Signed Photograph of Theodore Roosevelt as a Rough Rider, Complete With His Rank in the Iconic Regiment

TR presented Church with the Medal of Honor as president, with Church thus becoming the first winner of that medal to receive it from a president

 

This is not the printed picture one more commonly sees, but an actual photograph

James Robb Church graduated from Princeton University in the class of 1888. He became an Assistant Surgeon in the U.S. Army, and in 1898 joined the legendary Rough Riders regiment. Church received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Las Guasimas on June 24, 1898 during the Spanish-American War. As an officer in the Rough Riders, he knew Theodore Roosevelt well, and when Church received his Medal of Honor on January 10, 1906, he did so directly from President Theodore Roosevelt himself. It was the first time that a Medal of Honor had ever been presented in person by a president of the United States. Church’s Medal of Honor citation said, “In addition to performing gallantly the duties pertaining to his position, voluntarily and unaided carried several seriously wounded men from the firing line to a secure position in the rear, in each instance being subjected to a very heavy fire and great exposure and danger.” Church also served in World War I, and wrote about the effects of poison gas and his experiences as a wartime doctor.

A gorgeous sepia photograph of Theodore Roosevelt dressed in his Rough Rider uniform, signed by TR with his rank as a Rough Rider and inscribed to Church as follows: “To Dr. James Robb Church, 1st Lt. Asst. Surgeon, USA, from Theodore Roosevelt, Col. 1st U.S.V. Cavalry.” This is the most striking and signifiant signed photo of TR we have ever had, being inscribed to a Rough Rider to whom he presented the Medal of Honor. Moreover, it is not the printed picture one sees more commonly, but an actual photograph.

Church went on to serve in World War I and is among the first to report back on the effects of gas and chemical weapons use.