When Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt became involved in politics in the 1890s, he began to distance himself from foxhunting because he believed it carried an elitist stigma. But he continued to ride and to keep horses at Sagamore Hill, his home on Long Island, New York.

Roosevelt’s six children shared his love of animals, particularly his son Archibald, but it was his youngest son, Quentin, who provided one of the best animal stories in White House history.

Archie was stricken with measles and whooping cough, an illness exacerbated by grief over the death of Jack Dog, his beloved fox terrier. In an effort to cheer his brother, Quentin coaxed Archie’s small calico pony, Algonquin, into the White House elevator and led him, fully tacked, into Archie’s room.

Archie recovered, and when he was big enough to ride horses, Quentin inherited Algonquin and rode him to public school in Washington, D.C.

Even when the family outgrew him, Algonquin was still a treasured resident of Sagamore Hill.