Theodore Roosevelt's 'Sagamore Hill' To Undergo Repairs

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. -- Theodore Roosevelt had a lot of stuff.

There's the massive head of a 2,000-pound African cape buffalo hanging over a fireplace near the front entrance of his home, Sagamore Hill, on the north shore of Long Island. Next to a large desk in the North Room sits a wastepaper basket made from the hollowed foot of an elephant. Nearby, there's an inkwell crafted from part of a rhino. More than four dozen rugs made from bearskins and other creatures taken down by the noted big-game hunter adorn nearly every room.

There are 8,000 books and thousands of items, from flags to furniture, busts to baubles and medals to mementos.

Everything must go.

The entire contents of Sagamore Hill are being packed up and put in storage as the National Park Service prepares for a three-year, $6.2 million renovation of the 28-room, Queen Anne-shingle style mansion in Oyster Bay. The 26th president of the United States, who had the home built for him in 1885, lived there until his death in 1919. He used Sagamore Hill as a "summer White House" during his presidency from 1901-1909.

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