40 US Historical Homes That Are Worth the Visit

19.Maltese Cross Cabin

Though this historical U.S. home is easily the smallest house on the list, it is incredibly rich in history. The Maltese Cross Cabin, just outside Medora, North Dakota, in the Northern Badlands, was once home to U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. President Roosevelt later said of his time in North Dakota, “I would not have been President had it not been for my experience in North Dakota.” One of his most significant undertakings as president was establishing the conservation of public lands. This goal was strongly inspired by his time at the cabin and in the Dakota Territories in general.

President Roosevelt thoroughly enjoyed the outdoor lifestyle, and this cabin allowed him to delve into that fully. The cabin was about seven miles outside of Medora, and though it seems quite bare to us now, at the time, it was considered almost luxurious with its wooden floors and three separate rooms. Though many of the room furnishings have been added to represent what life would have been like in those days, some items are original to President Roosevelt – specifically his traveling trunk. He even inscribed his initials! Roosevelt’s second ranch, the Elkhorn Ranch, was about 35 miles away from Medora on the Little Missouri River was his primary residence. From one form of American royalty to another, let’s travel on to Graceland.