Teddy Roosevelt Didn’t Want “In God We Trust” To Appear On U.S. Money – And This Is The Reason Why

It’s November 11, 1907, and President Roosevelt has just signed a letter to the Reverend Roland C. Dryer of Nunda, New York. In the missive, he outlines in forceful terms his reasons for not wanting the phrase “In God We Trust” emblazoned on U.S. money. But just what was it that made Roosevelt feel so strongly about this seemingly trivial matter?

Before we answer that question, though, let’s find out how Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt Jr. ended up as the 26th president of the United States. Roosevelt made his entrance into a well-to-do household in New York City’s Manhattan in October 1858. His father was successful in business and philanthropy, while his mother was a socialite.

The young Roosevelt was a sickly child who was prone to severe asthma episodes that were alarming to both him and his parents. Despite his ailments, though, he was an active boy with a lively mind. Meanwhile, his father was a major influence. And indeed, in later life, Roosevelt wrote of his father in his 1913 autobiography, “He would not tolerate in us children selfishness or cruelty, idleness, cowardice or untruthfulness.”

Roosevelt’s parents ensured that he had a good education too. Having been homeschooled for much of his young life, he went to Harvard College in 1876. Having apparently shrugged off his earlier poor health, he threw himself into boxing and rowing. He did well in his studies, although he was later scornful of what he saw as the over-rigid teaching methods favored at Harvard.

After Harvard, Roosevelt could have chosen a life of leisure. You see, his father had died in 1878, and Roosevelt’s inheritance had totaled $125,000 – more than $3 million in today’s money. But a life on easy street was entirely against his character. Instead, he went to study at Columbia Law School. The pull of public life was overwhelming, though, and he dropped out of his course to take up politics full time.