Theodore Roosevelt

1858–1919 · American (New York City / Long Island / North Dakota) · Progressive Era, Early 20th Century

Known for: Youngest US president—trust-buster, conservationist, builder of the Panama Canal, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

TR was the most energetic president in American history. Asthmatic and sickly as a child, he rebuilt himself through sheer will into a cowboy, soldier, explorer, hunter, and politician. He charged up San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American War, busted the monopoly trusts, created the National Parks system, and built the Panama Canal.

He was the first sitting president to win the Nobel Peace Prize (for mediating the Russo-Japanese War), created the FDA, and when shot in the chest during a campaign speech, finished the 90-minute speech with the bullet still in him: 'It takes more than that to kill a bull moose.'

Enable JavaScript to view the full "if they lived today" Q&A and personality profile.