Figure 74. Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th president of the United States. As a young man, he spent several years during the 1880s in the North Dakota Badlands. (Office of the Governor of North Dakota)
The Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award recognizes present and former North Dakotans who have made important contributions to the state and nation. The award was started in 1961. Photo tributes of these award winners may be seen in the North Dakota Hall of Fame on the ground floor of the State Capitol.
Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States. As a young man, he spent several years in the North Dakota Badlands. Roosevelt once said, “I would never had been President if it had not been for my experiences in North Dakota.”
President Roosevelt was a strong supporter of conservation and America’s scenic and historic areas. In 1947, the Theodore Roosevelt National Park was established in the North Dakota Badlands in his honor.
Rough Rider Award Recipients
Since 1961, the state of North Dakota has honored 44 native citizens with the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award. The first North Dakotan honored was Lawrence Welk.
Each award winner is listed below with their hometown(s) and the date they received the honor. (To learn more about theses famous North Dakotans, click on the name.)
LAWRENCE WELK Strasburg (1961)
DOROTHY STICKNEY Dickinson (1961)
GENERAL HAROLD K. JOHNSON Grafton (1965)
DR. ANNE CARLSEN Jamestown (1966)
EDWARD K. THOMPSON St. Thomas (1968)
DR. ROBERT HENRY BAHMER Gardena (1970)
LOUIS L’AMOUR Jamestown (1972)
BERTIN C. GAMBLE Hunter (1972)
HAROLD SCHAFER Stanton & Bismarck (1975)
ERA BELL THOMPSON Driscoll (1976)
DR. LEON JACOBSON Sims & Fargo (1976)
PHYLLIS FRELICH Devils Lake (1981)
CLIFF “FIDO” PURPUR Grand Forks (1981)
GENERAL DAVID C. JONES Minot (1982)
RONALD N. DAVIES Grand Forks & Fargo (1987)
REV. RICHARD C. HALVERSON Pingree (1994)
BRYNHILD HAUGLAND Minot (1995)
ADMIRAL WILLIAM OWENS Bismarck (1996)
CARL BEN EIELSON Hatton (1997)
WARREN CHRISTOPHER Scranton (1998)
CHESTER “CHET” REITEN Minot (2002)
THOMAS CLIFFORD Langdon & Grand Forks (2002)
SISTER THOMAS WELDER Bismarck (2004)
HARRY J. PEARCE Bismarck (2004)
WILLIAM C. MARCIL Fargo (2006)
WOODROW WILSON KEEBLE Wahpeton (2008)
DOUG BURGUM Arthur & Fargo (2009)
LOUISE ERDRICH Wahpeton (2013)
HERMAN STERN Valley City (2014)
GERALD W. VANDEWALLE Noonan & Bismarck (2015)
JOHN D. ODEGARD Grand Forks (2015)
