By Rejoice Scherry, Site Administrator for the President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site
In the summer of 1923, the townspeople in the tiny hamlet of Plymouth Notch, Vermont welcomed their friend “Cal” home for a holiday. After long days haying his father’s fields, Cal found respite from the sun on the porch of the general store where townsfolk sipped Moxies and swapped stories. Together, they contemplated the future in terms of crop yields, never guessing at the changes ahead.
A year later, Plymouth Notch was unrecognizable. Cal was now greeted as “President Coolidge,” and the town was overrun with gawkers and press. A New York Times journalist counted 1,640 visitors on one August afternoon.
Ms. Cilley’s store was not so “general” anymore and predominately sold sandwiches, cigars, and souvenirs. The Aldrichs ran a tearoom from their parlor, serving 50 dinners a day. The community’s dance hall was not filled with rousing music, but the clacking telegraph and ringing telephone. It had become a Summer White House, the president’s temporary office.
Since the 1920s, Plymouth Notch has never ceased to be a tourist destination. Visitors in 2025 are no different than their predecessors of 100 years ago. They, too, come to this sedate village to “meet” Calvin Coolidge and understand how he grew from farm-boy roots to the American presidency.
Today, visitors are welcomed into a sprawling village museum hailed as one of the best-preserved presidential sites. A tour begins in the Coolidge Birthplace where the 30th U.S. President was raised until the age of four. It depicts a simple, traditional American Victorian-era home at the back of the general store run by the president’s parents, John and Victoria Coolidge.
Here, Calvin Coolidge first observed the importance of frugal living. The store yielded a set income, and the family had to live within those means. This early life lesson significantly impacted the future president who operated the federal budget in much the same way. President Coolidge successfully reduced the national debt from $5 billion to $3 billion.
Tracing the president’s life, visitors cross the street into the larger Coolidge Homestead, purchased with the fruits of the family’s hard work. Here, visitors explore the scene of a moment steeped in national and constitutional significance, the place where Vice President Coolidge received word that President Harding had suddenly died. Standing in the sitting room, at 2:47 a.m. on August 3, 1923, John Coolidge, in his capacity as notary public, administered the presidential oath of office to his son. It is the only moment in U.S. history when a father, occupying a lowly position, elevated his son into the highest national office.
Surrounding these key buildings are the church, schoolhouse, other homes, and barns that make up the Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site and complete the story of typical Vermont life from the late 19th century through the 1920s. The Coolidge site is open now until October 26, 2025, on Tuesdays through Sundays, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For information about admission and events, please visit historicsites.vermont.gov. Be one of the 25,000 visitors in 2025 to keep Plymouth Notch tourism alive.
