Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library & Museum

Christmas Day

2011-12-25T13:56:00.000-05:00

Christmas represents love and mercy. It was ushered in by the star of hope and remains forever consecrated by the sacrifice of the cross. Christmas holds its place in the hearts of men because they know that love is the greatest thing in the world. Christmas is celebrated in its true spirit only by those who make some sacrifice for the benefit of their fellow men.

Newspaper column, December 25, 1930

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T14:18:00.000-05:00

The little band of Pilgrims who first established this institution on the shore by Plymouth Rock had no doubts. If their little colony of devoted souls, when exiled to a foreign wilderness by persecution, cut in half by disease, surrounded by hostility and threatened with famine, could give thanks, how much more should this great nation, less deserving than the Pilgrims yet abounding in freedom, peace, security and plenty, now have the faith to return thanks to the author of all good and perfect gifts.

From "Calvin Coolidge Says", November 28, 1930.

Veteran's Day

2011-11-11T14:10:00.000-05:00

What the veterans gave cannot be measured in money. It was priceless.

From "Calvin Coolidge Says", January 28, 1931

Silent Cal

2011-11-10T14:24:00.000-05:00

A wise old owl lived in an oak.
The more he saw the less he spoke.
The less he spoke the more he heard;
Why can't we be like that old bird?

Over the fireplace in Coolidge's home at Northampton, Massachusetts

Past and Future

2011-10-15T14:04:00.000-04:00

We review the past not in order that we may return to it but that we find in what direction, straight and clear, it points to the future.

Address as vice president, Burlington, Vermont, June 12, 1923

Columbus Day

2011-10-10T14:21:00.000-04:00

Measured by its effect on all following history, the voyage of Columbus, ending in the discovery of a new hemisphere, was an achievement of the first magnitude. Possibly others preceded him, but he was the first who made known the existence of America to European civilization.

From "Calvin Coolidge Says", October 11, 1930

Election Day

2011-10-02T14:01:00.001-04:00

Elections are the most serious business in which our citizens engage. On their results depends not only the welfare of the people but the demonstration of their ability to govern themselves with safety and justice to each other. The greatest peace-time test of the moral power of a people is the ability to cast a disinterested, unselfish and patriotic vote. At the present time the country needs the most conscientious thought it can give in choosing officers. Only such decision is worthy of a free people.

from "Calvin Coolidge Says", September 29, 1930

Frank Ashford

2011-09-20T13:40:00.006-04:00

In 1927, President and Mrs. Coolidge had a busy summer in Rapid City, South Dakota, a part of the country unfamiliar to both of these Vermont natives. It was here that he received a Native-American warrior’s headdress now displayed at the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum (CCPLM). Coolidge was president in 1924 when citizenship was granted to all of the native population. A local Boy Scout troop presented him

with a cowboy outfit complete with hat and chaps. In early August, the president delivered his famous one line news release that startled the nation by saying, “I do not choose to run for president in 1928.”

Lesser known today is that Frank Clifford Ashford painted two portraits of President Coolidge and two portraits of Grace Coolidge that summer at the State Lodge in Custer State Park where they resided. Two of the artworks hang at the CCPLM, one of the president in the Native-American headdress and the other, a profile of the first lady in a red dress. The other two works remain hanging at the lodge where they were originally painted. In those, the couple is in more formal dress.

Ashford, born in Iowa, worked as a farm hand on his father’s farm in Rondell, Brown County, SD as late as 1900. During the next three decades, he worked as an artist in Paris and New York where he studied, exhibited and is known to have painted landscapes as well as portraits. In New York, he was a student of William Merritt Chase.

After Ashford’s works were exhibited in the Salon of the Societe des Artistes Francais in 1912, and both at the Chicago Art Institute and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art in 1913, he showed a painting titled "Marjorie" at the National Academy of Design in 1920. The latter may have been a portrait of his wife, Marjorie Rickel, whom he married in South Dakota in 1918 and divorced by the time of the US Census in 1930.

From 1930 until his death in 1960, he resided and worked primarily in South Dakota.

Congratulations to Class of 2011!

2011-05-16T19:25:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to the Class of 2011!

"This month will turn out into the world many thousands of young men and young women with college diplomas... They could not have been graduated without subjecting themselves to a great deal of severe mental discipline... One great of a college education is a better appreciation of the real values of life."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column June 6, 1931

The Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library & Museum employs work-study students from nearby Smith College. Congratulations to our graduates Veronica Tjioe who worked here 5 semesters and Beans Velocci who worked here 3 semesters! These amazing future historians, along with Sophie Glidden-Lyon '12 (who will return in the Fall for her 7th and final semester here) have been the behind the scenes magic that assist the one paid staff with research, creating exhibits, processing, re-housing, indexing, scanning, adding to the collections database and more!

Women's Suffrage

2010-08-26T15:33:00.003-04:00

Today marks the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote. Grace Coolidge cast her first vote in a Federal election on November 2, 1920 with her husband on the ballot for the Vice-President of the United States. In the photo above is Massachusetts Governor Calvin Coolidge and Grace voting in Northampton in 1920.

In 1930, Calvin Coolidge reflected on women's first decade of voting: "They are devoted, steadfast, sensible. They will not follow radical proposals, but will be influenced by moral values. Nothing can be safer for the commonwealth than the informed judgment of the mothers of the land."

Calvin Coolidge Says October 13, 1930

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-20T15:50:00.000-04:00

"I think only two or three fathers have seen their sons chosen to be President of the United States. I am sure I came to it largely by your bringing up and your example."

Letter to his father, John C. Coolidge, August 2, 1925

Happy Flag Day!

2010-06-19T15:09:00.001-04:00

"The stars and the red, white and blue colors have a significance of their own, but when combined and arranged into the flag of our nation they take on a new significance which no other form or color can convey... It represents our peace and security, our civil and political liberty, our freedom of religious worship, our family, our friends, our home. We see in it the great multitude of blessings, of rights and privileges, that make up our country.

But when we look at our flag and behold it emblazoned with all our rights we must remember that it is equally a symbol of our duties. Every glory that we associate with it is the result of duty done. A yearly contemplation of the meaning of our flag strengthens and purifies the national conscience."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column June 12, 1931

Northampton Republican Committee

2010-02-02T13:45:00.006-05:00

The Coolidge Museum will host the next meeting of the Northampton Republican Committee on March 10, 2010 at 7pm. The Committee will be introducing their constituents to Republican Tom Wesley, who is running for Congress.

For more information contact Coolidge@forbeslibrary.org.

VOTE!!

2010-01-18T13:40:00.000-05:00

January 19 is a special election in Massachusetts for the late Ted Kennedy's Senate seat. The nation is watching Massachusetts as the race heats up and is expected to be very close. Citizens have been flooded with robo calls, emails and television commercials, all strage concepts to Calvin Coolidge. As you debate your vote and head to the polls, remember the words of Coolidge "We have a tendency to be too indifferent before primaries and elections and too critical after. Public officers can and do exercise large influence over our daily life but the main course of events is in our own hands." From a November 4, 1930 newspaper column

Memorial tribute to Coolidge by Henry P. Field

2010-01-07T13:34:00.000-05:00

Calvin Coolidge studied law in the Office of Hammond & Field 1895-1897. Henry P. Field, lawyer, Mayor of Northampton, Judge, Forbes Library Trustee, was a great influence in Calvin's legal and political career. Upon Coolidge's death, The Daily Hampshire Gazette published this tribute to Coolidge from Field on January 7, 1933.

“This American nation and peoples beyond our borders and across the seas will mourn his departure, but here at home, his home and ours, his death comes as a grievous personal loss. We all knew his fine character, his kindness and consideration for others, his exceptional abilities, his genius for government, his strong common sense, his keen sense of humor. We all knew that he had the courage and perseverance of his Puritan ancestors and their firm and abiding faith. And we also knew how unpretentious he was, how eager to avoid all display. And yet this quiet, unostentatious friend and fellow citizen of ours retired from the Presidency the most highly esteemed and most popular man in all these United States, and in doing so he was passed from this world into a better one. He filled all his man public offices to the entire satisfaction of the people. They trusted him. They felt that in his hands their government was safe. His life has been of infinite value to this country and the nation knows the seriousness of its loss. But to us at home the loss is more intimate. In all the long history of this good city he was its most distinguished citizen, and here in his home town he made life better and finer for every one who came within his influence.”

Calvin Coolidge July 4, 1872-January 5, 1933

2010-01-05T13:31:00.000-05:00

John Calvin Coolidge
July 4, 1872-January 5, 1933

Calvin Coolidge died in his home, “The Beeches,” in Northampton on January 5, 1933 at the age of 60 of heart disease. Coolidge was at his office at 25 Main Street in the morning and returned home for lunch. He was found on the floor of his dressing room at 12:25 pm by his wife Grace after she had returned home from shopping in downtown Northampton.

His funeral was held in Northampton at the Edwards Church on January 7 officiated by Rev. Albert Penner. The Daily Hampshire Gazette on January 7, 1933 reported that a special train from Washington, D.C. arrived to Northampton at 10 a.m. with 45 mourners including President and Mrs. Hoover, Vice-President Curtis and Chief Justice Hughes and members of Congress, Cabinet and old political and personal friends. The Washington delegation returned by train at Noon. Immediately following the Northampton funeral, 9 cars led by a police motorcycle traveled to Plymouth, Vermont where the President was buried.

Support for Libraries

2009-12-01T14:34:00.003-05:00

There is nothing cozier than curling up in your favorite blanket with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate. When the cold weather persuades you to stay indoors, make sure you have your tools at the ready.

"...An individual may make progress without books, but the people as a whole are dependent on them. Where there is the most leisure and the least outside diversion the need for books and the benefits from them are greatest. Provision for...libraries would be a public service of the first importance."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column April 30, 1931

Forbes Library thanks you for your support.

"Mr. President!"

2009-11-26T16:00:00.001-05:00

"You have to stand everyday three or four hours for visitors. Nine-tenths of them want something they ought not to have. If you keep dead-still they will run down in three or four minutes. If you even cough or smile they will start up all over again."

Advice to President-elect Herbert Hoober in 1929; The Memoirs of Herbert Hoover: The Cabinet and the Presidency, 1920-1933, 1952

Can you imagine how President Obama is faring?

Coolidge Goes "Green"

2009-11-08T15:24:00.004-05:00

Today, everyone is interested in the environmental issues facing us in the 21st century. In 1920, Coolidge was already speaking about our country's level of resource consumption.

"Diminishing resources warn us of the necessity of conservation. The public domain is the property of the public. It is held in trust for present and future generations. The material resources of our contry are great, very great, but they are not inexhaustible."

Speech accepting the vice presidential nomination, Northampton, Massachusetts, July 27, 1920

A century ago, Mayor Cal showed his 'cool'

2009-11-03T13:42:00.001-05:00

A century ago, Mayor Cal showed his 'cool'
by Bob Flaherty
Daily Hampshire Gazette
November 3, 2009

VOTE!!!

2009-11-02T13:56:00.003-05:00

Tuesday November 3 is election day in Northampton!
For more information and a specimen ballot see http://www.northamptonma.gov/cityclerk/Elections/November_3_2009_Election_Candidates/

The Coolidge Museum has been asked, "what would Calvin do?"

The answer is a simple one. Calvin Coolidge would tell his constituents to get out and vote, to care about their government, and to exercise their duty as citizens. As you make your decision whether or not to go to the polls and then how to vote, remember the words of Calvin Coolidge, "We have a tendency to be too indifferent before primaries and elections and too critical after. Public officers can and do exercise large influence over our daily life but the main course of events is in our own hands." From a November 4, 1930 newspaper column

Coolidge on Columbus Day

2009-10-12T15:30:00.000-04:00

"...The glory of [Columbus'] exploit, great as it was, becomes almost unimportant when compared with its results. It marked the inception of the modern era. The minds of men were opened to new thoughts... The arts began to flourish... A new age appeared, great in captains, admirals, statesmen, poets and philosophers, and finally new nations dedicated to human freedom arose on this side of the Atlantic. These are partly the reasons why Christopher Columbus is entitled to be honored."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column October 11, 1930

Happy Columbus Day!

Happy Anniversary, Calvin and Grace!

2009-10-04T15:37:00.003-04:00

Today marks the 104th wedding anniversary of Calvin and Grace Coolidge. They were wed on October 4, 1905 in Burlington, Vermont.

"A man who has the companionship of a lovely and gracious woman enjoys the supreme blessing that life can give. And no citizen of the United States knows the truth of this statement more than I."

Calvin Coolidge's comment to friend, Bruce Barton, in 1926

Americanism

2009-09-26T15:20:00.001-04:00

"Whether one traces his Americanism back three centuries to the Mayflower, or three years to the steerage, is not half so important as whether his Americanism of today is real and genuine. No matter by what various crafts we came here, we are all now in the same boat."

Presidential address to the American Legion convention, Omaha, Nebraska, October 6, 1925

Happy Birthday John!

2009-09-07T11:38:00.003-04:00

Calvin and Grace Coolidge welcomed their first son into the world on September 7, 1906 at their home in Northampton, Massachusetts.

Calvin on the value of taking vacations

2009-08-05T14:52:00.000-04:00

"Because we have had a difficult year and have many problems to solve such person may think of foregoing any absence from business in the immediate future. The fact is the brains of the country need relaxation and refreshment More than ever this season. They owe a duty to themselves, their business and their associates to get more than the usual period of rest. The country will e further advances in October if July and August find many visitors at the shores and in the hills. Just now we need replenishment of body and soul that comes only in withdrawing from work and familiar scenes and seeking diversion in new activities and new surroundings. This year above most others the brain and the hand need to be replenished by rest."

From the syndicated column "Calvin Coolidge Says" from June 2, 1931.

Coolidge's Two Oaths of Office

2009-08-03T14:55:00.000-04:00

Calvin Coolidge taking the Oath of Office in Plymouth Notch, VT on August 3, 1923. This painting, on loan from Amherst College, is on display in the Coolidge Museum.

Did you know Coolidge took the Oath of Office twice in 1923?

August 2, 1923 at 7:30 PM PST, President Warren Harding died in San Francisco, CA while Vice-President Calvin Coolidge was vacationing at his father's home in Plymouth Notch, VT. At 2:47 AM EST on August 3, 1923, Coolidge took the Presidential Oath of Office administered by his father, a notary. It was later determined by U.S. Solicitor General James Beck that a state official could not swear in a federal official. Therefore, Coolidge took a second Presidential Oath of Office at the New Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C. administered by Chief Justice A.A. Hoehling.

VOTE!

2009-06-04T16:43:00.002-04:00

On Tuesday June 16, 2009, the citizens of Northampton have a Proposition 2 1/2 over ride vote to raise taxes for the FY10 budget.
For more information on the FY10 City budget and over ride, see http://http://www.northamptonma.gov/fy2010/
The Coolidge Museum has been asked, "what would Calvin do?"
The answer is a simple one. Calvin Coolidge would tell his constituents to get out and vote, to care about their government, and to exercise their duty as citizens. As you make your decision whether or not to go to the polls and then how to vote, remember the words of Calvin Coolidge, "We have a tendency to be too indifferent before primaries and elections and too critical after. Public officers can and do exercise large influence over our daily life but the main course of events is in our own hands." From a November 4, 1930 newspaper column

Interview with author Susan Well

2009-06-02T15:06:00.001-04:00

In the fall of 2005, Julie Bartlett, archivist at Forbes Library asked Coolidge Museum volunteer, Susan Well, to read through a housing file that was created in 1940 about where the President lived in Hampshire County, Massachusetts. Today on the eve of the publication of Well’s book, Calvin Coolidge: At Home in Northampton, the two women sat down to talk about how the project developed.

JB: Do you remember your first impressions of the file’s contents?

SW: Yes, it was clear that the material was compiled by Joseph Harrison, librarian of Forbes, from 1912 to 1950. The file contained fairly complete information on Coolidge’s early homes in the city as well as a list of his home and office addresses from the city directories beginning with the 1896/97 edition and ending with 1932.

Harrison started the file in 1940 when he and other local historians were puzzled. They knew that the City Directories showed Coolidge first living at 162 King Street with a shoemaker and his wife and then moving to Clarke School for the Deaf to room with its steward. A now well-respected biography was published that year, and its author said that Coolidge first lived at 63 Center Street and then moved to Clarke School. So first and foremost, Harrison was trying to find out if Coolidge lived on both King Street and Center Street, or if only one of the two, which one was it? Everyone, including Calvin and Grace, said that he lived with the steward at Clarke School.

JB: So you became a history detective. What did you find?

SW: One of the biggest surprises for me was that Coolidge was a bachelor for ten years. I think that’s a really long time to be single in Northampton. I concluded that he lived in all three homes between the fall of 1895 and October 1905 when he married Grace Goodhue.

JB: You just mentioned that Harrison’s research was good for the early homes. Was there information missing?

SW: For the Northampton homes, there was a two-page, double-spaced typed narrative that related conversations with the granddaughter of the shoemaker and a neighbor on Center Street. He mentioned two hotels - one that the Coolidges lived in for three weeks after their honeymoon and another that I was never able to fully confirm. There was information about the house they rented from a professor on sick leave for nine months, but little about Clarke School or Massasoit Street and does not mention The Beeches at all.

As for any missing information, I think Harrison would have been helped if he had consulted the 1895/96 City Directory and found Coolidge at 162 King Street. That fact coupled with the death of the shoemaker’s wife in June 1896 is strong evidence that it was the first of Coolidge’s city homes.

Calvin Coolige At Home in Northampton

2009-06-02T14:16:00.004-04:00

Calvin Coolidge At Home in Northampton, a new book by local historian and volunteer Susan Well, is now available. Using original material from the collections at the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum, Well presents the daily life and residences of Calvin Coolidge in Northampton, Massachusetts. Well uses new sources to document the unique and interesting personal life stories of Coolidge’s landlords and neighbors. Most of the Museum’s visitors ask where the former President lived, and now we have a definitive answer for them.

Susan Well will give an author talk and book signing at the Coolidge Museum Wednesday, June 17 at 7pm.

The book is for sale for $16 at the Forbes Library Circulation Desk or Coolidge Museum.

Online ordering is coming soon. Email Coolidge@forbeslibrary.org for an order form.

A 'Calvin Coolidge' Living Room Set

2009-03-17T22:45:00.003-04:00

Per the caption, it seems the designer of this 1928 set felt if it were named after President Coolidge the chances of winning the (unnamed) competition would increase. Wrong. The style is closer to mongrel Borax than L'Art Moderne and seventh place was at best, well, kind. With 20-20 hindsight it's easy to see why the first three years of American Modernism (1926-1929) was an abysmal failure both commercially and aesthetically. Image from 'A History of American Furniture' by Marta K. Sironen, Towse Publishing Company, 1936.

The Coolidges Return to Northampton

2009-03-04T08:00:00.000-05:00

March 4th 1929 Herbert Hoover was inaugurated as the 31st President and the Coolidges, after attending the inauguration, returned to their beloved Northampton. Grace Coolidge wrote that as she journeyed back to Northampton from Washington D.C. that "I suddenly realized that I had come back to myself, that my husband was no longer the head of our great nation, and that he and I were free to come and go and order our lives according to the dictates of out hearts, responsible only to ourselves for the outcome of out decisions. Gone were the men of the Secret Service, the aides, the valet, the maid, and we were homeward bound."

from Grace Coolidge: An Autobiography
Edited by Lawrence E. Wikander and Robert H. Ferrel

Happy Birthday Lincoln!

2009-02-12T14:00:00.003-05:00

Happy birthday to Abraham Lincoln! Today marks his 200th birthday. Over 70 years ago, Calvin Coolidge remarked on the character of our 16th president:

"He declared that right makes its own might and he dared to act accordingly. Not only because he was a leader of those who saved the Union, but because of the man himself, his humanity, his sincerity, his devotion, the whole nation joins in observing his birthday and the whole world looks on him as a friend."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column February 11, 1931

Perseverance

2009-01-29T14:19:00.002-05:00

The end of January approaches. How many of you are still working on those New Year's resolutions? If you haven't started, haven't yet chosen one, or have already given up, it's not too late to concentrate on them once more. For motivation, take Calvin Coolidge's words to heart:

"The great fact seems to be that when a man dedicates his whole soul to his work, when he fully determines to meet the responsibilities that he incurs, in his time of need some power outside himself directs his course and gives him the strength to prevail. To such men comes revelation. They do better than they know. Therein lies the hope of the world."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column July 10, 1930

Inauguration Day

2009-01-20T10:48:00.000-05:00

In honor of Inauguration Day, here are some words from a former President:

"Confidence in the President is almost identical with confidence in the country and in ourselves. With public support he can do a great deal to save any situation."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column July 17, 1930

Coolidge's 1925 Inaugural address

2009-01-20T10:44:00.003-05:00

Calvin Coolidge giving his March 4, 1925 Inaugural address

For text and audio of his speech see http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/calvincoolidgeinagurualspeech.htm

100th Anniversary of Coolidge as Mayor

2009-01-15T15:36:00.003-05:00

Calvin Coolidge was elected Mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts on December 7, 1909 beginning a continuous course of public service until he left the White House on March 4, 1929. The Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library & Museum is planning special events, programs and exhibits later this year to mark the 100th anniversary of his election as Mayor. Stayed tuned to this blog for more information in the coming months.

The Importance of Character

2009-01-04T13:55:00.003-05:00

If you're feeling low on cash after your holiday spending, remember that money is not everything:

"...Keep in mind that wealth is not an end but a means. We need it only for the use we can make of it. The real standard of life is not one of quantity but of quality; not of money, but of character."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column August 8, 1930

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T14:09:00.001-05:00

Need help choosing of a New Year's resolution? Think of Calvin Coolidge's words:

"We take a new inventory to see what we have, we take new bearings to see where we are, we correct our conduct by new resolutions. After all due allowance for error and relapse, such a course guarantees improvement. Perhaps the best resolve is to live so that next year new resolutions will be unnecessary."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column December 31, 1930

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T12:00:00.000-05:00

"Christmas represents love and mercy... Christmas holds its place in the hearts of men because they know that love is the greatest thing in the world. Christmas is celebrated in its true spirit only by those who make some sacrifice for the benefit of their fellow men."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column December 24, 1930

Holiday Cheer

2008-12-15T11:01:00.000-05:00

As the holidays approach, make sure to spread some holiday cheer!

"A surplus of avarice and hate has been produced when the nations needed more forbearance and generosity. The holidays are helping each of us to supply some of this universal demand."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column December 24, 1930

Favorite Calvin Coolidge Quotes

2008-12-10T13:38:00.001-05:00

"The main value of a wage earner is his mind."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column September 23, 1930

"Common sense is saving the day."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column February 27, 1930

"When people work together, nothing is impossible."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column March 3, 1931

"Every life needs more light."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column April 21, 1931

Coolidge's First Radio Address

2008-12-04T14:37:00.005-05:00

Calvin Coolidge's first address broadcast to the public on the radio was an address to Congress on December 6, 1923. Here is a New York Times article about the public reaction to hearing the President speak.

Calvin Coolidge on Good Health

2008-12-03T16:15:00.002-05:00

As the winter progresses, try to keep warm, cozy up, and stay healthy. Remember Calvin Coolidge's wise words on health:

"Because illness makes us a liability to ourselves, our family and our community, we all have a personal obligation to keep well. To neglect the health is one of the most wasteful things a person can do. It is a violation of a moral duty... If we would all think and try to live healthful lives we would greatly increase the power of the nation."

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column August 9, 1930

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T16:05:00.000-05:00

"On this day, in home and church, in family and in public gatherings, the whole nation has for generations paid the tribute due from grateful hearts for blessings bestowed."

From Calvin Coolidge's 1923 Thanksgiving Proclamation

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-20T16:29:00.005-05:00

Governor Calvin Coolidge along with wife Grace and sons Calvin and John raise the US and Massachusetts flags on the lawn of their Massasoit Street, Northampton, Mass. home on Thanksgiving Day, 1919.

Coolidge Museum video

2008-10-27T18:01:00.002-04:00

The Coolidge Museum is featured in the Springfield Republican newspaper's Favorite Places! There was a story on the front page of the October 27 local section and there is a 3 1/2 minute video on the newspaper's website, Mass Live.
The video features an introduction to the museum and highlights from its collection.
See http://videos.masslive.com/republican/2008/10/calvin_coolidge_presidential_l.html

Vote!

2008-09-16T09:28:00.003-04:00

Tuesday September 16 is primary day in Massachusetts.
As you get out and vote, remember these words of Calvin Coolidge:

"The Right to vote is the very essence of self-government. It is a privilege we are too prone to assume is self-existent, and therefore unimportant. It is the foundation of our liberties"

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" a syndicated newspaper column August 15, 1930

George Bean auction listing Coolidge estate sale 1936

2008-09-11T14:18:00.002-04:00

Summer 1926

2008-07-14T17:47:00.005-04:00

The Summer White House in 1926 was located at White Pine Camp in New York's Adirondack Mountains.

Here Calvin, Grace and dogs enjoy a walk.

Today White Pine is still a lakeside retreat and the President's cabins are available for rent:

http://www.whitepinecamp.com/

Happy Birthday Calvin!

2008-07-02T18:12:00.004-04:00

Happy 4th of July and Happy Birthday to Calvin Coolidge!

Fishing was a favorite Birthday activity of Calvin Coolidge!

While vacationing in the Black Hills, South Dakota area in 1927, Coolidge spent his 55th Birthday fishing (see photo at right).

In his Autobiography, when describing how his family celebrated holidays, Coolidge related that "the Fourth of July meant a great deal to me, because it was my birthday. The first one I can remember was when I was four years old. My father took me fishing in the meadow brook in the morning. I recall that I fell in the water, after which we had a heavy thundershower, so that we both came home very wet. Usually there was a picnic celebration on that day."

The Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge. NY: Cosmopolitan Books, 1929. p.28

2008-06-10T15:34:00.003-04:00

This sticker and slogan was used during the 1924 Presidential campaign.

This artifact is a great representation for the heat wave sweeping most of the nation this week. Today in Northampton, MA it is 97 degrees with over 50% humidity (feels like 101).

The Forbes Library's AC is running beautifully so if you don't have AC at home, it is a great time to come in and cool down while reading some Coolidge materials!

The changes in New England weather are hard for any HVAC system to keep up with and I am happy to report that the Coolidge collections are happily residing at about 68-70 degrees with just under 40% humidity.

Summer Exhibit in Plymouth Notch

2008-06-04T15:48:00.002-04:00

Check out the Summer Exhibit at Plymouth Notch, Vermont!
CCPLM has loaned a Northampton ballot box, 3 badges and 1 ticket from the 1924 convention and some reproduction photographs to this exhibit.

Campaign Fever '24! The 1924 presidential campaign is considered to be the first modern election; it is also one of the most unusual in American history. With little active participation on the part of the President, the Coolidge-Dawes ticket overwhelmed the competition and achieved the largest plurality until that time. This exhibition examines the "Keep Cool-idge" phenomenon and the competition's efforts to unseat this popular, but enigmatic Yankee politician. May 24 - October 19. Located at the Coolidge Visitor Center Museum, President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site, Plymouth Notch, VT. The exhibition features objects from the site's permanent collection, as well as rare campaign memorabilia and images from private and public collections including the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library & Museum.
For more information see http://www.historicvermont.org/coolidge/

Memorial Day Quote

2008-05-22T11:45:00.002-04:00

From "Calvin Coolidge Says" May 29, 1931

Decoration Day is our best solemn national holiday which ought to be observed with impressive ceremony. No lapse or diminution should be permitted in the yearly devotion which the people pay to the memory of those who have served in our armed forces.
As the ranks of the Grand Army of the Republic who established Memorial Day fade away, there is danger that its observance will be obscured in other more recent events. The principle involved must not be obscured. The day is sacred to the memory of all the dead who wore our uniform, from the earliest Indian wars to the present hour. In honoring their memory we are not glorifying war. We are a peaceful nation; our efforts led in securing the world treaty renouncing war as a national policy. But we honor their memory that we may glorify citizenship.
They were the antithesis of selfish individualism, merging freedom and even chance of life in the common welfare of country. In danger, choosing the course that really counts, they preserved their rights by discharging their duties. No nation can live which cannot command that kind of service. No people worthy of such service will fair to do it in reverence.

Photo of the week 5/3/08

2008-05-03T11:18:00.003-04:00

Calling all baseball fans!

As Governor and President, Calvin Coolidge often threw out the first pitch, however, it was First Lady Grace Coolidge that was the baseball fan in the family.

In this photo, Calvin Coolidge is shaking hands with a baseball player. It is labeled "Coolidge and the MVP." Do you know who this player is and when and where this photo was taken?

Photo of the week

2008-04-29T15:36:00.003-04:00

Calvin Coolidge with dogs Rob Roy and Tiny Tim on the porch of his home at 21 Massasoit Street in Northampton, Mass. Photo by Eric Stahlberg.

Quote of the week 4/24/08

2008-04-24T16:37:00.000-04:00

“In spite of all the other facilities books are the principal permanent repository of knowledge and culture.”

This quote is from the syndicated newspaper column “Calvin Coolidge Says” April 30, 1931.
In retirement, Coolidge wrote over 300 columns from 1930 to 1931. To read more of these, check your local library for the book Calvin Coolidge Says: Dispatches Written by Former President Coolidge and Syndicated to Newspapers in 1930-1931 with an introduction by Edward Connery Lathem and published by the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation in 1972.

Welcome

2008-04-24T16:17:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library & Museum blog!
The CCPLM is located at Forbes Library in Northampton, Massachusetts
Visit us on the web at http://www.forbeslibrary.org