Statue #26: Teddy Roosevelt
Rapid City, South Dakota
Several war hero Presidents among the City of Presidents bronzes statues are armed with swords, but Teddy Roosevelt (1901-1909) is the only one sporting both a blade and a gun. Thus weaponized, Teddy led the charge up San Juan Hill in the brief 1898 Cuban War and became vice-presidential material -- and then the President when his predecessor, William McKinley, was assassinated.
A number of statues of Teddy depict him astride a horse -- he was the last U.S. military equestrian President -- but a horse would have busted the statue budget of Rapid City.
Amazing Arcana of the Presidents
Roosevelt became permanently blind in his left eye while boxing for fun at The White House, but he never talked about it.
[Discover more fascinating details in the Roadside Presidents iPhone app!]
City of Presidents
Since 2000, Rapid City has commissioned and installed bronze statues of every former U.S. President on its downtown street corners. Visitors are encouraged to take a walking tour of the City of Presidents and inspect the nation's metallic Commanders in Chief. Paper guides are available year-round at the city's main Visitor Center at 512 Main St.