Teddy Roosevelt Riding into the Mass Timber Movement

The new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota is the latest mass timber structure – fitting for a man who loved nature.

He was the driving force behind the creation of the National Parks Department so it seems only fitting that his library, now under construction in Medora, ND, use mass timber construction. Set to open on July 4, 2026, the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library will use around 1,800 cubic meters of engineered mass timber as part of its 93,000-square-foot structure. 

The first phase of the $400-million project was recently completed by Mercer Mass Timber, based in Vancouver, BC. JE Dunn, from Kansas City, MO, is the general contractor on the project.

Press reports on the new library describe the mass timber roof as being “designed to echo the rolling topography of the North Dakota Badlands,” requiring precisely engineered connections and joints supported by steel wrapped in wood to maintain a seamless timber look. “This project is a testament to what visionary design combined with advanced mass timber engineering can create,” said Ricardo Brites, director of engineering at Mercer Mass Timber, in announcing the completion of the first phase of the building.

Image: Chad Ziemendorf

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