President William Howard Taft made headlines all across Idaho in 1911. He made speeches in Moscow, Caldwell, Boise, and Pocatello. It was part of at least a 15-state tour he was making with a focus on the Pacific Northwest.
Dignitaries such as the president of the United States are often given some commemorative trinket by which they are supposed to remember their visit to Anytown, USA. Taft probably did remember the gift he got in Pocatello on October 11.
Edna Maxfield Whited Dubois, boasting an excess of names, was nevertheless referred to as “Mrs. Fred T. Dubois” when the Blackfoot Republican wrote about her gift to the president. Mrs. Dubois knew Taft from spending time in Washington, DC, where Fred served as a senator from Idaho from 1901 to 1907. She had apparently made Taft a promise that he would “taste the products of the Mountain View farm” when he visited. Senator and Mrs. Dubois owned the farm, which was near Moreland which, if you don’t know, is near Blackfoot.
The gift Mrs. Dubois gave to the president was a registered Poland China suckling pig. Now, lest you wonder what a president does with a baby pig while on a sweeping train tour of the Western states, I refer you to her original promise. He ate it. The roasted pig was the main course for the luncheon as the presidential party made its way west that day to Boise. The paper reported that the meal was “thoroughly appreciated.”
Dignitaries such as the president of the United States are often given some commemorative trinket by which they are supposed to remember their visit to Anytown, USA. Taft probably did remember the gift he got in Pocatello on October 11.
Edna Maxfield Whited Dubois, boasting an excess of names, was nevertheless referred to as “Mrs. Fred T. Dubois” when the Blackfoot Republican wrote about her gift to the president. Mrs. Dubois knew Taft from spending time in Washington, DC, where Fred served as a senator from Idaho from 1901 to 1907. She had apparently made Taft a promise that he would “taste the products of the Mountain View farm” when he visited. Senator and Mrs. Dubois owned the farm, which was near Moreland which, if you don’t know, is near Blackfoot.
The gift Mrs. Dubois gave to the president was a registered Poland China suckling pig. Now, lest you wonder what a president does with a baby pig while on a sweeping train tour of the Western states, I refer you to her original promise. He ate it. The roasted pig was the main course for the luncheon as the presidential party made its way west that day to Boise. The paper reported that the meal was “thoroughly appreciated.”
This photo was taken pre-pig on October 11, 1911. President William Howard Taft is seated behind the podium wearing a top hat. Former Governor James H. Brady is standing and speaking in an animated enough way to be little more than a blur. Seated with a bowler hat on his knee was former U.S. Senator Fred T. Dubois, owner of the gifted pig. Photo courtesy of the Idaho Transportation Department digital collection.
RSS Feed