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Saturday, July 8, 2017

For the Love of Cal

Walking past the Old Courthouse in Hamp on the 4th, I saw that someone had decorated Silent Cal with a flag and balloon.


Nice gesture by somebody, but poor Coolidge doesn't really get his due around here. As the only resident of the Pioneer Valley ever to be elected to the Presidency and the former Mayor of Northampton, you would think he would be more widely celebrated. Of course there are some things named in his honor, such as the theater that bears his first name located across the street from his statue.


There is also the Calvin Coolidge collection at Northampton's Forbes Library, although in recent years it is rarely open to the public.


Of course, nothing can compare with the glory of the Calvin Coolidge Bridge over the mighty Connecticut River.


Yet despite such honors, Coolidge doesn't get the credit he deserves as the most prestigious political figure in Pioneer Valley history. That is because Coolidge's beloved Republican Party is no longer dominant in Northampton, to say the least, and today's Valley leaders would instead prefer people to admire Massachusetts Democrats such as John Fitzgerald Kennedy. However, Kennedy is from the Boston area, not the Pioneer Valley like Coolidge, who is shown here with his wife in Northampton's Pulaski Park in 1929.


Oh well, once the Republicans take over Northampton, as I'm sure they will some day soon, new honors can be devised to enhance the memory of good ol' Cal. In the meantime, people are certainly enjoying the woodland way into downtown Northampton this time of year.


Here I am truckin' along the way wearing my new kicks.


Now just kick back and enjoy the weekend!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

The balloon and flag are from my mother, Louise (Lucey) Walton. Her grandfather, (my great-grandfather) was James Lucey, very close friend of Cal, and local Gothic Street cobbler. Being that Cal was the only president to ever be born on the 4th of July, she goes to the Northampton Courthouse every year to wish him a happy birthday and watch the beautiful naturalization ceremony as the new citizens take their oath. Just thought you'd like to know. Happy Independence Day!!