SOURCE: "Theodore Roosevelt: On Clio's Active Service," in The Virginia Quarterly Review, Vol. 62, No. 1, 1986, pp. 21-37.

In the following essay, Cooper traces Roosevelt's development as a historian.

The most casual visitor to Sagamore Hill, Theodore Roosevelt's home at Oyster Bay, cannot fail to grasp two of the owner's greatest interests. The most immediately striking impression of the interior of the house comes from the plethora of animal trophies—mounted heads, antlers, tusks, stuffed birds and small game, and elephants' feet made into footstools. Even someone who knows nothing about Theodore Roosevelt can see that he was an enthusiastic outdoorsman and an avid hunter. The next most striking impression is made by the books. Sagamore Hill is a house full of books. The library is one of the largest rooms, and a casual glance at the volumes, which come in all sizes and shapes and many of which show...