30. Calvin Coolidge

by periodicpresidents

“Silent Cal”

Presidential Basics

  • Full name: John Calvin Coolidge
  • Years in office: 1923–1929
  • Political party: Republican
  • Vice president: None (term following Harding’s death); Charles G. Dawes (elected term)
  • Age at inauguration: 51
  • Nicknames: “Silent Cal”

Random Trivia

  • Silent Cal: Coolidge was well-known for being a man of few words.

Birth & Death

  • Birthday: July 4, 1872
  • Birthplace: Plymouth Notch, Vermont
  • Death: January 5, 1933
  • Place of death: Northampton, Massachusetts
  • Place of burial: Plymouth Notch Cemetery in Plymouth, Vermont
  • Last words: Unknown

Family

  • Father: John Calvin Coolidge (1845–1926); Storekeeper, farmer
  • Mother: Victoria Josephine Moor Coolidge (1846–1885)
  • Wife: Grace Anna Goodhue (1879 – 1957)
  • Marriage: October 4, 1905 in Vermont
  • Kids: Two 
    • John (1906–2000)
    • Calvin (1908–1924)
  • Home: Coolidge Homestead in Plymouth Notch, Vermont

Other Facts

  • Height: 5’10″
  • Eye color: Blue
  • Ancestry: English
  • Religion: Congregationalist
  • Born in a log cabin: No
  • Owned enslaved people: No
  • Freemason: No

Education

  • Early education: Plymouth District School; Black River Academy; St. Johnsbury Academy
  • College degree: Yes
  • College: Amherst College (graduated with B.A 1895)

Career

  • Military Service: No
  • Lawyer: Yes
  • Lawyer (1897–)
  • City Councilman, Northampton, Massachusetts (1899)
  • City Solicitor (1900–1901)
  • Clerk of the Courts (1904)
  • Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1907–1908)
  • Mayor of Northampton (1910–1911)
  • Member and President of Massachusetts Senate (1912–1915)
  • Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (1916–1918)
  • Governor of Massachusetts (1919–1920)
  • Vice President: Harding administration (1921–1923)
  • President (1923–1929)
  • Writer

Writings

  • The Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge

Election

Cool, calm, and collected, Calvin Coolidge finished the term of Warren G. Harding upon the president’s death.  Luckily for Silent Cal, The scandals of the Harding administration did not affect his nomination to the Republican ticket.

With a strong economy and peace in Europe, the incumbent Coolidge had a head start.  The Republican Party favored tariffs, lower taxes, and no farm subsidies. The Democratic candidate, lawyer John Davis, favored lowering the tariff, creating an income tax, and farm relief. Coolidge would win the election by a fairly large margin.

Campaign Poster

Keep Cool With Coolidge, cover of sheet music, published by T. J. Honaker, 1924 (Library of Congress)
Click to order your copy!

Links

© 2021 Periodic Presidents, PJ and Jamie Creek