That Teddy Roosevelt

            Nothing was going to stop him from making a speech, not even a bullet!

Three men were campaigning for the presidency. Woodrow Wilson was a Democrat, William Howard Taft was running as a Republican, and Theodore Roosevelt was a Progressive, or as some said, the Bull Moose party.

The Progressives had Roosevelt on the campaign trail. And on October 12, 1912, Teddy was in Milwaukee. He was on his way to the auditorium to give his speech when he was shot in the chest by an unknown man. The man was never caught, but his bullet did some damage. It passed through the thick papers of the speech and struck the metal eyeglass case before entering Teddy's body.

Doctors ordered Roosevelt to the hospital, but he had his mind made up, and he was going to deliver his speech. He continued on, entered the auditorium, and stood before the crowd. He began his speech with, "Friends, I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible. I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot, but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose."

Despite all his efforts, he finished second in the election. 

When he was determined to do something, he did it. My book, Range War Legacy, is set during his presidency, and he had a significant influence on the cattle and sheep war. My research relates the factual account of the part he played in history. He made things happen.

The information on Theodore Roosevelt, the Bull Moose Party, and his run for president is from Shocking Secrets of American History by Bill Coate.