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{{Short description|Domestic policy of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt}}
{{About||the employment practices of [[George F. Johnson]]|Endicott-Johnson Co. & The Square Deal|other uses}}
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{{Progressivism}}
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The '''Square Deal''' was [[Theodore Roosevelt]]'s domestic program, which reflected his three major goals: conservation of natural resources, corporate law, and [[consumer protection]].<ref>{{citation |url=http://www4.bluevalleyk12.org/bvhs/mklopfenstein/Apush_notes/Unit_VI/THE%20PROGRESSIVE%20ERA(post).pdf |title=The Progressive Era (1900-1920) |first=Mark |last=Klopfenstein |access-date=2010-03-19 |archive-date=2013-06-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130626045617/http://www4.bluevalleyk12.org/bvhs/mklopfenstein/Apush_notes/Unit_VI/THE%20PROGRESSIVE%20ERA(post).pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

These three demands are often referred to as the "three C's" of Roosevelt's Square Deal. Thus, it aimed at helping middle-class citizens and involved attacking [[plutocracy]] and bad [[Trust (19th century)|trusts]] while at the same time protecting business from the most extreme demands of [[organized labor]]. He explained in 1901–1909:
<blockquote>When I say that I am for the square deal, I mean not merely that I stand for fair play under the present rules of the game, but that I stand for having those rules changed so as to work for a more substantial equality of opportunity and of reward for equally good service.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}} </blockquote>

A [[Progressive Era]] Republican, Roosevelt believed in government action to mitigate social evils, and as president he in 1908 denounced "the representatives of predatory wealth" as guilty of "all forms of iniquity from the oppression of wage workers to unfair and unwholesome methods of crushing competition, and to defrauding the public by [[Stockjobber|stock-jobbing]] and the manipulation of securities."<ref>{{ cite book|editor=James Daniel Richardson|title=A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, 1789-1908: 1789-1908 and index|publisher=Bureau of National Literature and Art|url=https://archive.org/details/acompilationmes57richgoog|year=1908|page=[https://archive.org/details/acompilationmes57richgoog/page/n717 293]}}</ref>

During his second term, Roosevelt tried to extend his Square Deal further, but was blocked by conservative Republicans in Congress.

== History ==

=== Coining of the term ===
[[File:Roosevelt - Address to the Boys Progressive League.ogg|thumb|Address to the Boys Progressive League ''"A square deal for every man and every woman in the United States. . .")'' by former President Theodore Roosevelt, New York City, recorded March 4, 1913 (according to Allen Koenigsberg's latest research).]]

The press was using the term "Square Deal" as early as 1871 in a ''[[New York Times]]'' local news article that reads "Many of the inscriptions on the front of trucks, drays, and other vehicles are quite amusing. On one there is a picture of a hand containing four aces, and over it is inscribed square deal."<ref>{{ cite news | title = Local News in Brief-New York | work = The New York Times | page = 8 | date = 3 July 1871 }}</ref> In 1888, in "letters from the people" (letters to the editor), one writer signed off as "Square Deal".<ref>{{ cite news | first = Square | last = Deal | title = Square Deal's Plaint | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 7 | date = 11 August 1888 }}</ref> In 1890, the phrase started to appear in headlines, e.g., "Give China a Square Deal"<ref>{{ cite news | title = Give China a Square Deal | newspaper = Washington Post | page = 4 | date = 10 January 1910 }}</ref> and "Not a Square Deal".<ref>{{ cite news | title = Not a Square Deal | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 4 | date = 1 December 1890 }}</ref>

An early usage of "square deal" by Theodore Roosevelt in the press occurred in 1899, when ''The New York Times'' quoted his saying, "I did not appoint a man because he came from Dr. Wall's or any other church; I gave each man a square deal on his own account. That is what I mean by [[wikt:Americanism|Americanism]]."<ref>{{ cite news | title = Lake Champlain Events: Roosevelt Makes a Speech | work = The New York Times | page = 4 | date = 22 August 1899 }}</ref>

In 1901, he declared "a square deal for every man, big or small, rich or poor" during a speech in [[Lynn, Massachusetts]], recorded by [[stereograph]] (photo) image.<ref>{{ cite web | title = A square deal for every man, big or small, rich or poor | publisher = Underwood & Underwood | url = https://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/stereo.1s01976/ | date = 1902 | access-date = 24 November 2017}}</ref><ref>{{ cite web | title = A square deal for every man, big or small, rich or poor | publisher = Underwood & Underwood | url = https://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/stereo.1s01977/ | date = 1902 | access-date = 24 November 2017}}</ref>

In a 1903 speech in [[Springfield, Illinois]], he stated, "It seems to me eminently fitting that the guard around the tomb of [[Abraham Lincoln|Lincoln]] should be composed of colored soldiers. It was my own good fortune at [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba|Santiago]] to serve beside colored troops. A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards."<ref>{{ cite news | title = Last Speeches on President's List | work = The New York Times | page = 6 | date = 5 June 1903 | url = https://archive.org/details/sim_new-york-times_1903-06-05_52_16665/page/n5/mode/1up}}</ref>

In October 1904, while Roosevelt was readying publication of his book ''A Square Deal for Every Man''<ref>{{ cite book | first = Theodore | last = Roosevelt | author-link = Theodore Roosevelt | title = A Square Deal for Every Man | publisher = R.J. Thompson | url = https://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/stereo.1s01977/ | date = 1905 | access-date = 24 November 2017}}</ref> (Chicago, R. J. Thompson, 1905), ''The New York Times'' reported:

{{ blockquote
| No sooner have the Democrats concluded their task of going through the President's many books with a fine-tooth comb to ferret out campaign material, than Republicans come forth with a pamphlet of about the same size, and prepared on a somewhat similar plan, making conspicuous Mr. Roosevelt's sentiments on numerous civic and governmental questions. It Is entitled "A Square Deal for Every Man" and the paragraphs printed, which are more numerous than those in "Roosevelt, Historian", are culled, to some extent, from the same volumes. Republicans are now considering the purchase of over a million of those booklets. Chairman [[George B. Cortelyou|Cortelyou]] has discussed has matter, and negotiations on the subject were continued yesterday at the [[White House]].
| <ref name="Pamphlet">{{ cite news | title = Battle of the Booklets | work = The New York Times | page = 4 | date = 1 October 1904 }}</ref>
}}

The 94-page pamphlet's 75 topics include: America, A Good American, Alaska, Anarchy, Army and Navy, Capital, Character, Charity, Citizenship, Farmer, Peace, Publicity, Trusts, Weaklings, and World Power. Some imitate the form of proverbs.<ref name="Pamphlet" /> During 1905, Roosevelt capitalized on his slogan in the newspapers, who added "square deal" to headlines:

* "A 'Square Deal' for the Negro" (January 17) about "negro suffrage"<ref>{{ cite news | title = A 'Square Deal' for the Negro | work = The New York Times | page = 8 | date = 17 January 1905 }}</ref>
* "A Square Deal for the South" (January 27)<ref>{{ cite news | title = A Square Deal for the South | work = The New York Times | page = 6 | date = 27 January 1905 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite news | author = Savoyard | title = A Square Deal for the South | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 6 | date = 27 January 1905 }}</ref>
* "Talks of Square Deal: President's Address at Press Club Banquet" (February 14)<ref>{{ cite news | author = Savoyard | title = Talks of Square Deal: President's Address at Press Club Banquet | newspaper = Washington Post | page = 3 | date = 14 February 1905 }}</ref>
* "Upholds the President: Mormons Know He Will Give Them a Square Deal" (April 10)<ref>{{ cite news | title = Upholds the President: Mormons Know He Will Give Them a Square Deal | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 1 | date = 10 April 1905 }}</ref>
* "The 'Square Deal' Defined: President Offers Some Explanations of the Meaning of the Term" (April 15)<ref name="Explanation">{{ cite news | title = The 'Square Deal' Defined: President Offers Some Explanations of the Meaning of the Term | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = t | date = 15 April 1905 }}</ref>
* "The Square Deal" (May 18)<ref>{{ cite news | author = Savoyard | title = The Square Deal | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 6 | date = 18 May 1905 }}</ref>

The press praised Roosevelt's Square Deal:

{{ blockquote
| His explanation of that is entirely plain and understandable. It contemplates no injury to any interest, but an opportunity for all on absolutely equal terms. That is a principle the justice of which is universally recognized, and which ought to be more generally acknowledged in this country than in any other.
| <ref name="Explanation" />
}}

The press also criticized him for it:

{{ blockquote
| In his insistence upon "a square deal for all," President Roosevelt uses a phrase which is as catchy and as impracticable as either of those "glittering generalities" or the Declaration of Independence that have been shining and ringing all over the civilized world for a hundred and twenty-nine years and bid fair to serve for centuries to come as a potent inspiration in every struggle against tyranny and oppression, every movement toward greater liberty.
| <ref name="Explanation" />
}}

Other politicians tried to capitalize on the phrase, too, e.g., U.S. Representative [[Henry Sherman Boutell]] of Illinois.<ref>{{ cite news | title = Would Aid the South: Boutell, of Illinois, Asks for a Square Deal | newspaper = The Washington Post | page = 4 | date = 30 January 1905 }}</ref>

=== Initial legislation ===

In 1903, with Roosevelt's support, Congress passed the [[Elkins Act]]. This stated that railroads were not allowed to give rebates to favored companies any longer. These rebates had treated small Midwestern farmers unfairly by not allowing them equal access to the services of the railroad. The [[Interstate Commerce Commission]] controlled the prices that railroads could charge.

Legislation was passed which specified that meat had to be processed safely with proper sanitation. Foodstuffs and drugs could no longer be mislabeled, nor could consumers be deliberately misled.

Roosevelt gave high priority to environmental conservation, and safeguarded millions of acres of wilderness from commercial exploitation.<ref>Douglas Brinkley, ''The wilderness warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the crusade for America'' (2009).</ref> Roosevelt's conservation efforts were driven by practicality as well as by a love for nature. Influenced by early wise-use advocates like [[Gifford Pinchot]], Roosevelt believed that nature existed to benefit humanity. In a conserved wilderness, water could be taken to irrigate farmland, sport could be had, and timber could be harvested.<ref name="Almanac of Theodore Roosevelt">{{cite web|url=http://www.theodore-roosevelt.com/trenv.html#RECLAMATIONPROJECTS|title=Conservation Efforts of Teddy Roosevelt|work=Almanac of Theodore Roosevelt|access-date=2019-11-19|archive-date=2014-02-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140208012307/http://theodore-roosevelt.com/trenv.html#RECLAMATIONPROJECTS|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Acting on these beliefs, Roosevelt set up the federal [[United States Bureau of Reclamation|Reclamation Service]] in 1902. The agency, through the use of dams and irrigation, created arable land in areas that had been too dry to farm, and the Reclamation Service eventually brought millions of acres of farmland into service. During Roosevelt's time in office, 24 reclamation projects were set up, and 150 national forests were created.<ref name="Almanac of Theodore Roosevelt"/>

=== Second term ===

Roosevelt, moving to the left of his Republican Party base, called for a series of reforms that were mostly not passed.<ref>{{ cite book|author=Lewis L. Gould|title=Theodore Roosevelt|url=https://archive.org/details/theodoreroosevel00goul|url-access=registration|year=2012|publisher=Oxford UP|page=[https://archive.org/details/theodoreroosevel00goul/page/2 2]|isbn=9780199797011}}</ref> He sought a national incorporation law. All corporations had [[United States corporate law#Incorporation and charter competition|state charters, which varied greatly state by state]]. He called for a [[Income tax in the United States|federal income tax]], but the Supreme Court had [[Legal history of income tax in the United States#"Direct" income tax unconstitutional: Pollock v. Farmers' Loan Trust Company|ruled in 1895]] that any income tax would require a constitutional amendment.  Roosevelt sought an [[inheritance tax]] so the great family fortunes could not be inherited without the tax for generations.

In the area of labor legislation, Roosevelt called for limits on the use of court injunctions against labor unions during strikes. Injunctions were a powerful weapon that mostly helped business. He wanted an employee liability law for industrial injuries, pre-empting state laws. He called for an eight-hour law for federal employees.  In other areas he also sought a [[United States Postal Savings System|postal savings system]] to provide competition to local banks, and, finally, [[Campaign finance reform in the United States#History|campaign finance reform]].

He secured passage of the [[Hepburn Act]] in 1906, which increased the regulating power of the Interstate Commerce Commission. Eventually, many of the proposals he championed were enacted under Democrats [[Woodrow Wilson]] and [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]].  When Roosevelt ran for president on an independent [[Progressive Party (United States, 1912)|Progressive Party]] ticket in 1912, in addition to these policies he proposed stringent new controls on the court system, especially state courts, to make them more democratic.  His court policies in particular caused his anointed successor, [[William Howard Taft]], to lead a counter-crusade which defeated Roosevelt in the Republican presidential primaries in 1912.<ref>Stephen Stagner, "The Recall of Judicial Decisions and the Due Process Debate," ''American Journal of Legal History'' 24#3 (1980), pp. 257-272 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/844667 in JSTOR]</ref>

== Impact and specific provisions ==

=== Labor ===

Labor unions in the age of [[Samuel Gompers]] were generally on the Democratic side, but Roosevelt felt that favorable policies toward them would gain votes or at least neutralize their opposition.<ref>Stephen J. Scheinberg, "Theodore Roosevelt and the AF of L.'s entry into politics 1906–1908." ''Labor History'' 3#2 (1962): 131-148.</ref>  He had opposed unions in 1896, when they supported William Jennings Bryan, then came to appreciate their value after 1900.  He played a central role in negotiating a compromise to end the [[Coal strike of 1902]], which was threatening the nation's energy supply.<ref>Robert H. Wiebe, "The Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902: A Record of Confusion." ''Mississippi Valley Historical Review'' (1961) 48#2, pp. 229–51. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1902513 in JSTOR]</ref>  He decided they also needed a square deal, and a stronger voice and collective bargaining with corporations.<ref>Irving Greenberg, ''Theodore Roosevelt and Labor, 1900–1918'' (1988)</ref><ref>Peter R. Perry, "Theodore Roosevelt and the labor movement" (MA thesis California State University, Hayward; 1991) [http://csueastbay-dspace.calstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.5/40/Peter.R.PerryThesis.pdf?sequence=1 online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603174254/http://csueastbay-dspace.calstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.5/40/Peter.R.PerryThesis.pdf?sequence=1 |date=2016-06-03 }}; bibliography pp 91-95.</ref>
* A measure was approved that providing that eight hours should constitute a day's labor on irrigation works.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{ cite web |url=http://debs.indstate.edu/p9646t5_1912.pdf |title=Theodore Roosevelt's Labor Record |access-date=2013-08-17 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040203224644/http://debs.indstate.edu/p9646t5_1912.pdf |archive-date=February 3, 2004 }}</ref>
* Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the [[Philippine Islands]], with violation of the Act being punishable by forfeiture of contracts and a fine of not less than $10,000.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved safeguarding the lives of employees in mines in U.S. territories by regulating the amount of ventilation and providing that entries, etc., should be kept well dampened with water to cause coal dust to settle.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved exempting from taxation in the District of Columbia household effects to the value of $1,000, wearing apparel, libraries, school books, family portraits and heirlooms.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved providing for Government supervision of employment agencies in the [[District of Columbia]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* An Act relating to safety appliances on railroad trains was improved.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved requiring the collection of labor statistics in [[Hawaii]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for the better protection of seamen.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for securing the wages of employees on public works.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for protecting the health of motormen and conductors on street railways in the District of Columbia.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for a more thorough inspection of steam vessels.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for safeguarding factory employees in the District of Columbia against accidents.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>{{Google books |id=UNQgxw3nWMAC |page=285 |title=Theodore Roosevelt: An Autobiography }}</ref>
* A measure was approved making wages preferred claims.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved to provide for an investigation of women and child labor in the United States.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved restricting child labor in the District of Columbia.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved incorporating the National Child Labor Committee.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved establishing the Foundation for the Promotion of Industrial Peace.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved to regulate the hours of labor of railroad employees in the District of Columbia and the Territories.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved making railroad companies engaged in interstate commerce or operating in the District of Columbia, the Territories, the Panama Canal Zone, or other United States possessions, liable for injuries to, or death of, employees while on duty.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved safeguarding the lives of miners in the U.S. Territories and the [[District of Alaska]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved permitting leave of absence, with pay, on Labor Day to per diem employees of the Government.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved granting to injured employees on the [[Panama Canal]] absence, with pay for time necessarily lost as a result of injuries.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved for the inspection of boilers.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* A measure was approved prohibiting peonage.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* The first Federal employment service (forerunner of the United States Employment Service) was created in the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, [[Department of Commerce and Labor]] (1907).<ref>{{ cite web|url=https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/events/1901-1950/|title=Social Welfare Developments, 1901-1950|date=2011-01-10|website=Social Welfare History Project|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-19}}</ref>

=== Health and welfare ===

* The [[Pure Food and Drug Act]] of 1906 and the [[Meat Inspection Act]] of 1906 were both widely accredited from [[Upton Sinclair]]'s ''[[The Jungle]]''.
* The [[Federal Employers Liability Act]] of 1908.
* The Federal Employee's Compensation Act of 1908 provided workers' compensation for a number of federal employees.<ref>{{Google books |id=JpPcj2PgFfwC |page=79 |title=Labor and Employment Law }}</ref>
* Legislation was introduced (1902) that expanded the scientific work of the Acoustic Laboratory and appropriated a budget specific to the laboratory's work.<ref>{{Google books |id=jvxi9bRw3YYC |page=98 |title=Environmental Policy and Public Health }}</ref>
* In 1902 Congress gave authority to strengthen the Public Health Service.<ref>The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare Background Material Concerning the Mission and Organization of the Health Activities of the Department. Prepared for the Special Subcommittee on HEW Investigation, Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee, United States House of Representatives · Volume 1 By United States. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, 1966, P.31</ref>
* An Act of 1903 enabled the Secretary of Agriculture "to prevent the spread of contagious and infectious diseases of live-stock."<ref name="Archived copy">{{ cite web |url=http://www.forgottenbooks.com/readbook_text/Addresses_at_the_Republican_National_Convention_1904_Nominating_for_1000388965/71 |title=P.58-9. Addresses at the Republican National Convention, 1904, Nominating for President, Hon: Theodore Roosevelt of New York, for Vice-President Hon, Charles Warren Fairbanks of Indiana |access-date=2015-07-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150715012530/http://www.forgottenbooks.com/readbook_text/Addresses_at_the_Republican_National_Convention_1904_Nominating_for_1000388965/71 |archive-date=2015-07-15 }}</ref>
* In 1902, $5,000 was appropriated to the Bureau of Chemistry by Congress "to study chemical preservatives and colors and their effects on digestion and health," with studies drawing attention to the problem of food adulteration.<ref name="fda.gov">{{cite web |url=https://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/WhatWeDo/History/Milestones/ucm128305.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709183122/http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/WhatWeDo/History/Milestones/ucm128305.htm |archive-date=2009-07-09 |title=Significant Dates in U.S. Food and Drug Law History|website=[[Food and Drug Administration]] }}</ref>
* The Oleomargarine Act (1902) authorized the definition of oleomargarine "for the purpose of collecting taxes on imported product, and also to discourage imitation of butter."<ref>{{Google Books |id=mLf1CAAAQBAJ |page=198 |title=Food Law Handbook }}</ref>
* The Biologics Control Act was passed (1902) "to ensure purity and safety of serums, vaccines, and similar products used to prevent or treat diseases in humans."<ref name="fda.gov"/>
* The [[Bureau of the Census]] was authorized (1902) to collect information related to health and disease from around the country.<ref>[http://www.socialwelfarehistory.com/organizations/u-s-public-heath-service/ "U.S. Public Health Service"]. ''VCU Libraries Social Welfare History Project''. Virginia Commonwealth University. Retrieved February 22, 2018.</ref>
* The first Certified Color Regulations (1907) listed 7 colors found suitable for use in foods.<ref name="fda.gov"/>
* A Housing Commission was appointed (1908) to evaluate slum conditions.<ref>{{Google Books |id=Z58qIHs3NvAC |page=116 |title=Houser: The Life and Work of Catherine Bauer, 1905–64 }}</ref>
* Corporate welfare work was encouraged by the Roosevelt Administration; a policy continued under Roosevelt's successor [[William Howard Taft]].<ref>{{Google Books |id=D-NMAgAAQBAJ |page=RA1-PA390 |title=The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Business, Labor, and Economic History }}</ref>

=== Conservation ===

* The [[Newlands Reclamation Act]] (1902) led to the first 21 federal irrigation projects such as [[Theodore Roosevelt Dam]] in [[Arizona]].<ref name="nps.gov"/>
* The [[Transfer Act of 1905]].
* The [[Antiquities Act]] of 1906 gave the president authority to restrict the use of particular public lands in America.
* 16 million additional acres of Western forest were signed into federal protection.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{ cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/tr-environment/|title=Theodore Roosevelt and the Environment | work = American Experience | publisher = PBS|language=en|access-date=2019-11-19}}</ref>
* In Alaska, Roosevelt created the [[Tongass National Forest|Tongass]] and the [[Chugach National Forest|Chugach forest reserve]]s.<ref name="ReferenceB"/>
* In Hawaii, Roosevelt set several small islands aside as the [[Hawaiian Islands Bird Reservation]].<ref name="ReferenceB"/>
* [[Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge|Pelican Island]] in [[Florida]] was proclaimed as the first federal bird reservation in 1903 (total of 51 bird reservations established by Roosevelt administration).<ref name="nps.gov">{{ cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/thro/learn/historyculture/theodore-roosevelt-timeline.htm|title=Theodore Roosevelt Timeline | publisher = Theodore Roosevelt National Park (U.S. National Park Service)|last1=Medora|first1=Mailing Address: PO Box 7|last2=Us|first2=ND 58645 Phone:623-4466 Contact|website=www.nps.gov|language=en|access-date=2019-11-19}}</ref>
* Improvements of waterways and reservation of water power sites were carried out.<ref>{{ cite web|url=https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/Research/Digital-Library/Record/ImageViewer.aspx?libID=o282590&imageNo=1|title= ImageViewer|website=www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org|access-date=2019-11-19}}</ref>
* The provisions of the Newlands Act were extended to Texas (1906).<ref name="memory.loc.gov">{{ cite web|url=http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amrvhtml/cnchron4.html|title=Conservation Movement: Conservation Chronology 1901-1907|website=memory.loc.gov|access-date=2019-11-19}}</ref>
* The [[National Forest Service]] was established (1905).<ref name="nps.gov"/>
* A National Conservation Commission was appointed (1908) to prepare "first inventory of natural resources."<ref name="nps.gov"/>
* From 1901 to 1909, Roosevelt signed legislation establishing five national parks: Crater Lake, Oregon; Wind Cave, South Dakota; Sullys Hill, North Dakota; Mesa Verde, Colorado; and Platt, Oklahoma.<ref>{{ cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/history/hisnps/npshistory/teddy.htm |title=Theodore Roosevelt and the National Park System |access-date=2013-08-24 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704075805/http://www.nps.gov/history/history/hisnps/npshistory/teddy.htm |archive-date=July 4, 2007 }}</ref>
* In one of a series of acts aimed at regulating the harvesting of Alaskan wildlife, Congress passed "An Act For the protection of game in Alaska, and for other purposes," known as the Alaska Game Act, protecting certain game animals in Alaska.<ref name="memory.loc.gov"/>
* A preservation of remaining buffalo herds was started.<ref>{{ cite book |title=The Progressive Era |url=https://archive.org/details/progressiveera0000jayc |url-access=registration |first=Faith |last=Jaycox |location=New York |publisher=Facts On File |year=2005 |isbn=0-8160-5159-3 }}</ref>
* 18 national monuments were declared during Roosevelt's time in office.<ref>{{Google books |id=mTSIPaCr2DYC |page=444 |title=Modern American Environmentalists: A Biographical Encyclopedia }}</ref>

=== Public projects ===

* The [[Newlands Reclamation Act]] of 1902.
* The [[Kinkaid Act]] of 1904.
* The Forest Homestead Act (1906) allowed the patenting, or deeding, of millions of acres of potential agricultural land within the national forests.<ref>{{Google books |id=Hw1AF2V6f68C |page=130 |title=Crossing the Next Meridian: Land, Water, and the Future of the West }}</ref>
* The Inland Waterways Commission was created (1907) for the purpose of developing a new approach to river development.<ref>{{Google books |id=Q0Kc1MDUvZ4C |page=452 |title=The History of Large Federal Dams: Planning, Design, and Construction in the Era of Big Dams }}</ref>

=== Veterans ===

* The [[U.S. Civil War|Civil War]] program was transformed into a system of old-age pensions for Union veterans. His [[executive order]] of 1904 declared that old age itself constituted a disability: "When a claimant has passed the age of sixty-two years he is disabled one-half in ability to perform manual labor and is entitled to be rated at six dollars a month; after sixty-five years at eight dollars a month; after sixty-eight years at ten dollars a month, and after seventy years at twelve dollars a month." This order provided tens of thousands of Union veterans with non-contributory old-age pensions.<ref>{{Google books |id=mPMJRVEaGqAC |page=19 |title=Closing the Door to Destitution: The Shaping of the Social Security Acts of the United States and New Zealand }}</ref>
* A 1906 statute provided for veterans that "the age of sixty-two years and over shall be considered a permanent specific disability within the meaning of the pension laws."<ref name="Hamowy">{{Google books |id=TSn0SVM3GRcC |page=272 |title=Government and Public Health in America }}</ref>
* In 1907, the pension provisions of the federal government were extended to all Civil War Union veterans, regardless of whether they were disabled.<ref name="Hamowy" />

=== Education ===

* The Adams Act (1906) provided additional funds to states for agricultural research.<ref>{{Google books |id=0Muy9v0PQckC |page=39 |title=An Assessment of the United States Food and Agricultural Research System }}</ref><ref>{{Google books |id=Kjn2k42dTrYC |page=127 |title=The Country in Conflict }}</ref>
* The [[Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching]] was chartered by an Act of Congress (1906).<ref>{{Google books |id=tlFBaKi5c38C |page=51 |title=The Internationalization of Law and Legal Education }}</ref>
* The 1907 Nelson Amendment to the second Morrill Act provided $25,000 annually in order to assist teacher-training courses in the mechanical arts and agriculture.<ref>{{Google books |id=sFFX9OIkF2IC |page=382 |title=Higher Education in the United States: A–L }}</ref>

=== Rural areas ===

* The Rural Free Delivery postal service was made permanent (1902).<ref>{{Google books |id=Sn_90kwmTE8C |page=33 |title=The Birth of Big Business in the United States, 1860–1914: Commercial, Extractive, and Industrial Enterprise }}</ref>
* The Alaska Native Allotment Act (1906) authorized the Secretary of the Interior "to allot individual Alaska Natives a homestead of up to 160 acres of land."<ref>{{Google Books |id=8koDTMQUvAMC |page=7 |title=Alaska native allotments conflicts with utility rightsofway have not been resolved through existing remedies : report to the Chairman, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate. }}</ref>
* A Commission on Country Life was established (1908) to investigate ways of making country life more attractive.{{citation needed|date=November 2020}}

=== Business regulation ===

* The [[Expediting Act]] of 1903.
* The [[Elkins Act]] 1903.
* A Department of Commerce and Labor was set up (1903) to regulate business and enforce economic regulations.<ref>{{Google books |id=Mm3luDg1UjQC |page=55 |title=American History, 1877 to the Present }}</ref>
* The [[Hepburn Act]] of 1906 strengthened the [[Interstate Commerce Commission]]; prior to that, the commission had minimal resources to carry out its duties.
* Under the Immunity of Witnesses Act (1906) corporate officials could no longer make a plea of immunity to avoid testifying in cases which dealt with the illegal activities of their corporations.<ref>{{Google books |id=b14hnvDVrqkC |page=197 |title=The AP United States History }}</ref>
* The [[Aldrich–Vreeland Act]] (1908) introduced government regulation of any issues of "emergency" currency.<ref>{{Google books |id=sO-hNJfNwNcC |page=235 |title=Unsettled Account: The Evolution of Banking in the Industrialized World since 1800 }}</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Progressive Party (United States, 1912)]]
* [[New Nationalism (Theodore Roosevelt)]]
* [[The New Freedom]]
* [[New Deal]]
* [[Fair Deal]]

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book | last=Brands | first=H. W. | author-link=H. W. Brands | title=T. R.: The Last Romantic | year=1997 | publisher=Basic Books | location=New York | url=https://www.questia.com/library/book/t-r-the-last-romantic-by-h-w-brands.jsp | isbn=978-0-465-06959-0 | access-date=2017-09-15 | archive-date=2011-06-28 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628214645/http://www.questia.com/library/book/t-r-the-last-romantic-by-h-w-brands.jsp | url-status=dead }}
* {{ cite book | last=Brinkley | first=Alan | author-link=Alan Brinkley | title=American History: A Survey | publisher=McGraw-Hill | year=2007 | edition=12th | isbn=978-0-07-312492-6 }}
* Dalton, Kathleen. "Changing interpretations of Theodore Roosevelt and the Progressive era." in Christopher M. Nichols and Nancy C. Unger, eds ''A Companion to the Gilded Age and Progressive Era'' (2017): 296–307.
* {{ cite book | last=Gould | first=Lewis L. | title=The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt | publisher=University Press of Kansas | year=1992 | isbn=978-0-7006-0565-1 }}
* {{ cite book | last=Harbaugh | first=William Henry | title=The Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt | year=1961 | publisher=Farrar, Straus And Cudahy | location=New York | edition=1st | url=https://archive.org/details/powerandresponsi012652mbp | isbn=978-0-19-519822-5 }}
* {{ cite book | last=Morris | first=Edmund | author-link=Edmund Morris (writer) | title=Theodore Rex | publisher=Random House | edition=1st | year=2001 | isbn=978-0-394-55509-6 | url=https://archive.org/details/theodorerex00edmu }}
* {{ cite book | last=Mowry | first=George E. | title=The Era of Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of Modern America, 1900–1912 | publisher=Harper Torchbooks | location=New York and Evanston | year=1958 | edition=1st | url=https://archive.org/details/eraoftheodoreroo010861mbp | isbn=978-0-06-133022-3 }}
* {{ cite book | last=Rhodes | first=James | author-link=James Ford Rhodes | title=The McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations, 1897–1909 | year=1922 | publisher=The MacMillan Company | location=New York | url=https://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=6404794 | isbn=978-1-4067-3464-5 }}
* {{ cite book | last=Kearns Goodwin | first=Doris | author-link=Doris Kearns Goodwin | title=The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the golden age of journalism | year=2013 | publisher=Simon & Schuster | location=New York | url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781416547860 | isbn=978-1-4165-4786-0 }}

== External links ==
* [https://archive.today/20131105121929/http://www.shapell.org/manuscript.aspx?theodore-roosevelts-famous-square-deal Theodore Roosevelt Square Deal AQS] Shapell Manuscript Foundation
* {{librivox book | title=A Square Deal | author=Roosevelt}}

{{Theodore Roosevelt}}
{{United States policy}}

[[Category:Theodore Roosevelt]]
[[Category:United States presidential domestic programs]]
[[Category:Progressive Era in the United States]]
[[Category:United States economic policy]]
[[Category:Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt]]
[[Category:Progressive conservatism]]