In March 1909, at the end of his term as President of the US, Theodore Roosevelt departed for East Africa. He & his party traveled through Kenya, Uganda, the Congo & Sudan, arriving in Khartoum in 1910.
Below: 'Roosevelt in Africa', shot by Cherry Keaton w/ a hand-crank camera.
Roosevelt's trip was financed by the Smithsonian Institution. Altogether they killed or trapped 11,397 animals, most of which were pickled & sent back to Washington for display at the new Museum of Natural History.
The 'Zulu' dancers shown here were Masai, not Zulu.
The trip was a sensation in the American press, and even in the smallest newspapers there was a constant stream of coverage. It was the first time that most white Americans had reason to think about Africa.
Here's a sample of some of the press coverage. My favorite: a report on Roosevelt's lion-hunting, juxtaposed with a report on Orville Wright's pioneering flight.
Cornerstone at the Rift Valley Academy, an American-run missionary school in Kijabe, laid by Theodore Roosevelt in August 1909.
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