Theodore Roosevelt IV ( ) (June 14, 1914 – May 2, 2001), also known as Theodore III, was an American banker, government official, and veteran of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. He was a grandson of President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

through his father, Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt III. His name suffix varies since President Roosevelt's father was

Theodore Roosevelt Sr. Theodore Roosevelt Sr. (September 22, 1831 – February 9, 1878) was an American businessman and philanthropist from the Roosevelt family. Roosevelt was also the father of President Theodore Roosevelt and the paternal grandfather of First Lady E ...

, though the same-named son did not commonly use a "Jr." name suffix.

Early life

Roosevelt was born on June 14, 1914 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. He was the second born and the last surviving of four children to Theodore Jr. and Eleanor Butler Alexander. Theodore had an older sister, Grace Green Roosevelt, who married William McMillan, and two younger brothers, Cornelius Van Schaack Roosevelt III and

Quentin Roosevelt II Quentin Roosevelt II (November 4, 1919 – December 21, 1948) was the fourth child and youngest son of Theodore "Ted" Roosevelt III and Eleanor Butler Alexander. He was the namesake of his uncle Quentin Roosevelt I, who was killed in acti ...

. Following his father, Ted, and paternal grandfather, T. R., Theodore went to

Groton School Groton School (founded as Groton School for Boys) is a private college-preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts. Ranked as one of the top five boarding high schools in the United States in Niche (2021–2022), it is affiliated ...

and graduated from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1936, where he was a member of the

Hasty Pudding Theatricals The Hasty Pudding Theatricals, known informally simply as The Pudding, is a theatrical student society at Harvard University, known for its burlesque crossdressing musicals. The Hasty Pudding is the oldest theatrical organization in the United S ...

and the

Owl Club The Owl Club of Cape Town, South Africa (formed in 1894), is a social meeting place for all those with an interest in the arts and sciences. The monthly meetings include an evening of fellowship, fine dining, stimulating conversation, talks by ac ...

. While at Harvard, Roosevelt played for the Harvard Crimson men's soccer team, and was named a second-team All American in 1934. When his grandfather, President Theodore "T. R." Roosevelt Jr., died in 1919, his father took on the "Junior" last name suffix. As a result, he was known as Theodore III, rather than Theodore IV. As an Oyster Bay Roosevelt, Ted was a descendant of the

Schuyler family The Schuyler family ( /ˈskaɪlər/; Dutch pronunciation: xœylər was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey in the 18th and 19th centuries, whose descendants played a critical role in the formation of the United States (especial ...

. His maternal grandparents are Henry Addison Alexander and Grace Green.

Career

After graduating from Harvard, Roosevelt worked for the

DuPont DuPont de Nemours, Inc., commonly shortened to DuPont, is an American multinational chemical company first formed in 1802 by French-American chemist and industrialist Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours. The company played a major role in ...

company from 1936 to 1941.

Service in World War II

Following the Roosevelt tradition of military service during times of national emergency, during World War II, Roosevelt volunteered as a Navy pilot, serving as a flag lieutenant (i.e. an aide to an admiral) in the Pacific theater. For his service as a naval aviator, Theodore was awarded the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant on April 1, 1944 and left the Navy as a lieutenant commander.

Post-war life

Upon his return from the Pacific Theater, Theodore joined the Philadelphia brokerage firm of Montgomery, Scott, becoming a partner in 1952. Appointed by

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

James Duff, Ted served as Secretary of Commerce of Pennsylvania from 1949 to 1951. For many years, he was president of the Competitive Enterprise System, Inc., a nonprofit organization that promoted free markets in the United States. Roosevelt was a trustee of the

Theodore Roosevelt Association The Theodore Roosevelt Association (TRA) is a historical and cultural organization dedicated to honoring the life and work of Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), the 26th President of the United States. The group is based in Oyster Bay, New York, whe ...

(TRA) for many years and a generous supporter of the organization. In recent years, he attended TRA Police Awards ceremonies in Boston and Philadelphia as well as TRA annual meetings in Boston and Norfolk, VA. He was an honorary plank owner in the USS ''Theodore Roosevelt'', and a strong supporter of the efforts to preserve the Pine Knot site in Virginia, his grandparents' presidential retreat.

Personal life

On February 3, 1940, Roosevelt married Anne Mason Babcock (December 3, 1917 — January 29, 2001), daughter of George Wheeler Babcock (May 12, 1879 — November 21, 1950) and Anne Mason Bonnycastle Robinson (January 10, 1886 — February 4, 1923). They had one son,

Theodore Roosevelt IV Theodore Roosevelt V ( ) (born November 27, 1942), also called Theodore IV, is an American investment banker and managing director at Barclays Investment Bank. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, an ...

(born 1942). Roosevelt died on May 2, 2001 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He and his wife are buried near

Somesville, Maine Somesville is the earliest village of the town of Mount Desert on Mount Desert Island in southeastern Maine. It is located on the north end of Somes Sound. The village was established by Abraham Somes who was the first settler on the island. ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roosevelt, Theodore III 1914 births 2001 deaths

Theodore Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory * Theodore, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Banana, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore Reservoir, a lake in Saskatche ...

United States Navy personnel of World War II American people of Dutch descent American people of English descent American people of French descent American people of Scottish descent American people of Welsh descent Recipients of the Air Medal Businesspeople from New York City Burials in Maine Bulloch family Schuyler family Harvard Crimson men's soccer players Soccer players from New York (state) Hasty Pudding alumni Association footballers not categorized by position United States Navy officers Association football players not categorized by nationality