US president Teddy Roosevelt's former house to get makeover

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The former home of the late Theodore Roosevelt, who was president of the United States from 1901-1909, is set for a major renovation.

Roosevelt was a prolific big-game hunter, and his Long Island house is filled with his trophies. Animal-skin rugs grace the floors in many rooms of the 15-bedroom Queen Anne-style house, and mounted taxidermied heads line the walls.

The US National Parks Service, which manages the property, will remove all of the animal detritus, as well as more than 8,000 books, in order to upgrade the electrical, heating and security systems.

The US$6.2 million renovation is set to take three years, and Roosevelt's precious mementos will be in storage until it is complete.

Teddy Roosevelt was vice-president with President William McKinley was assassinated, and Roosevelt became the youngest president up until that point at the age of 42. He was officially elected to the office in 1904 but declined to run for re-election in 1908. After leaving office Roosevelt went on an extended African safari, and he and his companions trapped or killed 11,397 animals, many of which ended up in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington. 

He lived in the Long Island house for the last years of his life.