3. Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Hi guys! Back with another National Park video where I show you my painting and talk about the park. The first 8 National parks are from my 2019 US Map project where I painted all 50 states and guess what? North Dakota is the only state that got a redo during the 50 states project. I painted Theodore Roosevelt National Park both times. I tell you this because it’s proof we all have work we’re not proud of. It’s okay to try again.

On to the park! Like a lot of the parks Theodore Roosevelt National Park started as a memorial, established in the 40s but on November 10th 1978 became a national park. And actual shares the birthday (Same year) with Badlands. Anyway Theodore Roosevelt National Park is named after Teddy Roosevelt who was president in the early 1900s but dies before the 1920s so I wondered… What did he have to do with it all? What I learned is that Teddy lived in the North Dakota territories at times in his life and even credits it to his presidency.  He loved the territory and sometime after his death, land was sought out to create a park in honor of him. So while Teddy didn’t have his hand directly in that park he was well known as the conservation president because of his work. 

The National Park itself is made up of 3 separate units, North, South, and Elkhorn Ranch Unit were Teddy lived after the deaths of his mother and his wife. 

My family made a short stop at painted canyon pass back in 2004 coming home from Glacier. I think as a kid seeing the badlands was confused with Badlands National Park in South Dakota. And the older I got I thought is was just a range like that of the Rockies. But of course I’ve learned now badlands are also a geologic term, describing terrains typically associated by soft sedimentary rocks. Badlands are actually found on every continent except Antarctica. Anyway, since I was only 11 I’d love to go back to the park and really explore, especially this view that I painted from Wind Canyon trail in the south Unit. 

Let me know in the comments if you’ve been to the park and what you loved most! Also please share with you National Park loving friends as I tour this series. Up next a park that wasn’t official when I painted it. Can you guess it?.

Link to Theodore Roosevelt National Park painting