Calvin Coolidge, born John Calvin Coolidge, was the 30th president of the United States. Born on July 4, 1872, in Vermont, Coolidge grew up on the family farm and assisted his father in their family’s store.
After gaining acceptance into Amherst College in Massachusetts, Coolidge flourished academically & socially. After college, Coolidge read law in a law firm in Northampton, Massachusetts, passing the bar in the summer of 1897 and opening a law office. His commercial law practice steadily grew due to his reputed work ethic and dedication to his clients.
Early in his law career, Coolidge became actively involved in politics. He worked his way up the political ladder, winning elections for city council, City Solicitor, Clerk of Courts, Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and Lieutenant Governor. His steady rise saw him win the election as Governor of Massachusetts in 1918, where his handling of the Boston Police Strike gave him widespread recognition and calls for him to enter the 1920 Presidential Election.
Coolidge was nominated as Warren G. Harding’s running mate in the 1920 Presidential Election, which they won in a landslide. Coolidge became the first Vice President to attend cabinet meetings, gaining the important executive experience that would serve him well in the future. On August 3, 1923, while visiting his family home in Vermont, Coolidge received word of President Harding’s death the day before. His father, a justice of the peace, administered the oath of office by kerosene lamp at 2:47 AM. After taking the oath of office, Coolidge returned to bed for the night.
As President, Coolidge took more of a hands-off approach than his predecessors. Nicknamed “Silent Cal” for his quiet demeanor, Coolidge believed the words of a President carried tremendous weight and should not be spoken indiscriminately. He adopted a restrained approach to the Presidency, favoring minimal government and laissez-faire economics. His main priorities were to maintain the thriving economy, balance the budget, reduce taxes, cut the national debt, demonstrate fiscal restraint, and avoid entangled political alliances with foreign countries. He handily won re-election in 1924, with voters rewarding him for the peace and growing prosperity that defined the 1920’s.
Coolidge married Grace Goodhue, a teacher at the Clarke School for the Deaf, in 1905. Together, they had two sons: John and Calvin, Jr.
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