Calling all history buffs, language lovers, and trivia champs!

The TR Site is delighted to be partnering with the New York State Archives Partnership Trust for a fast-paced, fun-filled evening that explores one of the most unexpected presidential battles of all time: In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt tried to change the way America spells. (Ever write “tho” instead of “though”? Yeah . . . you can thank TR.)

Hosted by the TR Site’s own Lenora Henson — with additional insight provided by Dr. David Fertig (from UB’s Linguistics Department) — the evening will encourage audience participation with interactive games like “Text of TR?”

*RELATED* The Summer 2025 issue of New York Archives magazine will be available for purchase at the TR Site. The cover feature is called “Roosevelt’s War on Words,” in which author Elizabeth Harris details how a president’s quest to simplify American spelling . . . spoiler alert . . . spectacularly backfired.