funded by the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. After this trip and a swing through Europe, Roosevelt returned to

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

and completed four years of study in two and a half years, graduating with the Class of 1912. Like his father, while at Harvard he was a member of the

Porcellian Club The Porcellian Club is an all-male Officially unrecognized Harvard College social clubs, final club at Harvard University, colloquially known as the Porc or the P.C. Its founding is traditionally dated to either 1791, when a group began meetin ...

, a student social organization. Roosevelt became active in the

Boone and Crockett Club The Boone and Crockett Club is an American nonprofit organization that advocates fair chase hunting in support of habitat conservation. The club is North America's oldest wildlife and habitat conservation organization, founded in the United S ...

, a wildlife conservation organization that had been co-founded by his father. One commentator wrote that Kermit embodied the ideals of the club perhaps more purely than anyone, including his father.

River of Doubt South American expedition

One of Theodore Roosevelt's most popular books, ''Through the Brazilian Wilderness'', recounted the expedition into the

Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributary, tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries ...

Brazilian jungle in 1913–14. The father and son went on what would become known as the Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Expedition, exploring the Brazilian jungle with explorer Colonel

Cândido Rondon Marshal Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon (5 May 1865 – 19 January 1958) was a Brazilian military officer most famous for his telegraph commission and exploration of Mato Grosso and the western Amazon basin, as well as his lifelong support for ...

. During this expedition, they explored the River of Doubt, later renamed Rio Roosevelt in honor of the President, as well as a branch of that river named the Rio Kermit in his honor. The source of the river had been discovered by Rondon earlier, but it had never been fully explored or mapped. At the time of the expedition, Roosevelt was newly engaged to Belle Wyatt Willard, daughter of the U.S. ambassador to Spain. His mother Edith was concerned about her husband's health and the difficulties of a new expedition, and asked Kermit to accompany his father. He did so, reluctantly delaying his marriage. The scope of the expedition expanded beyond the original plans, leaving the participants inadequately prepared for a trip tracing the River of Doubt from its source through hundreds of kilometers of uncharted

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

. The climate and terrain, inadequate gear and food, and two deaths (one drowning, the other murder) turned a scientific expedition into an ordeal. Roosevelt's father contracted

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

and a serious infection resulting from a minor leg wound, weakening him to the point that he considered taking a fatal dose of morphine rather than being a burden to his companions. Roosevelt told his father that he was bringing him back literally "dead or alive" and if he died, he would be an even bigger burden to the expedition. Although Roosevelt contracted malaria as well, he downplayed his sickness to save

quinine Quinine is a medication used to treat malaria and babesiosis. This includes the treatment of malaria due to ''Plasmodium falciparum'' that is resistant to chloroquine when artesunate is not available. While sometimes used for nocturnal leg ...

for TR, nearly dying himself before the physician insisted on giving him the medication by injection. Roosevelt's determination and his rope- and canoe-handling skills were instrumental in saving his father's life. Nonetheless, TR was plagued by flareups of malaria and inflammation so severe that they required hospitalization. Although Kermit and TR faced skepticism about their claims of navigating a completely uncharted river over 1000 km long, they eventually silenced their critics through TR's oratory and his popular book, ''Through the Brazilian Wilderness.'' The 1913–14 expedition was later recounted in '' The River of Doubt'' by

Candice Millard Candice Sue Millard (born 1967) is an American writer and journalist. She is a former writer and editor for ''National Geographic'' and the author of four books: '' The River of Doubt'', a history of the Roosevelt–Rondon Scientific Expediti ...

(Doubleday 2005).

Marriage and children

After the Amazon trip, in 1914 Kermit married Belle Wyatt Willard, daughter of the U.S. Ambassador to Spain, Joseph Edward Willard. They had four children:

Kermit Roosevelt Jr. Kermit "Kim" Roosevelt Jr. (February 16, 1916 – June 8, 2000) was an American intelligence officer who served in the Office of Strategic Services during and following World War II. A grandson of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the U ...

Joseph Willard Roosevelt Joseph Willard Roosevelt (January 16, 1918 – May 18, 2008) was an American pianist and composer. Early life Roosevelt was born on January 16, 1918 as the second son of Kermit Roosevelt and Belle Wyatt Willard. He was named for his grandfather, ...

, Belle Wyatt "Clochette", and Dirck. His daughter, Clochette Roosevelt, married John Gorham Palfrey, who was dean of Columbia College and a member of the

United States Atomic Energy Commission The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by the U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President Harry ...

Military service in World War I

From 1914 to 1916, Roosevelt was assistant manager for National City Bank in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

. In 1917, as he was about to be transferred to a Russian branch, the U.S. entered the World War. He attended the Plattsburg School for officers from May to July 1917 but resigned from the U.S. Army to join the British Army. On August 22, 1917, Roosevelt was appointed an honorary

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the British Army. He saw hard fighting in the Near East, later transferring to the United States Army. While his other brothers had had summer training at

Plattsburgh, New York Plattsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The population of the sur ...

, Roosevelt had missed out on this training. Roosevelt joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

to fight in the

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

n theater (modern-day Iraq) of

. He was attached to the 14th Light Armoured Motor Battery of the

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a Regiment, corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in the World War I, First World War. Th ...

, but the British High Command decided they could not risk his life and so they made him an officer in charge of transport (

Ford Model T The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by the Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first mass-affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. Th ...

cars). Within months of being posted to Mesopotamia, he mastered spoken as well as written Arabic and was often relied upon as a translator with the locals. He was awarded a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

on August 26, 1918. Roosevelt relinquished his British commission on April 28, 1918, and was transferred to the AEF in France. In 1918, he learned that his youngest brother

Quentin Quentin is a French masculine given name derived from the Latin first name ''Quintinus'', a diminutive form of ''Quintus'', which means "the fifth". Albert Dauzat, ''Noms et prénoms de France'', Librairie Larousse 1980, édition revue et comment� ...

, a pilot, had been shot down over France and had been buried by the

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

with full military honors. He was commissioned a captain in the United States Army on May 12, 1918, and commanded Battery C, 7th Artillery of the 1st Division. He participated in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive near the end of the war. He returned to the United States on March 25, 1919, and was discharged from the Army two days later.

Between the wars

After the war, Roosevelt went into business; he founded the Roosevelt Steamship Company and the

United States Lines United States Lines was an organization of the United States Shipping Board's (USSB) Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC), created to operate German liners seized by the United States in 1917. The ships were owned by the USSB and all finances of t ...

. He continued to enjoy outdoor activities with his brothers. In 1919, he joined the Empire State Society of the

Sons of the American Revolution The Sons of the American Revolution (SAR), formally the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (NSSAR), is a federally chartered patriotic organization. The National Society, a nonprofit corporation headquartered in Louisvi ...

, to which both his father and elder brother belonged. In 1925, Roosevelt accompanied his brother Ted on a hunting expedition across the Himalayas, over uncharted mountain passes rising from the

Vale of Kashmir The Kashmir Valley, also known as the Vale of Kashmir, is an intermontane valley in northern Jammu and Kashmir, a region in Indian-administered Kashmir.(a) (subscription required) Quote: "Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subcontine ...

through the ancient

Silk Route The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...

into China, in search of the legendary bighorn wild sheep called '' Ovis poli''. He and his brother Ted documented the trip in their book ''East of the Sun and West of the Moon''. Several trophies collected during this expedition are on display in the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. This expedition, financed by Museum trustee James Simpson, is sometimes called the "James Simpson-Roosevelt Asiatic Expedition of the Field Museum of Natural History". In 1928–1929, Kermit Roosevelt and his brother Ted were members of the

Kelley-Roosevelts Asiatic Expedition The William V. Kelley-Roosevelt Asiatic Expedition was a zoological expedition to Southeast Asia in 1928–1929 sponsored by the Field Museum of Natural History and organized by Kermit Roosevelt and his brother Theodore Roosevelt Jr. Funding and ...

. The Roosevelt brothers told the story of their part in the expedition in their book ''Trailing the Giant Panda''. Kermit Roosevelt served as vice president of the

New York Zoological Society New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

from 1937 to 1939.

Service in World War II

By October 14, 1939, when Britain was at war with Germany, Roosevelt had negotiated a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the

Middlesex Regiment The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1966. The regiment was formed, as the Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), in 1881 as part of the Childers Re ...

with the assistance of his friend,

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

, who was by then First Lord of the Admiralty.Edward Renehan, 1998, ''The Lion's Pride: Theodore Roosevelt and His Family in Peace and War,'' Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, and 0195127196, se

accessed 16 June 2015. His first task was to lead a contingent of British volunteers for the Winter War in Finland. According to a contemporary story published in ''Picture Post'', he had resigned from the British Army to lead the expedition. Among those photographed in the article are John Hurman and Edward Graham. Hurman describes himself as half-Irish and half-English and going as a pilot. His friend, using the pseudonym Edward Graham, also a pilot, was White Russian emigre Prince Emanuel Galitzine the son of Prince Vladimir Galitzine. However, before the expedition could be launched, Finland made peace with Russia. Roosevelt served with distinction in a raid into Norway and was later sent to North Africa, where there was little action at the time. While in Norway, he was injured during the Battle of Narvik. He resumed drinking and was debilitated by an enlarged liver complicated by a resurgence of

. At the end of 1940, he returned to England and was discharged from the army on health grounds on May 2, 1941, by which time he had once again reached the rank of captain. Roosevelt appealed this discharge all the way to the British Prime Minister,

, who upheld the medical discharge. When he returned to the US, he turned to drinking to forget his problems. His wife enlisted the help of his cousin, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who ordered the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI to track him down, and he was brought back to his family. In late April 1942, his brother Archibald Roosevelt, Archibald sought to have him committed to a sanitarium for a year; at month's end, he agreed to a four-month stay at an institution in Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. To extricate him from his current situation, the President gave him a commission as a major in the United States Army, and had him transferred and posted to Fort Richardson (Alaska), Fort Richardson,

, where he worked as an intelligence officer and helped establish a territorial militia of Eskimos and Aleut people, Aleuts. He was a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1685 in Anchorage, Alaska.

Death

Roosevelt died in Alaska on June 4, 1943, in his room at Fort Richardson (Alaska), Fort Richardson, from suicide by a gunshot to the head. He was discovered by Dr. Sanford Couch Monroe, who later filed the autopsy report. His death was reported to his mother, Edith, as a heart attack. He was interred in Fort Richardson National Cemetery near Anchorage, where a memorial stone gateway was erected in his honor in 1949.

Legacy

The town of Kermit, Texas, was named for him (he had visited Winkler County, Texas, a few months earlier to hunt pronghorn, antelope). The town of Kermit, West Virginia, is also named after him. The ''Luzon''-class repair ship was named in his honor. The town of Kermit, North Dakota was also named after him. There is an annual lecture series given in the United States by a

general officer and in the United Kingdom by a U.S. Army general officer named in memory of Kermit Roosevelt.

Awards

United States

*World War I Victory Medal (United States), World War I Victory Medal *Army of Occupation of Germany Medal *Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal *World War II Victory Medal

Foreign decorations

(United Kingdom) *Montenegro War Cross

Foreign medals

*British War Medal (United Kingdom) *Victory Medal (United Kingdom), Victory Medal (United Kingdom) *1939-1945 Star (United Kingdom) *Africa Star (United Kingdom) *War Medal 1939–1945 (United Kingdom)

In fiction

Kermit Roosevelt appears as a minor character in the Wilbur Smith novel ''Assegai (novel), Assegai'' on safari in East Africa with his father. Kermit Roosevelt appears in the second episode of 1992's ''The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles'' television series. He also appears fleetingly (in a dream) in William Boyd (writer), William Boyd's novel ''An Ice-Cream War''. The book ''Roosevelt's Beast'' by Louis Bayard is a fictitious story of the Rondon-Roosevelt expedition, narrated by Kermit Roosevelt. Kermit Roosevelt appears as a main character in the James Ross (American author from Wyoming), James Ross historical fiction ''Hunting Teddy Roosevelt'' about the safari in East Africa with his father. Kermit Roosevelt appears in the fiction book ''The President's Daughter'' by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley which is based on Kermit's sister Ethel Roosevelt Derby and their time in the White House.

Works

* ''War in the Garden of Eden'': memoirs from World War I * * ''Trailing the Giant Panda'' (with Theodore Roosevelt Jr.) * * ''The Boy Scout's Book of True Adventure, Fourteen Honorary Scouts,'' with Foreword By

and Biographical Notes By James E. West (Scouting), James E. West. Published by G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York (1931) – Essays include: "Adventurous Hunting" by Kermit Roosevelt, "Scouting Against the Apache" by Frederick Russell Burnham, Frederick R. Burnham, "How I Learned to Fly" by Wright brothers, Orville Wright, "An Arctic Mirage" by Donald B. MacMillan, "In the Arctic" by Lincoln Ellsworth, "A Tobacco Trade" by George Bird Grinnell, "The Black Ghosts of the Tana River" by James L. Clark, "My Flight Over the Atlantic" by Richard Evelyn Byrd, "In the Jungles of Cochin-China" by

, "Shipwreck" by Robert A. Bartlett, "Written in the Air" by Charles Lindbergh, "Tiger! Tiger!" by Merian C. Cooper, "The First Crossing of the Polar Sea" by Lincoln Ellsworth, "Bandits" by Clifford H. Pope, and "Adventure" by Stewart Edward White. All 13 photo plates of the honorary Scouts are present; both Roosevelts in the same photo. * ''East of the Sun and West of the Moon'' (with Theodore Roosevelt Jr.) * ''The Long Trail'', 1921, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York

References and notes

External links

*
Project Gutenberg ''War in the Garden of Eden''
*

Theodore Roosevelt Association
*

*[http://www.theodore-roosevelt.com/kermit.html Death of Kermit Roosevelt] {{DEFAULTSORT:Roosevelt, Kermit 1889 births 1943 deaths United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army personnel killed in World War II Harvard University alumni American male writers Bulloch family Groton School alumni Machine Gun Corps officers Middlesex Regiment officers Military personnel from New York (state) American military personnel who died by suicide People from Long Island People from Oyster Bay (town), New York Recipients of the Military Cross Roosevelt family, Kermit Schuyler family Suicides by firearm in Alaska United States Army officers Wildlife Conservation Society people British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel killed in World War II British Army General List officers 1943 suicides Children of Theodore Roosevelt Volunteers in the Winter War