Chronicles: Teddy Roosevelt Lived Here

President Theodore Roosevelt was a war hero, a naturalist and a true New Yorker. The Roosevelt family roots are buried deep in the 17th c. history of the city, as a modest Dutch family of immigrants who made their fortune as merchants. Unbeknownst to many locals, the childhood home of President Theodore Roosevelt is located in Manhattan, right on Gramercy Park. Thanks to the efforts of the Women’s Roosevelt Memorial Association in 1919, the four-story brownstone where Roosevelt was born in 1858 and grew-up in until the age of 15 is now a museum. The home was given to the National Parks Service in 1962 and is open to the public free of charge from Tuesday through Saturday. The period rooms can one be seen by guided tours given by the park rangers and tours leave on an hourly basis.
 
Theodore Roosevelt went on to become the 28th and youngest president of the United States but before he left New York, he made a lasting impact. From 1895-1897, Roosevelt was the Commissioner of the New York City Police Department. He reformed what was considered at the time to be the most corrupt police force in the country. And after leaving New York to lead the Rough Riders during the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt returned to be elected state Governor. Two years later, he was elected Vice President of the United States.

The National Park service also maintains another of Theodore Roosevelt’s residences, Sagamore Hill on Long Island, about 40 minutes east of New York City. Roosevelt and his family lived here from 1887-1919, through his presidency. The home is kept exactly how the family left it and holds Roosevelt’s hunting trophies.
 
Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace
28 East 20th Street, New York, NY 10003-1399 – (212) 260-1616
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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site

20 Sagamore Hill Road
, Oyster Bay, New York 11771-1807 – (516) 922-4788‎
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