Theodore Roosevelt National Park
South Unit of the National Park
Come for the Library; and visit the Park.
Set in the colorful landscape of the western North Dakota Badlands are Teddy Roosevelt National Park and his new presidential library.
There has been a palpable energy surrounding the library since it opened in July of this year. You can feel the excitement of the people as they approach and interact with the library. This truly is more than a building; it is like a work of art. It coexists in harmony with the landscape around it. It seems to have arisen organically out of that landscape. As you approach the main structure, you are captivated by the earthen roof that arches toward the northeast corner of the national park. There is a path that leads you up onto the roof where no detail seems to have been missed. They have sculpted skylights out of galvanized steel and formed them to mimic the surrounding buttes. There are benches made from natural wood that provide a place to sit and simply enjoy the beauty of the badlands. As you descend from the roof, the path continues to wrap around the building before a beautiful wooden boardwalk ultimately leads you directly into the landscape of the Badlands. There are many spots for you to stop and reflect on the beauty that surrounds you. We spent nearly an hour just walking the grounds and were totally wowed by what we saw, and we hadn’t even ventured inside which is just as spectacular as the outside.
Once you enter the building, your head is on a swivel as there is so much to take in. As we approached the welcome counter, we were taken back by the stunning live edge mitered countertop. We learned that the wood used to create the counter was from a tree that Teddy planted in his yard in New York. Around the lobby, you can’t miss the concrete walls layered in colors that mimic the canyons of the Badlands. It truly is a blend of the interior and exterior.
The library does far more than tell the story of Teddy’s life from beginning to end. It uses interactive technology to immerse you into his world. You can see yourself in Teddy’s story via photos and videos. You can answer questions that help you understand the issues he wrestled with throughout his career. You get to join in on some of his journeys through multi-media presentations. You can even talk directly with Teddy as President, posing questions and hearing his responses. The overall effect is amazing. You will see people of all ages become kids again as they work their way through the entire experience. We absolutely jumped in on the fun.
Even Mack Flipped out about the Library…
Why is the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota?
In 1883, Teddy came to North Dakota in hopes of bagging a great bull bison before they became totally extinct. Sad as it sounds today, he was successful, and he fell in love with the area at the same time. Several years later when his mother and wife both died on the same day and in the same house, he once again headed to the North Dakota Badlands to deal with his grief through strenuous activity. He bought a ranch, started another, and worked as a rancher for several years. He once claimed that were if not for his time in North Dakota, he might never have become president. His time in the Badlands was also the genesis of his passion for conservation.
In honor of all he did as president and conservationist, the government began buying up the land around where he lived in the 40’s that would ultimately become the national park in 1978.
The park is not terribly large, but it is striking. It mostly consists of buttes and canyons centered around the Little Missouri river. It is certainly a geologist’s dream as everywhere you look you can see the results of millions of years of the accumulation and subsequent erosion of rock.
We spent our time doing an audio tour/scenic drive through the park. We enjoyed the scenery and the wildlife we saw along the way. While there is a great variety of animals in the park, the highlight for us was seeing a small herd of wild horses. While they didn’t seem overly concerned by our presence, they certainly kept a close eye on us.
Unusually, this park is made up of three distinct and widely separated parts: the south unit, north unit, and Elkhorn Ranch. We spent most of our time in the south, but did make a day trip to the north unit which is a bit over an hour away. The north is definitely more rugged and features a different mix of animals including big horn sheep which we unfortunately did not get to see.
We were able to accomplish everything in two days. We would highly recommend giving yourself a full day at the library so, you can fully explore both the library and the grounds.
