Jane Addams and Theodore Roosevelt

"I recall an interview with Colonel Roosevelt during his presidency, when in apology for having pilgrimaged to the White House on behalf of yet another "worthy cause," a committee of social workers explained that we came so often because he was the first president who had really know that there was a social question and that we had to make hay while the sun shines. His prompt reply came with characteristic vigor: "There can't be too much hay to suit me; we'll make all we can." -Jane Addams, "Theodore Roosevelt--Social Worker," February 9, 1919.

Theodore Roosevelt was a major figure of the Progressive Era. Roosevelt served as president from 1901 to 1909. In 1912, Roosevelt ran for a third term, splitting from the Republican Party to run as a Progressive Party candidate against Republican and incumbent President William Howard Taft and Democrat Woodrow Wilson. Roosevelt lost the election but established himself as a leader of the Progressive movement. As a pro-military man, Roosevelt advocated for military preparedness and the possible United States entry into World War I, while he was campaigning for the 1916 presidential election. His position on the war and the United States' role in it caused an issue with Progressive Party members.

Jane Addams was a key figure in the social movements of the Progressive Era. During the early 20th century, Addams worked for the rights of women, immigrants, children, minorities, the elderly, and the poor. As one of the key American Suffragists, Addams campaigned for years to secure universal suffrage for women. When the Progressive Party was founded in 1912, by Theodore Roosevelt, Addams was one of the first members and active supporters of the party's politics. Addams rallied behind the Progressive Party, because the party's politics coincided with the social causes she had been campaigning for already and would result in a more progressive society. As one of America’s most famous and prominent women of the early 20th century, people took stock in what Addams had to say on social matters and on the politics of the day. This is why Addams seconded the nomination for Roosevelt when he ran as the first presidential candidate for the Progressive Party, and went on speaking and fundraising tours for his campaign. Support from Addams would help Roosevelt as he ran to secure a third term. In the early years, Addams was fully behind Roosevelt and the Progressive Party. During the years of World War I, Addams was an important member of a number of peace groups, both local and global.

Jane Addams and Theodore Roosevelt had a multifaceted relationship.

Their relationship began in the early 1900s, while Roosevelt was president. Roosevelt visited Hull-House and wrote to Addams. When Roosevelt launched his second campaign for the presidency in 1912, Addams seconded his nomination at the Progressive Party Convention. The Progressive Party platform included woman suffrage, eight hour work days, and several other policies that were influenced by reformers. While Addams supported Roosevelt in the election and made campaign speeches for him, she disagreed with him on issues like the validity of the African-American delegation at the Progressive Party Convention. Despite their disagreement on some issues, Addams was a continued supporter of Roosevelt’s following his election loss.

At the start of World War I, Roosevelt and Addams disagreed on the United States’ role in the war. Roosevelt had served in the Spanish-American War and had a different understanding of war than Addams, who had been a peace activist even before the war. The United States was becoming a global entity, acquiring territory around the world. With the onset of World War I, the United States had the opportunity to define itself among the shifting global powers, but leaders were divided on whether or not the United States should enter the war. Addams and Roosevelt are examples of public figures who stood divided on this issue - Addams advocating for peace, while Roosevelt supported the United States entering the war. When Addams came out against Roosevelt’s views on the war, the name calling began. Roosevelt was disappointed by pacifists and peace advocates, who he had viewed as those that had lost sight of “real morality.” Addams, as both a pacifist and peace advocate fell under this viewpoint by Roosevelt. Addams officially withdrew her support of Roosevelt in 1916 and supported Woodrow Wilson in the 1916 election, as Wilson promised to keep the United States out of war.

As two influential and strong personalities of the early 1900s, the conflict and compromise within their relationship shows a deeper understanding of the politics of the time period.

Recommended primary sources:

Addams, Jane, “The Progressive Party and the Negro," November 1912, Jane Addams Digital Edition.

New York Evening Post, “The Deserted Negro,"August 1912, Jane Addams Digital Edition, accessed December 19, 2017.

Additional resources:

Theodore Roosevelt Center

Patenaude, Bertrand M. “War and Peace: Clash of the Nobels.” Hoover Digest no. 4 (October 9, 2009). https://www.hoover.org/research/war-and-peace-clash-nobels.

C-SPAN. “Theodore Roosevelt and Jane Addams” (video). October 27, 2012. www.c-span.org/video/?309332-2/theodore-roosevelt-jane-addams.

Daniels, Doris Groshen. "Theodore Roosevelt and Gender Roles." Presidential Studies Quarterly 26, no. 3 (1996): 648-65. (JSTOR)