President of the Day
Which president was the only one born on the Fourth of July?
- He was sworn in by his father.
- He went to the same elementary school as his mother.
- He was honored by President Ronald Reagan's placement of his portrait.
- He was nicknamed "Silent Cal."
Calvin Coolidge
Where and when was he born?
John Calvin Coolidge was born in Plymouth, Vermont, to John and Victoria Moor Coolidge on July 4, 1872. He is the only president in history to be born on the Fourth of July. He dropped the name John after graduating college.
How did Coolidge become president?
Coolidge became president because Warren G. Harding died in office in August 1923. His father, a notary public, swore in his son to the office of the presidency at nearly 3:00 on August 3, 1923.
What was his early education?
Calvin Coolidge attended an elementary school in Plymouth, Vermont. After elementary school, he entered Black River Academy in Ludlow, Vermont, the same school his mother had attended. Initially, he failed the entrance exam to Amherst College, so he enrolled at St. Johnsbury Academy in Ludlow, as preparation for college. He then entered Amherst and graduated in 1895.
Many years after Coolidge's death, which president honored Coolidge by putting his portrait in the White House?
President Ronald Reagan removed a portrait of President Harry Truman and replaced it with one of Calvin Coolidge. Reagan admired Coolidge's stance on reducing the size and involvement of the federal government in American's day-to-day lives and his policies favoring business and reducing taxes.
What was his next political position?
Coolidge captured the vice presidential nomination for the Republican Party on the first ballot. Warren G. Harding emerged as the presidential candidate. After Harding won the election, Coolidge served as vice president. At this election, the Democrats nominated James Cox as their presidential candidate and New York politician Franklin D. Roosevelt as their vice president. Roosevelt would go on to become the longest serving president in U.S. history. As vice president, Coolidge rarely intervened in Senate affairs, though he enjoyed presiding over them and listening to the debates. It was because of his hands-off approach that he earned the nickname "Silent Cal."
From The Handy Presidents Answer Book, Second Edition by David L. Hudson, Jr., JD., (c) Visible Ink Press(R) More than 1,600 things you never knew about our nation's leaders
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