Kermit Roosevelt

Kermit Roosevelt I MC (October 10, 1889 – June 4, 1943) was a son of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. Kermit was an explorer on two continents with his father, a graduate of Harvard University, a soldier serving in two world wars, with both the British and U.S. Armies, a businessman, and a writer. He fought a lifelong battle with depression and alcoholism, and eventually committed suicide.

Childhood

Kermit was born at the Roosevelt residence Sagamore Hill in Oyster Bay, New York, the second child born to Theodore Roosevelt and his second wife, Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt. He had an elder brother, Theodore Jr., and three younger siblings: Ethel, Archibald, and Quentin. His older half sister was Alice, from his father's first marriage to Alice Roosevelt.

As a child, Kermit Roosevelt had little resistance to illness and infection. He had a flair for language, however, and was an avid reader. He showed a talent for writing that led to recording his experiences in World War I in a book.



After attending the Groton School, Kermit enrolled at Harvard. In 1909 as a freshman, he and his father (recently out of office as President)—both of whom loved nature and outdoor sports—went on a safari in Africa. After this trip and a swing through Europe, Kermit returned to Harvard and completed four years of study in two and one-half years. He was a member of the Porcellian Club.

River of Doubt South American expedition

One of Theodore Roosevelt's most popular books, Through the......
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