— Theodore Roosevelt

The awnings are up! Volunteers are donning their green shirts and new hats, and visitors are again being welcomed and guided through Theodore Roosevelt’s home by both NPS rangers and volunteers. And with the reopening of the Old Orchard Museum, volunteers will soon be greeting visitors there as well. Eastern National has also reopened the bookstore in the OOM, and Ellen is back helping visitors replenish their National Park Service and Sagamore Hill souvenirs.

During the summer of 2021, a little over a year and a half after Covid restrictions shuttered the TRH and OOM to visitors, ranger-led tours of the TRH resumed; and beginning in mid-May of this year, volunteers also began leading a limited number of tours of the Roosevelt home. Tours are currently being offered Thursdays through Sundays for up to 10 persons per tour. The park has expanded the number of tours offered per day, and public bookings are now available through the end of August. Active volunteers currently not assigned to the TRH will have additional interpretive opportunities to interact with the public as summer visitation increases. In addition, plans are afoot for a volunteer/staff picnic sometime this summer.

On Thursday, June 2, the Volunteer Advisory Board (VAB) reconvened after a two-and-a-half-year hiatus. The VAB membership consists of active volunteers representing each of the four divisions: Visitor Services, Maintenance, Administration, and Museum Services. In accordance with the VAB by-laws, “The Board provides a central forum for communication between and among NPS and volunteer staff, i.e., a clearing house for ideas, suggestions, grievances, etc.” Voting membership is on a rotating basis, with members serving 3-year terms. Any active volunteer with at least one year of service is eligible for election to the Board, and any volunteer interested in serving on the Board should contact one of its members. Current members of the Board include Nancy Hall, Chair (Rough Writer co-editor), Robin Wexler (Secretary), Joe DeFranco (FOSH representative), Charlotte Miska (Rough Writer co-editor), Dave Distler, Valerie Kamin, Michael Sassi, Lou Gottfried, Ginny Perrell, Lois Lindberg, Janet Parga, Alexis Barr, Pinky Feakes, and Bill Reed (past VAB Chair, ex-officio). All meetings of the VAB are open to active volunteers; you do not have to be an elected member to attend. And your ideas and suggestions, questions and participation are central to our mission. The next scheduled meeting of the VAB is Wednesday, August 17, at 10:30 in the picnic area under the tent.

New Park staff have begun arriving and are featured below. These include James Gerhardt, Emmett Burns, Daniel Kielbasa, Frank Bonifaz, and Bill Wallace, a familiar presence each summer is returning for another season. New seasonal maintenance staff will also be arriving, expanding the services that maintain the landscape and physical infrastructure of the park.

James Gerhardt was born in Phoenix, Arizona and grew up in northern New Jersey. He received his undergraduate degree in History from West Virginia University. In his free time he enjoys outdoor activities like hunting, skiing, kayaking, and is also big-time movie buff. He has worked seasonally for the National Park Service since 2014. Before coming to Sagamore Hill, he worked two summers at the Apostle Island National Lakeshore out in Wisconsin. He also worked at the Statue of Liberty, the Sandy Hook unit of Gateway, and the African Burial Ground in lower Manhattan. While most of his experience in the NPS has been in interpretation, he is excited to be part the Cultural Resource team here at Sagamore Hill.

Emmett Burns has just started his first season as an interpretive park ranger at Sagamore Hill. He has held TR in high regard for many years. Emmett is from the west that TR so loved. He hails from Colorado originally, and he has spent time in Jewel Cave NM (South Dakota) and Denali NP (Alaska). He visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota last year and loved his time there as much as TR did. Emmett is an outdoorsman he hoped TR would have respected. He is a hunter, angler, hiker, horse packer, backpacker, and overall lover of wildness. He is also a semi-professional photographer and writer, documenting his travels across the United States. Emmett is beyond excited to explore the eastern US, and to interpret the life of Theodore Roosevelt.

Daniel Kielbasa will be joining Sagamore Hill as part of the interpretation team for the upcoming summer season. He was born and raised on Long Island and has enjoyed many visits to the site. Daniel is a current US History teacher at a local high school who has spent recent summer “vacations” working on the interpretation staff at Old Faithful Visitor Education Center in Yellowstone National Park. There, he enjoyed leading visitors through nearby geyser basins, swearing in Junior Rangers, and identifying wildflowers. He has a strong interest in environmental history and has completed archival research in the New Deal era Civilian Conservation Corps. In his spare time, Daniel can be found fly fishing on the Carmans River.

Please welcome Frank Bonifaz to Sagamore Hill’s Maintenance Division as a seasonal Laborer. Frank comes to us from Texas where he last worked with the Texas Conservation Corps. He comes from a family of government employees and enjoys spending most of his time outside. Frank is passionate about conservation and land management, as well as, ending the food desolate zones in America. Back at home he helps with the repatriation of combat veterans through dialogue, movement, and expression. Frank has a pug named Jimmy Conseiko, who is pretty cool.

After working as a seasonal ranger at Sagamore for six years and for two years prior at the American Battlefield at Saratoga National Park, Bill Wallace is living a dream job as a Seasonal Park Guide. Rejoining the team again this summer Bill is filled with enthusiasm to be able to work again with the SAHI staff and the professional staff of volunteers we have at the park. After military service and finishing his MBA (thanks to the GI Bill and his wife's encouragement) Bill spent his earlier career in investment banking operations. Now a new chapter is opening of providing tours and speaking about President Roosevelt and of course babysitting his six grandkids. Bill is looking forward to a great summer and meeting all the staff members and volunteers again.

After a complicated and Covid-plagued two-and-a-half years, Sagamore Hill is welcoming the public and volunteers back to the park. Volunteer service will be an integral component as the park resumes and expands park operations and public services this summer. Throughout the past year, Superintendent Jonathan Parker and Chief of Interpretation Erin (Whitt) Whittaker have maintained connections with volunteers about retraining and their concerns through phone, email, and in-person meetings, helping to make the transition back to active service as smooth as possible. On behalf of the VAB, we are grateful to both and to you, the volunteers, for your continued commitment to Sagamore Hill.

Pictured below are some of the returning volunteers at the Theodore Roosevelt Home and at work in the Curatorial Division in the Old Orchard Museum.

While many furloughed volunteers are anxious to get back to work, several of our long-time volunteers are retiring. The Rough Writer staff asked those retiring to send us any recollections of their time at Sagamore Hill. Most simply wrote that they were grateful for the opportunity to serve and that the memories of their encounters with visitors from all over the world were so gratifying. Many of our retiring volunteers, working in both the TRH and OOM have served visitors for 20-plus years. Their contributions to their regular assignments as well as participation and assistance at special events contributed to our lively and popular, family-friendly programs. We are grateful to have served with each of them. Below are a few of the responses we have received so far.

When other volunteers found it difficult to be at the Site on Sundays, Brendan and Maeve always showed up and welcomed visitors to the TRH with cheerful enthusiasm. Their commitment kept the tour schedule running smoothly and visitors well-informed. Thank you for your many years of service.

"To Our Fellow Volunteers and Our many Friends on the Staff; We so enjoyed being VIPs. Our first Sunday tour was in January 1994. We started our training in November of 1993. We have wonderful memories of those Sundays, interacting with the public, taking down the flag, and those fun, special holidays like the Fourth of July. Our best wishes to all for a continued, vibrant Sagamore Hill. Thank you.”

Kathy formed part of a team of former elementary school teachers who came to Sagamore Hill soon after their retirement. The specialization working with children enhanced our Junior Ranger Program, and Kathy especially loved working with school groups who would visit Old Orchard for an orientation before going on a guided tour of the TRH, Kathy was also involved in a Site-initiative working with K-2 school children at Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School in Oyster Bay. Every year, Kathy, another volunteer, and a ranger would read to classes about the importance of conservation. That would be followed by class visitations to Sagamore Hill. Kathy’s warmth and obvious affection for the children she worked with established for many students and parents alike a reason to return and continue learning about American History.

Everyone who worked with Wayne knew his smile. He led tours with genteel professionalism, and his interaction with fellow volunteers and staff alike was always genuine and warm. Wayne served on the Volunteer Advisory Board for many years, chairing the Sagamore Hill Pin committee and was an active participant in special events held at the Site when volunteers were needed to assist regular staff. If there had been a contest for “best dressed” volunteer, Wayne and Milton Elis would have tied for first place – both always immaculate, with ties straight and vest pins aligned just right. Wayne was the consummate volunteer in knowledge and personality, respectful of his volunteer status and public expectations. Wayne made us all look better.

Margo Karler was a long-time member of the Volunteer Advisory Board, serving for one year as its secretary and was a guide in the TRH. When news of Sagamore Hill’s reopening was announced for this summer, Margo sent the following to the Board: “With heavy heart I’m writing to let staff and fellow volunteers know I will not be returning to volunteering at Sagamore. My husband and I have purchased property in Washington State and heading west on May 6th. We’re moving to Port Townsend, a small town on the Olympic Peninsula – a few hours’ drive from Seattle, but only about a 30-minute drive to both the ocean and Olympic National Park. I had hoped to visit Sagamore and/or attend a gathering before leaving, but it simply has not been possible. I cannot put into words how much I enjoyed the time I spent at the park, in the TRH, and at events like the horseshoe crab surveys and the absolutely fabulous visit to the Explorers Club. You have all helped create many of the wonderful memories that I now take with us to our new home in Washington.” Margo was always a cheerful member of the volunteer corps, and we wish her and husband many wonderful new adventures

This is a lively period at Sagamore Hill! The last four weeks – and the next four weeks – feature big projects, public events, reopenings, new staff, expanded programming, and more. There are lots of good work and positive developments occurring throughout the park that I want to share with you in this edition of the Rough Writer.

People: The last four months have proven to be the most challenging seasonal hiring environment in at least a decade. Seasonal employees are the peak-season backbone of national parks across the country, and we’re fortunate and pleased to welcome six employees to Sagamore Hill this season: Bill Wallace, Emmett Burns, and Daniel Kielbasa in Interpretation; Frank Bonifaz and Philip Guarino in Maintenance, and James Gerhardt in Curatorial. Additionally, Patrick Richards is on a 4 month detail from Fire Island National Seashore to the Maintenance Division. Please share your knowledge of and passion for Sagamore Hill when you see them.

A number of park volunteers have resumed leading and supporting house tours, as well as assisting curatorial with housekeeping and collections projects, and staffing some of our recent events and outdoor activities – thank you! The Volunteer Advisory Board reconvened in May, met at the Picnic Area with park staff, and discussed a variety of topics – including the strong desire for a social gathering in the park later this summer. Stay tuned…

Projects and Programs: The quarter-million-dollar preservation and repair project of the Roosevelt Home exterior porch, railing, and foundation is underway and will continue through the early fall. Preservation projects for the replacement of the Farm Shed doors and stabilization of the Old Orchard Museum front steps are scoped and will soon go out for bids. A variety of archeological site condition assessments were completed in May. The park is in the midst of a comprehensive records management project with The National Archives, is preparing for a full upgrade of the park telephone system, and has implemented a brand new point-of-sale transaction system. We’re also awaiting the delivery of a new front desk and storage system for the main hall of the Old Orchard. These are just a few of the many projects, both large and small, that are underway to preserve historic structures and upgrade numerous systems in the park.

The Old Orchard Museum reopened on Memorial Day weekend, and we’ve just opened up additional house tour reservations through the end of August. The number and frequency of tours will be expanding in the weeks ahead and we’ll be piloting a new same-day or “last minute” reservation option for visitors to purchase tour tickets up to one hour before the start of a tour via recreation.gov. The Eastern National Bookstore at Old Orchard Museum has also reopened and is refreshed with some new products and the same great staff. The reopening of the Old Orchard Museum was a significant undertaking earlier this spring, and we’re pleased to welcome back visitors to the museum.

The 4th of July at Sagamore Hill: We’ve also been working hard to prepare for the first Independence Day event at Sagamore Hill since 2019. This year’s event will run from 12-4 pm on Monday, July 4, and feature free tours of the Roosevelt Home, renowned TR reenactor Joe Wiegand, the Calliope Brass Band, a reading of the Declaration of Independence, children's games and activities, Junior Ranger program, open exhibits at the Old Orchard, and a presidential “photo-booth” with TR. Carpooling is strongly recommended and free; off-site parking and shuttle services will be available at the East Woods School. The Friends of Sagamore Hill are also graciously providing event support, food and refreshments to volunteers and staff working on the 4th of July. Thank you!

Requests for volunteer assistance were previously distributed, and if you didn’t receive one and/or are now available, please contact Laura_Cinturati@nps.gov to signup. Additionally, the staff, volunteers and partners of Sagamore Hill have been invited to walk in the Oyster Bay 4th of July Parade alongside Joe Wiegand. Please contact me (Jonathan_Parker@nps.gov) to sign up and walk with us to represent Sagamore Hill.

It has been a frenetic spring, one filled with numerous transitions, new challenges, and the welcome return of familiar faces and features at Sagamore Hill. We’re glad and grateful to have volunteers back working throughout the park and serving the public alongside us.

We’re looking forward to the upcoming summer, and we’ll see you in the park.

Long before Joe DeFranco became a SAHI volunteer, he was a frequent visitor to the park. He shared with us this family photo taken on a September 11, 1995 visit to Sagamore Hill. His six-year old son Roger then did a little project for school and wrote the following narrative.

We all took a tour of Teddy's house that day even though we went there about six times already.

Among Theodore Roosevelt’s diverse interests was his enduring passion for birds, nature, and the outdoors. This article will focus on some of his female contemporaries at the onset of the 20th Century.

The Victorian-era interest in natural history produced quite a few female amateur scientists; "amateur" was not a reflection of their technical accuracy, but the fact that a formal science education was essentially unavailable to women, and membership in scientific organizations was usually reserved for men. The late 1800s saw more women naturalists than in the past, but they were still working in a man’s world. The acceptable outlet for their talents often became nature observation and writing general interest books.

Elizabeth Gertrude Britton (1858–1934) The name of Nathaniel Lord Britton is quite familiar in botany; his wife Elizabeth was equally gifted in the study of bryology (mosses) and wildflowers. Working together, the Brittons helped gather support for the creation of The New York Botanical Garden in 1891, and Nathaniel served as the first director. Elizabeth became the Honorary Curator of Mosses (she was not paid a salary by NYBG). She helped establish the Wild Flower Preservation Society of America in 1902, working to protect endangered wildflowers and educate the public.

Anna Botsford Comstock (1854–1930) Anyone who enjoyed taking field trips in school should be indebted to Anna Botsford Comstock. She was well-known for her nature illustrations, but Comstock also promoted outdoor education in New York public schools. She was the first female professor at Cornell University, part of Cornell’s Department of Nature Study. Her Handbook of Nature Study (1911) has had more than 20 printings.

Florence Merriam Bailey (1863–1948) was a nature writer and one of the earliest advocates for the protection of wildlife. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Bailey studied birds in nature, focusing on their behaviors rather than strictly on colors and feather patterns. She was also involved in the Audubon Society, organizing new chapters wherever she went, and pioneered the use of binoculars for birding. At the age of 26, she wrote Birds through an Opera-Glass, one of the original field guides for birdwatching. The book was published in 1889 under her own name, which was also unusual for women at the time. This volume and her Handbook of Birds of the Western United States are in TR’s library at Sagamore Hill.

These stories reveal only a few of the women scientists of the day, women whose achievements weren’t limited by the time in which they lived. One major accomplishment was to promote watching birds instead of wearing them. Women, inspired by the suffrage movement, realized they could make a difference in the protection of birds. A tepid review of Neltje Blanchan’s works said “although of limited scientific value, [they] helped make the conservation movement a respectable force in American life.” The statement about limited scientific value may be questioned, but the success of these women is remarkable. The break from a technical approach to natural science, and the books’ appeal to a wider audience, provided the basis for all our modern field guides in use today.

Note: This is the first in a series highlighting women naturalists. There will be more to come in a subsequent issue of the Rough Writer. The full version of this article was originally published in the Long Island Botanical Society Newsletter Vol. 31, No. 1, Winter 2021. The research was first prepared in honor of Women’s History Month in March 2020, for a slide lecture at Sagamore Hill NHS. 

TRLP President Bill Reed explained the mission of the TRLP and outlined the day’s activities. Superintendent Jonathan Parker welcomed the participants and shared stories about his own photo experiences.

The participants were divided into four groups led by Nancy Hall, Bill Wallace, Rick Elinson, Robin Wexler, and Brenda Cherry. Walking past the House and along the old carriage road to the tennis court and then along the nature trail to the beach, the participants asked questions about the architecture and history of the site, Roosevelt family life, and the natural setting. 

The weather was a little overcast, but the group was enthusiastic. Check the TRLP website and Facebook page to see some more photos. 

When I listen to the predawn birdsong chorus, one song stands out – that of the American Robin. The robin is truly the “early bird.” Their musical song is a string of 10 or so clear whistles assembled from a few often-repeated syllables, and often described as “cheerily, cheer up, cheer up, cheerily, cheer up.” The syllables rise and fall in pitch but are delivered at a steady rhythm, with a pause before the bird begins singing again. At dawn, the song is more rapid.

The American Robin (Turdus migratorius) is among the most common songbirds. Birders and nonbirders alike can ID this ubiquitous bird. It is often considered a harbinger of spring, but they can be seen on Long Island all year. During the spring and summer, they are often on lawns tugging earthworms out of the ground. In the winter they tend to congregate in flocks in treetops, including the trees in and around the Sagamore Hill parking lot. During the 2021 Christmas Bird Count, 130 robins were counted on site. The American Robin was named after the European Robin (Erithacus rubecula) by early English settlers due to its reddish-orange breast that reminded them of the bird they knew back home, but the two species are not related. The American Robin is in the thrush family while the European Robin is in the old-world flycatcher family. Robins nest in the early spring typically on a horizontal branch hidden in dense leaves. Their nest consists of a mud foundation lined with grasses, twigs, and other plant material. Female robins typically lay three or four bright blue eggs and raise up to three broods a year.

Male American Robin

There have been several developments since our last update. The silver candelabras have been returned to the sideboard in the dining room after restoration and they look fabulous. Next up for conservation is the complete set of the works of Abraham Lincoln. The FOSH will be covering the full cost of this restoration, beginning with a 33% deposit. Upon completion, the full expenditure is expected to be over $22,000. Please visit friendsofsagamorehill.org for details about these projects, including photographs.

We are pleased to announce that there will be FOSH information tables onsite during four weekends over the summer as well as a special one on Monday, July 4. Please stop by in the afternoon and say hello to Charlotte Miska and other board members on Sunday, July 17 and Sunday, August 14 and to Ginny and Jay Perrell who will be there on Monday, July 4 and Sunday, August 28.

Six of our board members were in attendance when Candace Millard gave a wonderful talk about her latest book, River of the Gods, at Raynham Hall on June 6. We were happy to support the author of one of the most intriguing books ever written about TR, The River of Doubt.

On Saturday, June 11 the FOSH played a part in welcoming the members of the Society of Presidential Descendants to Sagamore Hill. We want to thank our board members and members of the Volunteer Advisory Board (Robin Wexler and Janet Parga) for their help in distributing box lunches to the attendees. Brother Lawrence Syriac (with Robin Wexler on right), who was heading the distribution, said he and his team gave out 45 box lunches. Later in the afternoon, renowned author and historian Doris Kearns Goodwin stopped by for a visit after having spent time in town signing books at Theodore’s Books.

We are also pleased to announce that Sagamore Hill hosted the TRA’s 28th Annual Nassau/Suffolk Police Awards, outdoors, on Thursday, June 16 at 11 am. The Friends of Sagamore Hill provided the refreshments to all the attendees. What a wonderful event it was, despite the early rain. From the pipe and drum band, to the mounted units, to the inspiring and sometimes heartbreaking stories of the two award recipients, the event was nothing short of impressive. Both Nassau and Suffolk’s County Executives spoke as did both Police Commissioners. Afterwards, when the crowd thinned, we realized that we’d ordered way too much food and had a dilemma before us. After the staff was offered lunch, we decided to extend the offer to the public. Those folks on site who were just visiting, who had gotten a tour, or were waiting for a tour could not have been more appreciative. We told them it was the embodiment of TR’s “Square Deal”. I think we made some “friends”, and at the very least, we fed some hungry adults and children and left them with a positive view of Sagamore Hill.

Our Annual Meeting is scheduled for June 23 at 6 pm, under the tent at the SAHI picnic tables, when we will have an election of our board of directors. All paid FOSH members are welcome. Afterwards we will be going out to dinner, Dutch treat, at Café al Dente in Oyster Bay.

Plans for Independence Day are on-going. A good-sized crowd is expected on the 4th of July and the FOSH will be covering the cost of providing shuttle buses from the East Woods School for those unable to secure parking at the site. Further information will be forthcoming.

Have you checked out FOSH's Instagram page? Thanks to Brian Tadler, it is a treasure trove of interesting facts about all things TR. Brian recently linked the Instagram account to the FOSH Facebook page so you can also see his posts on Facebook.

You can find the Rough Writer on The Friends of Sagamore Hill website (friendsofsagamorehill.org). Simply select the More about TR menu and click Rough Writer Newsletter. You will go to a page that lists the Rough Writer issues going back to January 2020. Back issues are now readily available for your reading pleasure. Thank you Patrick Teubner for making this happen.

For more information please check out our website at www.nps.gov/sahi or call