Theodore Roosevelt's Home at Sagamore Hill
Sagamore Hill was the home of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, from 1885 until his death in 1919. It is located in the Village of Cove Neck, New York, near Oyster Bay on the north shore of Long Island, 25 miles east of Manhattan. It's official name is now the Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, which includes the Theodore Roosevelt Museum.
Roosevelt was a native of New York City. He was born and raised in a home still located at 28 East 20th Street in Manhattan that is also a site worth visiting next time you find yourself in the Big Apple. But he had a second home on Long Island. Roosevelt spent many summers of his youth on vacations with his family in the Oyster Bay area. In 1880, at the age of 22, Roosevelt purchased 155 acres of land on Cove Neck, a small peninsula roughly 2 miles northeast of the village of Oyster Bay, for the sum of $30,000. The following year, his uncle James A. Roosevelt had designed his estate home several hundred feet west of the Sagamore Hill property. In 1884 Theodore Roosevelt hired the New York architectural firm Lamb & Rich to design a shingle-style, Queen Anne home for the property.
The twenty-two room home was completed in 1886 at a cost of $16,975. Roosevelt moved into the house in 1887. Roosevelt originally planned to name the house "Leeholm" after his wife Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt. However, she died in 1884 and Roosevelt remarried in 1887, so he decided to change the name to "Sagamore Hill". Sagamore was the title of the head of an Indian tribe on Long Island.
In 1905 Roosevelt decided to expand the house, adding the largest room, called the "North Room" at a cost of $19,000. The home now has twenty-three rooms. The house and its surrounding farmland became the primary residence of Theodore and Edith Roosevelt for the rest of their lives. Sagamore Hill became known as the "Summer White House" during the seven summers that Roosevelt spent there as President. Roosevelt died at Sagamore Hill in January 1919.
On July 25, 1962, Congress established Sagamore Hill National Historic Site to preserve the house as part of the National Park Service. Sagamore Hill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. The home is normally open to the public by guided tour, but is currently closed for renovation until 2015. Almost all the furnishings are original. Also on the site is the Theodore Roosevelt Museum, which chronicles the life and career of the President. The museum is housed in the 1938 house called "Old Orchard", the former residence of Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. and his family.
The grounds are presently open for visitation seven days a week from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Access to the Theodore Roosevelt Home is by guided tour only. The website's "Guide toTouring the Roosevelt Home" has information on how to purchase tickets.
Park grounds are open from sunrise-30 minutes after sunset.
The Old Orchard Museum & Visitor Center is opened Thursday - Sunday from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. According to the website, masks are currently required for entry to the Roosevelt Home and any other park buildings. Masks are not required while outside on the grounds. When the COVID-19 Community Level is LOW or MEDIUM in the county or all the counties where the park is located based on data provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), individuals are not required to wear masks.
Following is more information about Sagamore Hill"
Website: http://www.nps.gov/sahi/index.htm
Location: 12 Sagamore Hill Road, Oyster Bay, N
Hours of Operation: the house is currently closed for renovations, but the grounds and museum are open. The Roosevelt Museum at Old Orchard is open Wednesday-Sunday from 10am to 5pm. Admission to the building is free. The Park grounds are open every day from sunrise to sunset.
Roosevelt was a native of New York City. He was born and raised in a home still located at 28 East 20th Street in Manhattan that is also a site worth visiting next time you find yourself in the Big Apple. But he had a second home on Long Island. Roosevelt spent many summers of his youth on vacations with his family in the Oyster Bay area. In 1880, at the age of 22, Roosevelt purchased 155 acres of land on Cove Neck, a small peninsula roughly 2 miles northeast of the village of Oyster Bay, for the sum of $30,000. The following year, his uncle James A. Roosevelt had designed his estate home several hundred feet west of the Sagamore Hill property. In 1884 Theodore Roosevelt hired the New York architectural firm Lamb & Rich to design a shingle-style, Queen Anne home for the property.
The twenty-two room home was completed in 1886 at a cost of $16,975. Roosevelt moved into the house in 1887. Roosevelt originally planned to name the house "Leeholm" after his wife Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt. However, she died in 1884 and Roosevelt remarried in 1887, so he decided to change the name to "Sagamore Hill". Sagamore was the title of the head of an Indian tribe on Long Island.
In 1905 Roosevelt decided to expand the house, adding the largest room, called the "North Room" at a cost of $19,000. The home now has twenty-three rooms. The house and its surrounding farmland became the primary residence of Theodore and Edith Roosevelt for the rest of their lives. Sagamore Hill became known as the "Summer White House" during the seven summers that Roosevelt spent there as President. Roosevelt died at Sagamore Hill in January 1919.
On July 25, 1962, Congress established Sagamore Hill National Historic Site to preserve the house as part of the National Park Service. Sagamore Hill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. The home is normally open to the public by guided tour, but is currently closed for renovation until 2015. Almost all the furnishings are original. Also on the site is the Theodore Roosevelt Museum, which chronicles the life and career of the President. The museum is housed in the 1938 house called "Old Orchard", the former residence of Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. and his family.
The grounds are presently open for visitation seven days a week from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Access to the Theodore Roosevelt Home is by guided tour only. The website's "Guide toTouring the Roosevelt Home" has information on how to purchase tickets.
Park grounds are open from sunrise-30 minutes after sunset.
The Old Orchard Museum & Visitor Center is opened Thursday - Sunday from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. According to the website, masks are currently required for entry to the Roosevelt Home and any other park buildings. Masks are not required while outside on the grounds. When the COVID-19 Community Level is LOW or MEDIUM in the county or all the counties where the park is located based on data provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), individuals are not required to wear masks.
Following is more information about Sagamore Hill"
Website: http://www.nps.gov/sahi/index.htm
Location: 12 Sagamore Hill Road, Oyster Bay, N
Hours of Operation: the house is currently closed for renovations, but the grounds and museum are open. The Roosevelt Museum at Old Orchard is open Wednesday-Sunday from 10am to 5pm. Admission to the building is free. The Park grounds are open every day from sunrise to sunset.