The Bull Moose Comes to Town, Posted on Monday, December 8, 2025

In the spring of 1912, Lizzie Scott, then age 47, took a train from Mebane, North Carolina, to Raleigh, the state capitol, to visit her daughter Josephine Scott Hudson. Josephine was a new mother, and as such, was grateful to get some help from her own mother, who was very experienced in things “baby.”

Lizzie’s husband, Robert, wrote her frequently to update her on events at home. He mentioned that her asparagus was doing so well, he planned to have some for dinner. The potatoes, however, produced only disappointment. Equally disappointing were the geese. Despite the use of an incubator to keep the eggs warm, no goose eggs had yet hatched.

In better news, Robert informed Lizzie that he had just sold a horse to Mr. and Mrs. Maltbie for 137 dollars.

And there, among the news and updates, is a little gem.

Robert suggests, “I don’t see why you should not stay to hear Roosevelt. It will be your best opportunity to see & hear him. We can get on alright.” Robert goes on to ask about Josephine and the baby and chides Lizzie gently for not writing more, explaining that their daughter Margaret was impatiently waiting to hear about her new nephew.

Theodore Roosevelt, who was President from 1901 to 1909, did not like how things in the U.S. were going. In 1912 he decided to run for President again, this time as a third-party candidate. The new party, the Progressive or “Bull Moose” party, came from a comment Roosevelt had said about himself; he was as strong as a bull moose.

To promote his campaign, Roosevelt went on a whistle-stop tour, visiting 22 different cities in North Carolina including Greensboro and Raleigh. It is ironic that when he spoke at what is now The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, he addressed a room full of people who were unable to vote for him. Those people were female students! The right to vote would not be granted until 1919, so the next presidential election they could vote in would take place in 1920.

We don’t know today if Lizzie did attend the rally for then candidate Roosevelt. I hope so. It’s not every day you get to watch history being made.