Theodore Roosevelt Saved By A Speech

In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt, the former President of the United States, experienced a remarkable brush with death that became one of the most legendary moments in American political history. Roosevelt was campaigning for the presidency as a third-party candidate under the Progressive Party, also known as the Bull Moose Party. On October 14, 1912, while in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Roosevelt was preparing to deliver a campaign speech when he was shot by a would-be assassin named John Schrank.

Schrank, a mentally unstable man, fired a bullet that struck Roosevelt in the chest. The bullet had passed through Roosevelt's steel-reinforced glasses case and a thick, folded copy of the speech he was about to deliver, which remarkably slowed the bullet down. Despite the wound, Roosevelt's life was spared because of the objects the bullet encountered before penetrating his body.

Amazingly, Roosevelt, with the bullet lodged in his chest, refused immediate medical attention. Instead, he insisted on delivering his scheduled speech, holding up the bloodstained pages and famously stating, “It takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose.” He went on to speak for 90 minutes, telling the crowd he had been shot but that he was not gravely injured.

After the speech, Roosevelt was taken to the hospital, where doctors determined it was too dangerous to remove the bullet. It remained in his body for the rest of his life. The incident solidified Roosevelt’s reputation as a tough, fearless leader, and the speech itself became a symbol of his indomitable spirit.