Teddy Roosevelt’s Christmas Surprise

President Teddy Roosevelt, his wife Edith, and their six children celebrated their second Christmas morning in the White House. They opened stockings filled with presents. But no presents were tucked underneath a big, sparkling Christmas tree. There were no Christmas trees in the White House, or so the president thought.

The president’s eight-year-old son Archie had other ideas. He brought a small tree into the White House. He decorated it with presents and hid it in a closet. Archie revealed his big surprise on Christmas morning.

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Archie Roosevelt and his pony Algonquin

The president tells the story in a letter to a friend dated December 26, 1902:

“…Yesterday morning at a quarter of seven all the children were up and dressed and began to hammer at the door of their mother’s and my room, in which their six stockings… were hanging from the fireplace. So their mother and I got up, shut the window, lit the fire taking down the stockings of course, put on our wrappers and prepared to admit the children.

But first there was a surprise for me, also for their good mother, for Archie had a little birthday tree of his own which he had rigged up with the help of one of the carpenters in a big closet; and we all had to look at the tree and each of us got a present off of it. There was also one present each for Jack the dog, Tom Quartz the kitten, and Algonquin the pony, whom Archie would no more think of neglecting that I would neglect his brothers and sisters. Then all the children came into our bed and opened their stockings.”

Author Gary Hines imagines the story in full detail in his book,  A Christmas Tree in the White House. Archie enlists his younger brother Quentin’s help and the two raise the tree tied to a bed sheet to the second floor. Does the president know?

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Theodore Roosevelt with Archie and Quentin 

If you like this article, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

The Teddy Roosevelt Family, https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/the-theodore-roosevelt-family

You may like: Young Teddy Roosevelt, Naturalist https://barbaralowell.com/young-teddy-roosevelt-naturalist

Books For Kids: Teddy Roosevelt https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-teddy-roosevelt

The Christmas Truce of 1914

Remembering the Christmas Truce of 1914, Albert Moran of the 2nd Queen’s Regiment wrote: “It was a beautiful moonlit night, frost on the ground, white almost everywhere; and…there were those lights — I don’t know what they were. And then they sang Silent NightStille Nacht. I shall never forget it. It was one of the highlights of my life.”

From: Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce by Stanley Weintraub.

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The lights shining on the parapets — the tops of the German trenches — were candles. Up and down the lines of the Western Front, stretching from the shores of Belgium through France, soldiers sang Christmas carols and exchanged Christmas greetings across No Man’s Land. This was the Christmas truce of 1914, four months after the start of World War I.

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German and Allied Soldiers Together

The truce began with the Germans. They lit candles on the parapets and on their Christmas trees. They sang Silent Night. Their Christmas spirit inspired the Allies. The British, French, and Belgian soldiers responded first by shooting flares into the sky and then singing Christmas carols.

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Christmas Day Football

Signs went up. The British wrote “Merry Christmas.” The Germans wrote “Happy Christmas.” Men left the trenches and crossed No Man’s Land to greet each other. They exchanged gifts of chocolate, cakes, and tobacco and played games of football together. For a brief time, the joy of Christmas brought peace again to the men in the trenches on the Western Front.

If you like this article, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Books For Kids Christmas (history) https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-christmas

Books For Kids:

Shooting Stars: The Christmas Truce of 1914

By John Hendrix

Christmas in the Trenches

By John McCutcheon, Illustrated by Henri Sorensen

Christmas Truce: A True Story of World War I

By Aaron Shephard, Illustrated by Wendy Edelson

Julia Child’s Cat Minette

Paris, France, was full of surprises for Julia Child. She quickly learned that Parisian apartments were not only cold, but came equipped with their own mice. The answer to the mice problem was clear to Julia’s maid. One day, Jeanne appeared with a basket that held the soon-to-be mouse catcher, a mud and cream colored cat. Julia named her Minette and then Mini for short.

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At first, Minette was content to stay in the basket. But when she smelled Julia’s soup, curiosity took over. Minette jumped onto the shelf above the stove. She watched Julia work to recreate the mushroom soup she enjoyed at a restaurant. From Julia’s very first meal in France, she was determined to learn to cook the French food she loved. Julia’s soup didn’t turn out to be an exact copy, but Minette seemed happy with it and ate a saucer full.

Another Paris surprise for Julia was how much she adored her French cat. “I had never been much of an animal person,” she said. “She was my first cat ever, and I thought she was marvelous.”

Julia invented Minette’s favorite game, batting at a Brussel sprout tied a string.  And Julia enjoyed watching Minette’s tail switching around when she ducked her head under the radiator. Occasionally, Minette showed her appreciation for Julia’s affection and good food by dropping at mouse at Julia’s feet.

Minette found her way into Julia’s heart at the perfect time.  In their kitchen, Julia practiced cooking the French food she later became famous for. And lucky Minette tasted it first.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

To learn more about Julia’s cats visit: https://juliascats.com/

You may like Jane Goodall https://barbaralowell.com/jane-goodall

A Book For Kids:

Minette’s Feast by Susannh Reich, Illustrated by Amy Bates

Celebrate Julia Child’s Life:


 

 

Abraham Lincoln Pardons A Turkey

On October 3, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed a proclamation making Thanksgiving a national holiday. It would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November. Soon after the tradition of pardoning a turkey began.

According to a November 2012 article on Smithsonian.com, a live turkey was delivered to the White House for Abraham Lincoln’s family Christmas dinner in late 1863.

Abraham Lincoln’s son Tad, named the turkey Jack. Tad taught Jack to follow him closely as he wandered around the White House grounds. When the time came to turn Jack into Christmas dinner, Tad protested, saying, “He’s a good turkey, and I don’t want him killed.”

Tad Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln always a kind father and a great animal lover, gave in and pardoned Jack. Lincoln’s pardon was the first for a White House turkey. The tradition continues today.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Books For Kids: Abe Lincoln https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-abe-lincoln

The Smithsonian article can be found at: 

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-history-of-pardoning-turkeys-began-with-tad-lincoln-141137570/

Books For Kids:

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Thanksgiving in the White House

By Gary Hines, Illustrated by Alexandra Wallner

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Lincoln and His Boys

By Rosemary Wells, Illustrated by P.J. Lynch

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Mr. Lincoln’s Boys

By Staton Rabin, Illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline

Kids Tell the Story of the First Thanksgiving:

Ben Franklin Invented Swim Fins

Ben Franklin was the first person to invent and test swim fins.

Growing up in Boston, Ben loved to swim. He wanted to find a way to make swimming easier. When he was eleven, he built a set of wooden swim paddles for his hands, similar to the fins of a fish. The paddles worked, but swimming with them eventually hurt his wrists.

Ben went back to work and made a second set for his feet. He then tried out both sets together. Unfortunately, he found that he could swim better without the paddles. He later found that floating in the water could be easily accomplished when holding onto a kite.

Today, we use flexible swim fins based on the same principle Ben used. We can swim faster and easier with them.

Read about his swim fins in:

61BVa1RnddLBen Franklin’s Big Splash

By Barb Rosenstock, Illustrated by S.D. Schindler

As an adult, Ben continued inventing practical objects. He invented the Franklin Stove, bifocals, the lightning rod, a musical instrument called the Glass Armonica, the Long Arm for reaching books off a high shelf, the library chair, the second hand clock, and the odometer — only the Glass Armonica is rarely used today.

Read about his inventions in:

Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin

By Gene Barretta

And of course — he discovered that electricity is the same as lightning.

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

To Learn More Read: Ben Franklin Runs Away at: https://barbaralowell.com/ben-franklin-runs-away

Books For Kids: Ben Franklin https://barbaralowell.com/books-for-kids-ben-franklin

Watch kids present how Ben discovered electricity at: http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/benjamin-franklin/videos/kids-history-ben-franklin-and-his-kite

Balto, Hero Dog

In January 1925, only a dog sled run could stop a diphtheria outbreak in Nome, Alaska. The necessary medicine was over 600 miles away in Nenana, Alaska. Sled teams raced in relays passing the serum from one team to the next.

Sixty-seven miles from Nome, musher Gunnar Kasson and his dog team led by Balto, took the serum and tried to wait out a blizzard. When the blizzard continued, he had no choice. Gunnar took off heading for the next team, thirty-four miles away. They crossed the Topok River in winds reaching eighty miles an hour. Gunnar couldn’t see. It was up to Balto to find the way. He raced in whiteout conditions, over ice, and in darkness with the temperature falling to -36 degrees.

When they reached the relay station there were no lights on and their replacement team was asleep. Exhausted, Gunnar, Balto, and their team had to keep going. They had to reach Nome, twenty-one miles away.

On February 2, Balto led the team into Nome bringing the lifesaving serum. He and Gunnar Kassen became heroes overnight. Newspapers across the country told their story the next day.

A statue stands in Central Park in New York commemorating Balto and the 1925 serum run. On the plaque are these words: Dedicated to the indomitable spirit of the sled dogs that relayed antitoxins 660 miles over rough ice, across treacherous waters, through Arctic blizzards from Nenana to the relief stricken Nome in the winter of 1925.

Balto

Images Courtesy of Wiki Commons

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Hachiko, Faithful Dog https://barbaralowell.com/hachiko-faithful-dog

Famous Fala, The President’s Dog https://barbaralowell.com/fala-the-presidents-dog

Books For Kids:

51JdizkFaqLThe Incredible Life of Balto

  By Meghan McCarthy

The Great Serum Race

By Debbie S. Miller, Illustrated by Jon Van Zyle

Seabiscuit The Racehorse

During the Great Depression, Americans needed cheering up. They found Seabiscuit, the little racehorse with the big heart.

Seabiscuit, born in 1933, was the grandson of Man o’ War, one of the greatest racehorses. His original owners expected that he would be a winning Thoroughbred too. But he was small for a racehorse, had a bit of a bad temper, and preferred sleeping to running. He lost his first seventeen races, eventually winning some, but was inconsistent. Then, Charles and Marcela Howard bought him and hired the right trainer, Tom Smith.

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Tom Smith

Tom Smith treated him gently. He let him sleep when he wanted to, fed him better quality hay, and talked to him in a quiet voice. Tom even moved, Pumpkin, a yellow horse, Pocatell, a spotted dog, and, Jo Jo, a spider monkey into Seabiscuit’s stall. The animals seemed to calm him. Then Tom found just the right jockey, Red Pollard. 

Red Pollard

Seabiscuit liked Red right away. With Red aboard, he won big races. Soon, he was featured in popular magazines and movie newsreels. Americans loved him. He was like them, overcoming obstacles to succeed. When he won a race, Americans felt they were winning too.

Seabiscuit’s greatest challenge came in 1938, when he faced the tall, sleek Thoroughbred racehorse War Admiral. In 1937, War Admiral won horse racing’s highest honor, the Triple Crown. Seabiscuit, a four-year-old that year could not compete against War Admiral in the Triple Crown events, only for three-year-olds. But Americans wanted to see the two horses race.

They met on November 1, 1938. Red Pollard was injured and could not ride that day. He advised, George Woolf, his replacement how best to ride Seabiscuit. His advice worked. After running head to head for a good part of the race, Seabiscuit sped away from War Admiral to win in an exciting finish. 

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

Watch them in action in this exceptional video from PBS’s American Experience:

Books for kids:

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Seabiscuit the Wonder Horse

by Megan McCarthy

Who Was Seabiscuit?

By James Buckley, Illustrated by Gregory Copeland

 

The Peabody Ducks

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I once stayed at The Peabody Hotel in one of my favorite cities, Memphis, Tennessee. The highlight of course, was watching the famous Peabody Ducks in action.

The five Mallards, one drake and four hens, swam in the elaborate fountain. They later marched down the red carpet for a ride up the elevator to their penthouse apartment.

Under the direction of the Duckmaster, dressed in a bright red jacket, they waddled to the sounds of a marching band and the cheers and applause of visitors. An honorary Duckmaster who was a member of the military assisted that day.

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Although the hotel was built in 1925, the first ducks arrived in 1933. As a practical joke, the hotel manager and a friend added them to the hotel’s fountain. The three English call ducks generated lots of attention. The hotel decided to keep them, but soon replaced them with five North American Mallard ducks.

The first Duckmaster, Edward Pembroke, was a bellman and a former circus animal trainer. He led the ducks to the fountain from their rooftop penthouse every morning at 11 a.m. The ducks returned at 5 p.m. Mr. Pembroke performed his role as Duckmaster from 1940 until 1991. He started the now famous Peabody Duck March.

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The Peabody Ducks in Their Penthouse Pool

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

Author/Illustrator Patricia Polacco’s beautifully illustrated picture book, John Philip Duck was inspired by Edward Pembroke’s story.

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Teddy Roosevelt — A Pony in the White House

Archie, President Roosevelt and Quentin

Archie Roosevelt, the nine-year-old son of President Teddy Roosevelt was recovering from the measles. He missed his pony, Algonquin, and wasn’t allowed outside to ride him.

His five-year-old brother, Quentin, had an idea. He enlisted the help of a footman who pushed the pony into the White House elevator while Quentin pulled. Algonquin resisted at first but when he saw his face in the mirror, he calmed down. The three rode up to the second floor and Quentin surprised Archie who was overjoyed to see his pony.

The New York Times reported on April 27, 1903, that “this is the first time that a horse has ridden in a White House elevator.

A Fine Little Bad Boy: Quentin Roosevelt in the White House

By Barbara Lowell, Illustrated by Antonio Marinoni

Coming: August 13, 2024

Quentin may be the “littlest Roosevelt,” but he soon rivals his father, the famous Teddy, as the biggest personality in the White House of the early 1900’s. From roller skating in the halls to shooting spitballs at Andrew Jackson’s portrait. From swimming in the fountains to taking a pony for an elevator ride. This “fine little bad boy” takes full advantage of his father’s long tenure as president, believing the good times will never end. 4-8 years

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Archie and Algonquin his Icelandic Shetland Pony

If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Teddy Roosevelt’s Christmas Surprise https://barbaralowell.com/teddy-roosevelt-christmas-surprise

Famous Fala, The President’s Dog

President Franklin Roosevelt’s Scottish terrier, Fala, appeared in newspaper photos around the world. He was so well-known that the Secret Service gave him the code name “The Informer.” When people spotted him, they knew the president was close by. Fala traveled everywhere with the president by ship, train, and car.

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Posing for photographers

Fala was born on April 7, 1940. A gift to President Roosevelt, he moved into the White House in November that year. The president named him Murray the Outlaw of Falahill after a Scottish ancestor. But the puppy was too small for such a big name. The president immediately shortened it.

An exceptionally friendly dog, Fala received lots of attention. He liked to show off his tricks to White House visitors: rolling over, jumping up, speaking, lying down, and his favorite, begging. But he never let the attention go to his head. He was a down-to-earth dog.

Fala liked to dig holes in the White House lawn, burying and digging up his bones. And he was always ready to chase the White House squirrels. At night, he slept beside the president’s bed. In the morning he enjoyed a dog biscuit when the president ate his breakfast.

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He received lots of fan mail, especially from children. He starred in two short films produced by MGM. His biography, The True Story of Fala was published when he was only two years old. He was also named an honorary army private. And he was given the title President of Barkers for Britain. He had campaigned to have American dog owners donate money to help the British people in World War II. 

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At Hyde Park with the president and a caretaker’s daughter

Fala died on April 5, 1952. He is buried in the rose garden at Hyde Park. In 1997, a memorial to President Roosevelt was dedicated near the National Mall in Washington, D.C. A statue of Fala is forever at President Roosevelt’s side.

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The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C.

If you like this article, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author

You may like: Hachiko, Faithful Dog https://barbaralowell.com/hachiko-faithful-dog

Balto, Hero Dog https://barbaralowell.com/balto-hero-dog

A Book For Kids:71I31Uu7LxL

First Dog Fala

By Elizabeth Van Steenwyk, Illustrated by Michael G. Montgomery