BLAZE Magazine Special Edition 2006-2016 | Page 16

travel & trailS
AMERICA’S
By Daniel Xu
5
I
t should come as little surprise that a
great many of our presidents are and
were avid sportsmen, even though only
about six percent of the American public
hunts. In fact, by some reports more than half
of the men in the Oval Office over the past 50
years were hunters—but the history of great
hunting presidents stretches far beyond that.
From the days of the original 13 colonies to
the modern era, America has always carried
the spirit of a frontier nation and it is an ideal
embraced by many of our presidents. Here is
our list of the five US presidents who were
most likely to be found in the woods
with a boomstick of some kind in
hand.
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| SPECIAL EDITION 2006-2016
Theodore Roosevelt
There is perhaps no
more famous hunter
in the history of
the Oval Office
than Theodore
Roosevelt.
Considered
by many to be
the “Father of
Conservation,”
Roosevelt was the
iconic
American
sportsman and left
behind a legacy
that continues to guide conservationists
and hunters today. Aside from his other
contributions that raised America to the
global stage, Roosevelt was fundamental in
the formation of the United States Forestry
Service and protecting more than 230 million
acres of land for wildlife. Even his nickname,
Teddy—which he is said to have despised—
arose out of a hunting trip on which Roosevelt
refused to shoot a young bear cub.
“The wildlife and its habitat cannot speak,
so we must and we will,” Roosevelt is often
quoted as saying.
Roosevelt first began to explore the outdoors
as a young child to combat his asthma.
Rigorous exercise and clean air eventually
allowed him to overcome the illness, and in
time Roosevelt became a renowned traveler.
Indeed, the former Rough Rider hunted
throughout North America and spearheaded
a legendary hunting expedition into Central
Africa on behalf of the Smithsonian Institution.
His first experiences in hunting were in the
backwoods of Maine, where he viewed the
pursuit as an opportunity to learn about
wildlife. As an adult, he loved the untamed
wilds of the West.
“In hunting, the finding and killing of the game
is after all but a part of the whole,” he wrote
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