By Rejoice E. Scherry, Site Administrator for the President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site.
“One chamber of the human heart is set aside for the love of animals,” said First Lady Grace Coolidge. The Coolidge family was famed for their adoration of animals, and the American People vied to gift them with pets. Cats and dogs hailed from all corners of the nation, and the first family was compelled to find loving homes for them among friends, family, and staff. “We always had more dogs that we could take care of,” stated President Coolidge.
The Coolidge’s White House pets became national celebrities due to their unique personalities. The press loved to report the antics. There was the raccoon who played with bars of soap in the bathtub, the cat who stalked the elevator to catch a ride, the dog that sipped a nightly coffee, another dog who wore straw bonnets to garden parties, and the bird that parroted the president’s fiscal conservatism. “What about the appropriation?” it shrieked.
“Coolidge pets could make a zoo of their own,” read a 1927 New York Times headline. It could be argued that the National Zoo was the Coolidge zoo, well-populated with gifts to President Coolidge – a bear from Mexico, wallaby from Australia, hippopotamus from Liberia, and lion cubs from South Africa, just to name a few. It should not have been a surprise when, in 1926, the National Zoo also began crying for appropriations.
The President Calvin Coolidge State Historic in Plymouth, Vermont, honors the legacy of the Coolidge pets by inviting dogs to the president’s hometown, today a 1920s village museum. While not permitted in the buildings, well-mannered, leashed dogs will always be welcome on museum grounds. Canine visitors may enjoy the fresh air of the Plymouth hills or a romp in the pond. Dogs may even join in outdoor events such as the annual July 4th procession through town, silent movie night, or the Folk and Blues Festival held each Labor Day weekend. However, please leave the bear, hippopotamus, racoon, and lions at the zoo. Visit historicsites.vermont.gov/calvin-coolidge for more information.
