Complaining about our bizarre weather? Try having your Presidential Inauguration in crappy, snowy weather. That’s what happened to our most rotund president (and latest Nats racing president).

Here is a photograph of him in the carriage with Teddy Roosevelt en route to the Capitol and his swearing in.

Taft & Roosevelt driving to Capitol, Mar. 4, 1909.

And below are a few more photographs from that day, courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Photographers at President Taft’s inauguration, March 4, 1909

Side view of Taft on balustrade in snow, with top hat in hand, gesturing to crowd before him on grounds of east front of Capitol, with photographers at left.

President and Mrs. Taft leaving the Capitol to head the parade to the White House [March 4, 1909].

President Taft is here photographed with Edward F. Stallwagon [i.e. Edward J. Stellwagen], Chief of the Inaugural Committee, and with Vice President James S. Sherman–A severe blizzard hindered the ceremonies.

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Here are two amazing photographs from Teddy Roosevelt‘s Inauguration in 1905. Thanks again to the Library of Congress.

President Roosevelt in carriage en route to Capitol

President Theodore Roosevelt passing 10th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in inauguration parade on way to the Capitol

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On Friday, July 3rd, 1902, Teddy Roosevelt went for a hike in Rock Creek Park with General Leonard Wood and his entourage. The President’s love for Rock Creek was well known, as he spent countless hours wandering the nature sanctuary in the middle of Washington.

Teddy Roosevelt in 1902 (Library of Congress)

While on his stroll, he noticed that his prized ring had slipped off his finger and disappeared. Below is an article, published the following day in the Washington Post.

Several hundred men and boys busied themselves yesterday in looking for a seal ring which President Roosevelt lost on the left bank of Rock Creek, a short distance above Bowlder [sic] Bridge, the afternoon of July 3.

While the President was walking along the creek with Gen. Wood and several members of the latter’s staff he noticed that his ring was gone. He prized it highly, and, with the assistance of his companions, hunted for it for some time, but without success. An advertisement was published, offering a reward of $25 to the finder of the ring.

The advertisement asked that persons desiring to look for the ring call at Gen. Wood’s headquarters, 20 Jackson place. There were many inquiries there yesterday and an army of hunters searched for the missing ring, without finding it.

Sorry Teddy. He placed an ad in the paper stating the following: “Golden ring lost near Boulder Bridge in Rock Creek. If found, return to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Ask for Teddy.”

To this day, the ring has not been found.

Speaking of Rock Creek Park, do you know why it’s called Beach Drive? The guy responsible for engineering Boulder Bridge.

The post Lost Ring, If Found, Return to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

Teddy Roosevelt laughing

Another delightfully bizarre post for you from the early 20th century. Leave it to Teddy Roosevelt to be in the middle of another good story.

Considerable prominence has been given to an episode which occurred a few days ago on Massachusetts avenue, in which a drunken man and the President figured.

The President had been walking with Senator Lodge and stopped in front of the latter’s residence, being joined there by his brother-in-law and sister, Commander and Mrs. Cowles, who were in their carriage. When they had alighted and while the party was standing on the pavement, a drunken man, who had been observed coming up the street, slipped and fell. In his efforts to regain his feet, he reached out to the President. At that moment the footman of Cowles carriage took hold of him and helped him to his feet. At the same instant a Secret Service officer appeared and led the man away. He was a well-dressed white man and helplessly intoxicated. In fact, he fell three times before he was escorted as far as Eighteenth street. As soon as he was led away, the President and his friends continued their conversation and paid not further attention to the incident.

The published statement that the President was not the least frightened is entirely correct.

Frightened? Teddy Roosevelt is scared of nothing. He gave a speech AFTER being shot in the chest!

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Here is the front page of the Sunday Morning Globe on September 22nd, 1901. President McKinley had been assassinated eight days earlier in Buffalo and his Vice President, Teddy Roosevelt, was inaugurated as the youngest President. Click on it to read it in greater detail.

Sunday Morning Globe – September 22nd, 1901

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This article that we came across in the Washington Post is probably something we would never see today. I’m pretty sure Bo Obama is pretty locked down and confined to the White House grounds. This was not the case for the Roosevelt dog in 1909. This article from February 6th of that year tells the story.

There was consternation at the White House yesterday morning, when it was discovered that Ace, the favorite bull pup belonging to Miss Ethel Roosevelt, was missing. Small scouting parties of the White House employes scurried about searching diligently for the lost pet and recalling that it was not the first time Ace had fled from the executive mansion. On several previous occasions, after mingling democratically with other canines for several hours in the streets, Ace has returned to the comparative seclusion of the executive grounds.

Here is a description of the dog given in an advertisement sent from the White House:

“Lost–Bull pup; name Ace; lemon and white, clear and distinct white diamond on right hip. No collar. Reward if returned to the White House.”

The dog is about a year old, and has been in Miss Roosevelt’s possession since last summer. He was named Ace because of the white diamond-shaped mark on his hip, which is his distinguishing characteristic. While playing around the White House grounds he has been allowed to go without his collar, but when he accompanies Miss Roosevelt on rides and strolls he always is in canine full dress.

Ace is not related in any way to Pete, the White House bulldog who gained notoriety by treeing the French ambassador and forcing Secretary Garfield to approach the White house by an indirect route. White House employes say the missing pet has a friendly disposition which has endeared him to large numbers of acquaintances, and they believe he will be recognized and brought home.

The police also were asked to look for Ace, and his description sent to all the precincts.

You’ll be happy to know that Ace was eventually found and returned to the Roosevelt family … an outcome far better than what happened to LBJ’s dog.

Ethel Roosevelt in 1908 (Library of Congress)

Related articles

• White House Stables Demolished; Pauline the Cow Left Homeless (ghostsofdc.org)
• Video: Teddy Roosevelt Leaving the White House, Going For a Walk (ghostsofdc.org)
• Teddy Roosevelt Whips Young Lady Passing Him on Horseback (ghostsofdc.org)
• LBJ’s Beagle Run Over and Killed in White House Driveway (ghostsofdc.org)
• President Obama Says Bo The Dog Has More Charisma Than His Mother-In-Law (huffingtonpost.com)
• Thousands Wait in Line to Visit White House (ghostsofdc.org)

The post Ethel Roosevelt’s Dog Goes Missing From The White House appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

Last week, we did a quick post on Fort Lincoln Heights. Now, I’d like to focus a little more on Deanwood, the former neighborhood of both Nannie Helen Burroughs and Marvin Gaye.

1. Before the Deanwood metro … way before

Deanwood’s metro stop recently had a dubious label attached to it. You’ll read later in this post that a different kind of danger was present in Deanwood over a hundred years ago.

I thought it might be interesting to share what the area around the metro stop looked like in 1907. Below is the Baist real estate atlas for the area near the current metro stop.

Deanwood in the 1907 Baist Real Estate Atlas (Library of Congress)

Play around with the current map below. The road above labeled Anacostia (near 5122 and 5118) became Anacostia Freeway (295), M is now Meade, N is Nash and L is Lee.

2. Frightful railroad crossing accident kills a prominent lawyer

The Baltimore Sun had a special dispatch from Washington on August 21st, 1897, detailing a horrific accident at the Deanwood crossing of the Baltimore and Potomac railroad tracks.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 29.–One of the most frightful accidents which has occurred here in years took place this evening at 6 o’clock at the Deanwood crossing of the Baltimore and Potomac tracks when Judge H. O. Claughton, a prominent lawyer of this city, and Miss Villa Custis lost their lives by being struck by a train.

Judge Claughton and Miss Custis had been out driving and were returning to the city. As they approached the railroad crossing at Deanwood the whistle of the New York express due at this time blew. Gateman Baker attempted to lower the gates to prevent the carriage from passing over the tracks. As he did so he saw that the gates would strike the top of the carriage, so he immediately raised them again. By this time the horses had passed upon the tracks, and in a moment more the carriage would have been over.

Just then the express, going at the rate of sixty miles an hour, crashed into the team, apparently striking it between the horses and the carriage. In a moment the air was filled with splinters and flesh, and the horses, carriage and occupants disappeared from view. The train was stopped as quickly as possible and backed up to Deanwood, and the conductor and trainmen gathered up the wreck.

The body of Judge Claughton had been thrown a distance of seventy yards and that of Miss Custis nearly as far. Both lay at some distance from the track. They had been killed instantly, apparently, by the tremendous shock. At one side of the road lay the horses, both dead. The carriage was in splinters. An incoming train was stopped and the bodies placed on it and brought to this city.

An inquest will be held tomorrow to determine, if possible, where the blame lay. The gateman is the only witness to the accident, and he says that he did all that was possible to prevent it. The team the Judge was driving was an elegant span of horses and they were coming down the road at a fast clip. At the crossing there is a slight cut, and, it is believed, that the view was obstructed by houses and a fence, so that the occupants of the carriage had no idea they were in danger until they had been struck. Their bodies showed bu slight wounds.

Miss Custis is a daughter of Dr. W. B. N. Custis, of 112 East Capitol street.

Judge Claughton was born in Westmoreland county, Va., May 20, 1828. He was consul at St. Martins, West Indies, in 1850-1, and in 1873-6 he was a member of the Virginia Senate. In the latter year he removed to this city, where he soon accumulated a large and lucrative practice. He was made a professor at the law school of the National University in 1882, and has ever since been in the faculty. He was one of the counsel in the famous Potomac flats case, now pending before the United States Supreme Court.

Is it me, or is it weird that a 69-year-old man is out for a drive with the daughter of a local doctor? The papers did state that Judge Claughton and Dr. Custis were friends. Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but it seems odd. In the 1880 U.S. Census, Claughton is listed as married to Jennie, with two daughters, a son and two adopted daughters — the judge’s father, a servant and cook also lived in their home on 3rd St., just north of the Capitol Building. Maybe he was a widower by 1897 and maybe it was just an innocent ride to the country.

After a little digging, I found out that Custis was 28 years old at the time. By 1897, Claughton no longer was living near the Capitol, having a residence at 1740 P St. NW and there was no mention of his next of kin in the article.

Hiram O. Claughton household in the 1880 U.S. Census

The Pennsylvania Railroad was declared responsible for the accident, having been negligent in sufficiently protecting the Deanwood crossing. The gates at the crossing were lowered and raised manually and it was company policy to only lower them when the oncoming train was in sight. There were two 12-hour shifts operating the gate, with the day man being paid $45 a month and the night man receiving $40 for his shift.

3. President Roosevelt’s train at Deanwood

I stumbled across an interesting, but very brief, mention of the President passing through Deanwood over a hundred years ago. This was in the Washington Post on November 23rd, 1902.

The Pennsylvania Railroad informed police headquarters last night that the President’s special train of four cars, from Philadelphia, would remain on a siding at Deanwood from 4 o’clock this morning, until 7:30 o’clock, at which hour the Executive wished to be awakened. the train, scheduled to leave Philadelphia at midnight, arrived in the city at an unseasonable hour. It was thought best not to disturb the President’s rest by rousing him before his usual hour of rising.

President Roosevelt was in Philadelphia on November 22nd to attend the dedication of the Central High School for Boys during the day and at night, he went to the celebratory banquet of Founders’ Day at the Union League. The party went quite late and Roosevelt boarded his train home at the Pennsylvania Railroad station.

Teddy Roosevelt in Philadelphia – November 22nd, 1902 (Library of Congress)

Related articles

• Deanwood: A Little Bit of Country Just Inside the District’s Borders (dc.urbanturf.com)
• Fort Lincoln Heights: Parts of Barbadoes and Scotland (ghostsofdc.org)
• Violence on Streets of Old Anacostia ["Washington Letter," Baltimore Sun, 1886] (ghostsofdc.org)
• Doctor and His Carriage at the Smithsonian (ghostsofdc.org)
• Gonzaga, Sidwell Friends, St. Albans and Farewell to a Local Legend (ghostsofdc.org)

MrsAntonette

The post Three Things About Deanwood appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

White House north view – 1901 (Library of Congress)

Teddy Roosevelt moved into the White House and made some changes that rocked the boat. The Executive Mansion was getting pretty cramped with the expanding needs of the president’s staff.

Below is an article from the Washington Times on November 20th, 1902 detailing the renovations being done at the time.

The “new” White House is not going to please those who have gone in and out under the old portico for the last 50 years. It will not please those who have enjoyed the hospitality of the historic Mansion in the last 10 years, say, and it certainly will not please those who want the very newest of things, because the White House is now neither old nor new.

A long time ago, one who spoke often in parables said: “No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment. Neither do man put new wine into old bottles,” and gave as his reason for the assertion that in neither instance was the patching up process satisfactory. This feeling strikes one upon entering the Executive Mansion, which is yet in the hands of the renovator, and instinctively the though presents itself that in the mighty effort to modernize our dead old White House, many anachronisms have been committed, and the ancient structure is now neither fish, flesh, fowl or good red herring–it is just an old garment relined with new material, and the fit is no longer perfect.

The East Room, or, State Reception Room–originally the banquet hall–White House – 1902 (Library of Congress)

Another change that grates on the old timer is the lowering of the door ways leading from the main hall through the corridor into the East Room. The upper floor has been leveled, and to do this the doorways have been made squatty and cruelly out of proportion with the massive lines in other parts of the great entrance hall.

The splendid mosaic partition put in by Tiffany during President Arthur’s time at tremendous cost, for the purpose of separating the vestibule from the parlors, thus forming a long hall which became known as the “Red Corridor,” has disappeared. Its historic value was small, but its intrinsic value, greatly enhanced now by its associations in the White House, is probably beyond the limits of anything but the very plumpest purse.

If the changes that have been made in the White House had been to renovate and make it beautiful and habitable along a return to the original Colonial lines, not much fault would have been found. But the attempt to “modernize” it has destroyed its historic value, and does not seem to have made it much more desirable as a residence. It does not look as though a very coherent idea of what he hope to accomplish had fastened itself in the architect’s mind, because he tells, for instance, that he decorated the private dining-room three times over before he got it to suit his taste and Mrs. Roosevelt’s. The tone now is a dead white.

After five months’ work by the architect, and after the concrete floors were laid, the hard-wood coverings all on and things shaped up for the final touches, the boiler men came to put in the furnaces, and it was found that no provision had been made in the architect’s plans for heating. So a general tearing-out process ensued, making many changes necessary before the heating plant could be installed.

Remodeled corridor in the White House – 1902 (Library of Congress)

It continues …

Nearly half a million dollars has been spent upon the remodeling of the White House. In many respects, and as far as it did not go to effacing old “landmarks” in the historic mansion, every loyal American must believe that the money has been well spent. The timbers in the century-old floors were well nigh rotted in two. The window frames had been painted over and over again until the caked white lead had actually dry-rotted away from the soft pine, which you could pick out in chunks with your finger nails. The roof on the old house was perforated with holes. The heating apparatus was inadequate, the plumbing atrocious, and the electric lighting system far from modern. Steel beams and girders have no made the floor of the East Room safe for the crowds which attend the receptions. Under these 175,000 new brick have been mortared into supports. The plumbing has been scientifically done, and 14 miles of electric light wires will give light in all the dark places.

The terraces which have been constructed from the east and west ends of the Mansion are a return to the original plans, and the return is to be applauded. Unfortunately the west terrace ends in an awful blot on the landscape, the new “temporary” offices for the President. It is to be hoped that “temporary” does not mean a temporizing with the American people to tide over their first wrath and then perpetuate the hideous little doghouse as a permanent thing.

The next part is interesting to read, when you realize the author is disparaging the latest addition to the White House — The West Wing.

There has been absolutely no attempt to spend the $65,000 in constructing a building that will be either fire proof or pleasing to the eye. It is but one story high, and is as square and squatty as it could possibly be built. It is constructed of cheap brick, and the commonest of hard pine, simply oiled, finished the interior. The walls are painted a sad gray. the linoleum on the office floor is a sadder hued sort of a gray which shows to the minutest atom every speck of dust. The ceilings are low, and, taking the whole tour ensemble of that end of the White House, one must conclude that it was an impecunious Congress that would impose such a scarecrow tinder-box upon the head of a great Nation, or else the plans submitted to said Congress must have been viewed through rose-tinted glasses. “Cheap” is placarded all over it. Cigars and matches ought to be absolutely prohibited inside the shell, for either could easily start a blaze that would utterly destroy our one great historic building.

Everyone’s a critic.

View of the West Wing under construction from the Executive Mansion. Executive Office Building in background – 1902 (Library of Congress)

To cap the climax, it is more than hinted that the President and Mrs. Roosevelt do not like the changes which have altered the building and yet not conformed to the original design, which was purely Colonial.

While one objects to the wanton disregard of the historic and the full determination to obliterate as much of it as possible, so far as can be learned of the architect’s plans, it must be admitted that for residence purposes and public functions of a society nature, the White House will now range along with the British Embassy, which is probably the most amply-planned house for entertainment in the National Capital. It used to be as much as one’s clothes were worth to attend a White House reception. You were shoved through the main door into an icy corridor, cork-screwed out of your wraps there, and jammed into the line which slowly uncoiled itself through three doors across a corridor and down the Red Parlor before it was fairly “scatted” through the Blue Room, past the receiving line, then through the Green Parlor into the Big east Room, where you “broiled” in the sardine pack. When you departed it was through a window.

All this will now be changed. The entrance to the White House proper will be by way of the east Terrace, and there is a cloak room with accommodations for 2,500 people. Formerly 500 people had to scramble to get rid of their out-door garments. There will be room for all.

A White House reception–President and Mrs. Roosevelt restore the old-time gayety to society in Washington – 1902 (Library of Congress)

kitchen in the updated new White House – 1902 (Library of Congress)

If you like this the photos in the post, why not follow us on Pinterest to see some great historical photos of Washington.

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• Who Almost Designed the President’s Palace? (ghostsofdc.org)
• Earliest Photograph of the White House (ghostsofdc.org)

The post White House Renovation Is Not Pleasing; Historic Lines Lost, Texas Steers’ Heads for Decorations appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

Teddy Roosevelt on horseback (History.com)

Now, I will quickly caveat this as being unconfirmed, but I am merely surfacing an interesting old story from the Baltimore Sun. This was printed on May 13th, 1912.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN–Sir: Sometime during the latter part of Roosevelt’s administration I remember reading in some of the daily papers a supposedly authentic account of “T. R.’s” riding horseback on a summer’s afternoon in the suburbs of Washington, and it was related that a young lady rider who attempted to pass the Presidential party was struck across the face with a whip by the gentle Teddy as punishment for her lese-majeste. Will you kindly republish the account of the incident as it happened, and oblige many SUN readers?

PHILIP B. GIBSON.

Teddy Roosevelt (Wikipedia)

Not good. Say it ain’t so, Teddy.

THE SUN’S Washington correspondent, to whom this question was referred, answers it as follows:

Two stories are told concerning the report that former President Roosevelt had acted in a decidedly rude manner toward a young girl while riding in Rock Creek Park one afternoon during the last year of his administration. There is not way to officially confirm either of them. The story which is generally accepted as true around the White House makes the Colonel himself guilty. It seems that the President was riding just beyond the Zoo in Rock Creek Park late one afternoon, accompanied only by an orderly. Two girls, one of them a student in a Washington seminary, and the other the daughter of a well-known resident of the city, were riding in the same direction. Roosevelt passed them at a gallop. The out-of-town girl, discovering after he had passed that it was the President, spurred her horse to overtake Mr. Roosevelt for another look at him. Glancing back Colonel Roosevelt saw what was happening and, as the girl’s horse came alongside him, he slashed at her horse and instead struck the girl across the arms with his riding whip. At the same time he urged his own horse forward and left the frightened young lady behind. Whether or not Roosevelt knew that he had done more than hit the horse is, of course, not known. He showed no signs at the time of having been aware of the fact. The other story is to the same effect in detail up to the point where the girl pressed her horse forward. In this account, the orderly, who was a private in the cavalry seeing a girl driving hard to overtake the President and not knowing perhaps whether she meant harm or not, struck the animal several times and one time struck the girl with his whip. According to this story, the President apparently knew nothing of what was happening, inasmuch as the orderly was riding several paces behind him.–EDITOR THE SUN.

A good story lost to history and an interesting story either way. I’ll leave it up to you to judge.

Teddy Roosevelt riding a moose in the water (seriously?)

Related articles

• Pat Garrett, Lawman Who Killed Billy the Kid Visits Washington and Teddy Roosevelt (ghostsofdc.org)
• Video: Teddy Roosevelt Leaving the White House, Going For a Walk (ghostsofdc.org)
• 100 Years Ago Today: Major Archibald Butt, D.C. Resident, Boards Titanic for Transatlantic Crossing (ghostsofdc.org)

The post Teddy Roosevelt Whips Young Lady Passing Him on Horseback appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

This post went up at exactly 8 a.m. this morning local time, which is twelve noon Greenwich Mean Time. Exactly 100 years ago at this very moment, on April 12th, 1912, the Titanic set off from Southampton, England, on her tragic maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. On the luxury liner was prominent Washington resident and presidential aide, Major Archibald Butt.

Archibald Willingham Butt was a successful and well-known military aide to presidents Roosevelt and Taft. He was fiercely loyal to both men and near the end of Taft’s term in 1912, it was clear that Roosevelt was disgruntled with Taft and would run against him. Major Butt was caught in the middle with equal but divided loyalties.

Under great stress, partly attributed to his grueling schedule as Taft’s presidential aide, his health was deteriorating. Major Butt’s dear friend, prominent artist and secretary of the American Academy in Rome, Frank Millet, had pleaded with him to go to Europe with him for a rest. Millet also personally pressured President Taft to permit his favorite aide to cross the Atlantic for a much needed vacation.

Major Butt would frequently serve as Taft’s golfing companion or join him on walks near the White House for exercise. The President was quite fond of his aide and had the highest opinion of the major, making it difficult to go for an extended period of time without his assistance.

The chief trait of Archie Butt’s character was loyalty to his ideals, his cloth, and his friends. His character was a simple one in the sense that he was incapable of intrigue or insincerity. He was gentle and considerate to every one, high and low. He never lost, under any conditions, his sense of proper regard for what he considered the respect due to constituted authority.

-William H. Taft

Archibald Willingham Butt in 1909 (Wikipedia)

The president demurred, but eventually relented and granted Butt an extended leave of absence to recuperate. In early March, Butt set sail for Europe with his travel companion, Millet. The upcoming departure was reported in the Washington Post on March 1st, 1912.

“I have not had a leave of absense [sic] since I entered the army,” Maj. Archibald Butt, personal aid to President Taft, declared last night after he had been granted leave to make a trip to Europe. “I have not been well since I contracted toxine poisoning while on a Western trip with the President last fall, but my real trouble is that I need rest.”

Maj. Butt was granted leave of a month and 24 days by the War Department with permission to go beyond the seas. With Frank Mallet [sic] a member of the fine art commission and head of the American Academy of Arts at Tome, he will sail at 11 o’clock tomorrow morning from Hoboken on the steamship Berlin, of the North German Lloyd line, for Naples.

He will also go to Genoa, and probably to Rome and Paris. The President’s aid has several relatives living on the continent, and a brother, Edward H. Butt, in England. These relatives have planned a small family reunion at Paris, and Maj. Butt announced that he hoped to attend.

Maj. Butt laughingly denied his rest trip is to prepare him for a strenuous political campaign. “I do not know that President Taft is planning any strenuous campaign trips,” he said, “but if he does, I shall be prepared to accompany him wherever he may go.”

“I should have taken this rest before, but I wanted to be at the White House during the winter season., The season now is over, and there is very little going on there officially. Consequently, I could best be spared at this time.”

Maj. Butt will return by way of Naples about Easter Monday. During his absense no one will be detailed specially to perform his duties, but all of the younger aids [sic] at the White House will have an opportunity to fill the position.

Francis Davis Millet (Smithsonian)

Much has been said about the companionship between Millet and Butt. Contemporary interpretations of the bond between the two frequently lead to the conclusion of a secret amorous relationship between the men.

“No Damon and Pythias friendship could have been closer than the friendship of Maj. Butt and Millet,” said Mr. Waltrous, “The two kept quarters together and were inseparable when both were in Washington. They lived near the Metropolitan Club, Butt being, as is well known, a bachelor, and Mr. Millet’s family being quartered at his home in England.”

Passenger A. Butt, ticket 113050

On April 10th, 1912, Major Butt boarded a train at King’s Cross station in London, bound for Titanic’s berth in Southampton. He arrived early that morning and boarded the ship at 9 a.m with first class ticket number 113050.

Titanic departed from Southampton around noon and set out for the 77-mile journey across the English Channel to France. She arrived at Cherbourg early that evening, set to take on 274 more passengers (24 fortunate souls had the final destination of France and disembarked). Frank Millet was reunited with his companion Butt as he boarded the ship with ticket number 13509 and the two settled in for their transatlantic journey home.

The ship weighed anchor around 8 p.m. and steamed to her final port, Queenstown, Ireland. This would be Titanic’s last stop before heading out across the Atlantic Ocean.

Titanic at Berth No. 44 in Southampton in 1912

Titanic departing Southampton in 1912

The first few days of the journey were uneventful, with Butt and Millet enjoying luxurious accommodations of the massive ship. Four days into the voyage, the Titanic struck an iceberg on the starboard side and so began the tragic end for the ship and 1,514 unlucky passengers.

There were numerous sensationalized accounts of Major Butt’s whereabouts and actions in the final hours of the sinking, but largely they remain unverified. The last verified sighting of Archibald was the account below of Archibald Gracie, where Butt was last seen relaxing in the smoking room as the ship went down.

Gracie was a fellow passenger on Titanic and he testified shortly after the accident to a Senate Commerce subcommittee, chaired by Senator William A. Smith of Michigan. The hearings were initially held at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York, but were later moved back to Washington, to the new caucus room of the Russell Senate Office Building (the first hearing ever held in that room).

Just prior to this time I had passed through A deck, or perhaps it was about this same time. Just about the time we were ordered to take the boats, I passed through the A deck, going from the stern toward the bow. I saw four gentlemen all alone in the smoking room, whom I recognized as Mr. Millet, Mr. Moore, and Mr. Butt, and a fourth gentleman was there with them whom I did no know, but who I afterwards ascertained to have been Mr. Ryerson. They seemed to be absolutely intent upon what they were doing, and disregarding anything about what was going on on the decks outside.

After the sinking, Millet’s body was recovered by the crew of the MacKay Bennett. He was still wearing a light overcoat, black pants and gray jacket, dressed in formal evening clothes. In his pockets were a gold watch and chain with the initials “F.D.M.” engraved in it, glasses, two gold studs, a silver tablet bottles, a pocketbook and £2 10s in gold and 8s in silver.

Archibald Butt went down with the ship and his body was never recovered.

President Taft with Major Butt

One of many tributes to the deceased presidential aide-de-camp was held in the major’s hometown of Augusta, Georgia on May 2nd. The visibly distraught and mourning president paid tribute to his fallen aide in front of a large local crowd.

The President was visibly affected by the tributes paid to Maj. Butt. There were tears in his eyes as he called up memories of the man who was his aid [sic] ever since he entered the White House, and who had traveled thousands of miles with him.

Mr. Taft made only a short address, but he came near breaking down twice.

“Never did I know how much he was to me until he was dead,” said the President. “Lacking nothing of self-respect and giving up nothing he owed to himself, he conducted himself with a singleness of purpose and to the happiness and comfort of the President, who was his chief. To many fine qualities he added loyalty, and when he became one of my family he was as a son or a brother.”

Mr. Taft told how he met Maj. Butt, first in the Philippines and later as aid to President Roosevelt. He dwelt on Maj. Butt’s devotion to Mr. Roosevelt and himself.

“It has always seemed to me,” said the President, “that Archie never married because he loved his mother so. The greatest sorrow of his life was when she left him.

Mr. Taft concluded with a word more as to Maj. Butt’s spirit of self-sacrifice.

“Self-sacrifice,” he said, “had become part of his nature. If Archie could have selected his time to die he would have taken the one God gave him.”

RMS Titanic passengers missing or saved (1912)

In 1913, friends of Archibald Butt and Francis Millet raised enough money and, with the authorization of Congress, erected a fountain to honor the companions. Inscribed around the monument are the following words:

THIS MONUMENT HAS BEEN ERECTED BY THEIR FRIENDS WITH
THE SANCTION OF CONGRESS IN MEMORY OF
FRANCIS DAVIS MILLET 1846-1912 AND
ARCHIBALD WILLIAM BUTT 1865-1912.

Butt-Millet Memorial Fountain on the Ellipse

UPDATE: I found this great photo on Shorpy, showing newsboys selling papers late into the night with news (or lack of news) on the Titanic and the city’s beloved Archie Butt.

Washington, D.C. — news of the Titanic and possible survivors. “After midnight April 17, 1912, and still selling extras, 12th Street near G. There were many of these groups of young newsboys selling very late these nights. Youngest boy in the group is Israel Spril (9 years old), 314 I Street N.W.; Harry Shapiro (11 years old), 95 L Street N.W.; Eugene Butler, 310 (rear) 13th Street N.W. The rest were a little older.” (Shorpy)

Related articles

• Titanic and Carpathia Ads in the Washington Post (ghostsofdc.org)
• 100 Years Ago: Who Visited the White House? (ghostsofdc.org)
• Seven Famous People Who Missed the Titanic (smithsonianmag.com)
• 100 Years Ago: President and Mrs. Taft Dine at Knox Residence (ghostsofdc.org)
• Photographs of the Titanic (neatorama.com)

The post 100 Years Ago Today: Major Archibald Butt, D.C. Resident, Boards Titanic for Transatlantic Crossing appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

Mark this down as something you’ll never see today. The President is just walking out of the White House grounds … alone. Let’s be honest, any guy that takes a bullet in his chest and STILL gives a speech can kick anyone’s ass. He casually strolls south onto what appears to be E St.

Here’s another photo of the 26th President of the United States. It was taken in 1885, ironically, in New York City.

Teddy Roosevelt dressed like he

The one below is probably the most iconic image of Teddy. This is his official White House portrait done by John Singer Sargent, which hangs in the East Room of the Executive Mansion.

Teddy Roosevelt official White House portrait (1903)

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• Video: Teddy Roosevelt Leaving the White House, Going For a Walk (ghostsofdc.org)
• Without Teddy Roosevelt, There Would Be No Super Bowl (usnews.com)
• The president who saved football (cnn.com)
• Rough Rider President Teddy Roosevelt to come to the Library (rcpldigitalpressroom.wordpress.com)

The post Video: Teddy Roosevelt Leaving the White House, Going For a Walk appeared first on Ghosts of DC.

Now this is a great one from the vaults of the Library of Congress. I found this on YouTube (of course). There’s no sound, but it’s very interesting to watch.

On Mar. 4, 1905, Teddy Roosevelt was inaugurated in Washington, D.C. with much celebration and fanfare. He rides in an open landau on 15 St. NW, escorted by mounted Rough Riders; Secret Service men and detectives walk on either side of the carriage; he tips his hat to the crowd.

Sitting beside him is Senator John C. Spooner of Wisconsin, Chairman of the joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Opposite, but not clearly visible, are Senator Henry Cabot Lodge of Mass. and Representative John Dalzell of Penn., members of the committee. Second sequence consists of long shots of Roosevelt taking the oath of office on a platform erected on the east front of the Capitol; Chief Justice Melville Weston Fuller (1888-1910) administers the Presidential oath of office as Chief Clerk of the Supreme Court James H. McKenney holds the Bible.

The platform is decorated with plants and garlands and a large banner with the American eagle on it hangs from the center of the railing. West Point cadets and Annapolis midshipmen are assembled below the platform.

Related articles

• Quote Sunday with Theodore Roosevelt (heelsandsequins.wordpress.com)
• The president who saved football (cnn.com)
• Without Teddy Roosevelt, There Would Be No Super Bowl (usnews.com)
• Pat Garrett, Lawman Who Killed Billy the Kid Visits Washington and Teddy Roosevelt (ghostsofdc.org)

The post President Theodore Roosevelt’s Inaugural Ceremony (1905) appeared first on Ghosts of DC.