Kermit Roosevelt - River of Doubt South American Expedition

River of Doubt South American Expedition

One of Theodore Roosevelt's most popular books, Through the Brazilian Wilderness, recounted the father-and-son expedition into the Amazon Basin Brazilian jungle in 1913–14. Father and son went on what would become known as the Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Expedition, exploring the Brazilian jungle with explorer Colonel Cândido Rondon. During this expedition, they explored the River of Doubt, later renamed Rio Roosevelt in honor of the President, as well as a branch of that river named the Rio Kermit in his honor. The source of the river had been discovered by Rondon earlier, but it had never been fully explored or mapped.

At the time of the expedition, Roosevelt was newly engaged to Belle Willard, daughter of the U.S. ambassador to Spain. His mother Edith was concerned about her husband's health and the difficulties of a new expedition, and asked the younger Roosevelt to accompany his father. He did so, reluctantly delaying his marriage.

The scope of the expedition expanded beyond the original plans, leaving the participants inadequately prepared for a trip tracing the River of Doubt from its source through hundreds of kilometers of uncharted rainforest. The climate and terrain, inadequate gear and food, and two deaths (one drowning, the other murder) turned a scientific expedition into an ordeal. Roosevelt's father contracted malaria and a serious infection resulting from a minor leg wound, weakening him to the point that he considered taking a fatal dose of morphine rather than being a burden to his companions. Roosevelt told his father that he was bringing him back literally "dead or alive" and if he died, he would be an even bigger burden to the expedition. Although Roosevelt contracted malaria as well, he downplayed his sickness to save quinine for his father, nearly dying himself before the physician insisted on giving him the medication by injection. Roosevelt's determination, and his rope and canoe-handling skills were instrumental in saving his father's life. Nonetheless, his father would be plagued by flareups of malaria and inflammation so severe that they would require hospitalization.

Besides the newly-named Rio Roosevelt, one branch of the river was named the Rio Kermit in his honor. Today, the Rio Roosevelt is commonly called the Rio Teodoro by Portuguese-speaking Brazilians because of pronunciation difficulties they have with the name 'Roosevelt'.

Although Roosevelt and his father faced skepticism about their claims of navigating a completely uncharted river over 1000 km long, they eventually silenced their critics through the elder Roosevelt's oratory and his one of his most popular books, Through the Brazilian Wilderness. The 1913–14 expedition would later be recounted in The River of Doubt by Candice Millard (Doubleday 2005).