Calvin Coolidge

I

Introduction

Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933), 30th president of the United States (1923-1929). A member of the Republican Party, Coolidge became vice president in 1921 and then stepped in as president following the sudden death of President Warren G. Harding in August 1923. He was elected by a landslide in the 1924 presidential election.

Coolidge is remembered more for his solid character than his political achievements. His homespun personality captivated the nation, and to this day he remains a symbol of his era. One of his well-known quotes, “The chief business of America is business,” reflected his strong belief that the government should not interfere in the economy. Coolidge opposed federal government intervention or relief for workers and was equally against any measures that would interfere with business. Announcing in his 1924 inaugural address that the nation appeared to be “entering an era of prosperity,” he argued for lowering taxes and pointed out that “employment is plentiful, the rate of pay is high, and wage earners are in a state of contentment seldom before seen.” His years in office were a relatively affluent time for Americans and were not marked by much change or tumult. However, not long after Coolidge completed his second term in 1929 the Great Depression began in the United States, and soon the world plunged into economic collapse.

II

Early Life

John Calvin Coolidge was the only son of a Vermont storekeeper, John Calvin Coolidge, and his wife, Victoria Josephine Moor Coolidge. The boy was born on July 4, 1872, in the dwelling at the rear of his father's combined general store and post office in Plymouth Notch. After attending school at Plymouth Notch and Black River Academy in Ludlow, Vermont, Calvin in 1891 enrolled in Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. His favorite subjects at college were philosophy and oratory, although he was never to excel as a speaker.

Following his graduation from Amherst in 1895, Coolidge studied law in Northampton, Massachusetts, and was admitted to the practice of law in 1897. The following year he opened his own law office in Northampton, and maintained a practice there until 1919. He specialized in collecting debts for business houses, managing estates, handling real estate problems, and performing title work for banks.

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In 1905 Coolidge married Grace Anna Goodhue from Vermont, who taught at the Clarke Institute for the Deaf in Northampton. Vivacious, witty, and friendly, with a pleasant smile, she was the opposite of her quiet husband. They had two sons, John and Calvin, Jr. The latter died in 1924.

III

Early Political Career

Coolidge devoted as much time as his law practice would permit to Republican Party politics. In 1898 he was elected city councilman of Northampton. Although he lacked the public friendliness of a professional politician, he won elections. He formed the habit of visiting his constituents and simply saying, 'I want your vote. I need it. I shall appreciate it.' Some of his loyal supporters were politically influential and had confidence in his integrity and desire to give honest public service. Between 1900 and 1911 he served as city solicitor, clerk of courts, representative in the Massachusetts legislature, and mayor of Northampton. He then served as senator in the state legislature from 1912 to 1915 (its president from 1914) and as lieutenant governor from 1916 to 1918.

With his loyalty to the Republican Party, conservative principles, and hard work in his elected jobs, Coolidge attracted the attention of Massachusetts party leaders. Coolidge also received support, financial and political, from the wealthy Boston department store owner Frank W. Stearns. Stearns dedicated himself wholeheartedly to Coolidge's political career.

IV

Governor of Massachusetts

In 1918, through the efforts of Stearns and other party leaders, Coolidge was nominated as the Republican candidate for governor of Massachusetts. He defeated his Democratic opponent by less than 20,000 votes.

Governor Coolidge first became nationally known in 1919, when the Boston policemen went on strike. The underpaid policemen sought to raise their wages by forming a union. The police commissioner suspended 19 leaders of the unionization movement, and the police went out on strike on September 9. On the following day, with the city in disorder, Mayor Andrew Peters, a Democrat, called out the Boston companies of state troops. This action restored order, although the strike was not yet broken. Governor Coolidge, who had earlier declined to take action, brought in additional troops on the third day of the strike and asked for federal soldiers in case a general strike should occur. The policemen returned to work the following day. When Samuel Gompers, president of the American Federation of Labor, asked Coolidge to let the suspended policemen return to their jobs, Coolidge refused, saying, “There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, anytime.”

His statement was applauded throughout the nation. Many people began to think of him for the presidency, and his Massachusetts supporters tried to have him nominated at the Republican National Convention in 1920.

At the convention, however, Coolidge received only 34 votes for the presidential nomination, 28 of them from Massachusetts. The convention chose Senator Warren G. Harding, an Ohio conservative.

Senator Irvine Lenroot, a liberal from Wisconsin, was then put in nomination for vice president. But many delegates felt that Lenroot was too liberal and that a far-Western or Eastern candidate was needed to balance the national ticket geographically. Many delegates also resented being forced to take the choice of the party leaders for vice president after Harding had been forced upon them. When a delegate from Oregon nominated Coolidge for vice president, the delegates cheered. In the voting, Coolidge easily defeated Lenroot. The Democrats nominated James M. Cox for president and future President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945) for vice president.

A number of factors aided the Republican campaign. The nation was disillusioned about World War I (1914-1918) and President Woodrow Wilson's idealistic policies. Many believed the Republican Party was the “party of prosperity.” Harding's warm personality also helped the Republicans. In addition, the Democratic Party was disorganized and had no leadership from the ailing Woodrow Wilson. These elements combined to give Harding and Coolidge an overwhelming victory of 7 million votes over Cox. The vote in the Electoral College was 404 to 127.

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