During your visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, visit the South Unit Visitor Center to learn more about Theodore Roosevelt’s experience in the Badlands. Adjacent to the South Unit Visitor Center is Roosevelt’s Maltese Cross Cabin. Outdoors, the vast North Dakota prairies, rivers and badlands are home to a wide variety of native wildlife.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park South Unit Visitor Center
Start your visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s South Unit Visitor Center with Refuge of the American Spirit, a 17-minute park film that captures wildlife and natural history over the four seasons, while telling the story of Theodore Roosevelt’s time ranching in the North Dakota Badlands and how it shaped his life. In the South Unit Visitor Center’s Museum you will discover the Park’s Theodore Roosevelt collections and exhibits on history, natural history and geology. Ask at the Center’s staffed information desk about the daily programs being offered such as short talks, guided walks and tours of Roosevelt’s Maltese Cross Cabin.
Maltese Cross Cabin
Adjacent to the South Unit Visitor Center is the Maltese Cross Cabin. In the early 1880s, Theodore Roosevelt arrived in the North Dakota Badlands to hunt buffalo. It was during this time he acquired interest in the Maltese Cross Ranch, also known as the Chimney Butte Ranch. Roosevelt thrived on the vigorous outdoor lifestyle and actively participated in the life of a working cowboy at Maltese Cross Ranch. Originally located south of Medora in the wooded bottom-lands of the Little Missouri River, the Maltese Cross Cabin was moved to its current location and renovated in 1959. Several items belonging to President Theodore Roosevelt remain in the cabin today, while the majority of the furnishings are period pieces that represent a typical cabin of the time. Original items within the cabin include a white hutch in the main room, originally used as a bookcase and writing desk. The common rocking chair is also believed to have belonged to Roosevelt. In the cabin’s bedroom is Roosevelt’s traveling trunk, inscribed with his initials. Roosevelt used the trunk to hold personal items during his travels between his home in New York and North Dakota.
Wildlife in Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is teeming with wildlife, providing an opportunity for you to observe animals in their natural habitat. What you will see will depend on the season, your patience and luck. Among the wildlife that live in the Park are bison, elk, bighorn sheep, bald and golden eagles, meadowlarks, burrowing owls and prairie dogs. Be sure to pick up a Wildlife Checklist at the South Unit Visitor Center’s information desk for more information on the wildlife in Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
- The South Unit Visitor Center and Maltese Cross Cabin are ADA complaint.
- Stop by the Theodore Roosevelt Nature and History Association Bookstore in the South Unit Visitor Center to shop for books, gifts and keepsakes related to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the North Dakota Badlands and President Theodore Roosevelt.