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Character and beliefs
Sagamore Hill, Roosevelt's Long Island estate
Roosevelt intensely disliked being called "Teddy", despite the widespread public association with said moniker, and was quick to point out this to those who referred to him as such, though it would become widely used by newspapers during his political career.
He was an active Freemason[338] and member of the Sons of the American Revolution.[339]
British scholar Marcus Cunliffe evaluates the liberal argument that Roosevelt was an opportunist, exhibitionist, and imperialist. Cunliffe praises TR's versatility, his respect for law, and his sincerity. He argues that Roosevelt's foreign policy was better than his detractors allege. Cunliffe calls him "a big man in several respects," ranking him below Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson, and on the same level as Franklin D. Roosevelt.[340]

Strenuous life
Roosevelt had a lifelong interest in pursuing what he called, in an 1899 speech, "The Strenuous Life". To this end, he exercised regularly and took up boxing, tennis, hiking, rowing, polo, and horseback riding. He also continued his habit of skinny-dipping in the Potomac River during the winter.