Site of the Theodore Roosevelt assassination attempt

At this site on October 14, 1912, John Schrank shot former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt in the chest with a .38 revolver.

Roosevelt was on the campaign trail seeking a third term as President. He ran under a new party he created called the Progressive Party - nicknamed the "Bull Moose Party". After having dinner at the Hotel Gilpatrick, Roosevelt climbed into a car for the short ride to the nearby Milwaukee Auditorium to give a speech. As Roosevelt paused to wave to the crowd, Schrank found an opportunity to get a close-range shot at Roosevelt.

The bullet struck a folded 50 page speech and a steel eyeglasses case before entering his chest. Schrank was quickly apprehended, and Roosevelt insisted on carrying on with his scheduled speech. He told his audience that he had been shot and exclaimed, "It takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose!".

After his 90 minute speech, he reluctantly visited a hospital, where X-Rays revealed that the bullet did not threaten any organs. It remained in his chest for the rest of his life.

Schrank, a saloon-keeper from New York, claimed that the ghost of President William McKinley urged him to kill Roosevelt. He was ruled to be insane and spent the rest of his life at a mental hospital in Waupun, Wisconsin.

The Hotel Gilpatrick stood here until 1941. Today, a new hotel stands in the same location and operates as a Hyatt Regency.