|
 |
|
|
 |
|
Changing
exhibits at the Visitor Center offer an introduction
to the site and President Coolidge. |
(1)
THE CALVIN COOLIDGE VISITOR CENTER was built by
the State of Vermont for the centennial of President
Coolidge’s birth in 1972. The building's architectural
style is similar to early stone structures found in
the region. The Visitor Center contains a museum,
gift shop and restrooms. An introductory exhibit examines
Calvin Coolidge's career, and changing displays feature
gifts presented to the President from around the world.
(2)
THE WILDER HORSE BARN, reconstructed in 2003,
is a recreation of the original c.1875 barn that was
torn down in the mid 20th century. This accurate reconstruction
was possible because nearly every angle of the building
was photographed in the 1920s. Similar to the adjacent
main barn, this is a post and beam "bank barn".
Some of the site's collection of horse-drawn vehicles
are displayed on the main level; the lower level has
restrooms and a picnic area.
(3)
THE WILDER BARN was once part of the Moor-Wilder
Farm. Built c. 1875, it is a "bank barn"
- built into the side, or bank, of a slope so that
it could be easily entered on two levels. Typically,
hay was stored overhead, the dairy herd was on the
main floor, and the basement was for other livestock
and manure storage. The hand-hewn beams are pegged
together, and the exterior is clad with unpainted
vertical pine boards with narrow battens. The Wilder
Barn now exhibits an extensive collection of agricultural
equipment used on a typical hillside farm at the turn
of the 20th century.
(4)
THE WILDER HOUSE, originally a tavern built around
1830, was the childhood home of President Coolidge’s
mother, Victoria Josephine Moor. Victoria married
John Coolidge in the front sitting room in 1868. Her
sister and brother-in-law, Gratia and John Wilder,
lived in the house in later years. The building's
exterior is painted as it was in the 1920s with a
distinctive mustard-gold and green color scheme. The
interior was remodeled as a coffee shop in 1956. It
is now the site restaurant, serving breakfast and
lunch during the season.
|
|
 |
| The
Homestead is furnished exactly as it was when
Calvin Coolidge took the Oath of Office |
|
(5)
THE COOLIDGE HOMESTEAD was the boyhood home of
Calvin Coolidge. It was while vacationing here that
Vice President Coolidge received word of the unexpected
death of President Warren Harding. Colonel John Coolidge,
a notary public, administered the presidential oath
of office to his son at 2:47 a.m. on August 3, 1923.
Years later, an inquisitive visitor asked Colonel
Coolidge, “How did you know you could administer the
presidential oath to your own son?” The laconic Vermonter
replied, “I didn’t know that I couldn’t.”
The
Coolidges moved here in 1876 when Calvin was four
years old. Young Calvin’s regular chores included
filling the wood box and caring for the animals. Free
time was often spent at his grandparents’ gray farmhouse,
across the pasture behind the Homestead.
Colonel
Coolidge lived in this house until his death in 1926.
His housekeeper, Aurora Pierce, stayed on for another
30 years. Aurora never accepted the easy life of electricity
and “new fangled” plumbing, and so the house remained
much as it was in 1923. An addition built by the President
in 1931 was removed in 1956 when the President's son
and daughter-in-law, John and Florence, gave the house
and furnishings to the State of Vermont. The rooms
are furnished exactly as they were in 1923.
|
|
|
 |
|
The
Plymouth Cheese Factory was built by the President's
father and other local farmers. |
(6)
THE PLYMOUTH CHEESE FACTORY was built by
Colonel John Coolidge, James S. Brown and three other
local farmers in 1890. It served as a convenient outlet
for the milk produced on area farms. The operation
closed in 1934, but was reopened by the President’s
son, John, in 1960. The Vermont Division for Historic
Preservation purchased the factory from John Coolidge
in 1998. For the next several years the Division worked
closely with other state agencies and the Vermont
Cheese Council to bring the building “up to code”
while preserving its historic character.
Plymouth Artisan Cheese.
(7)
THE ONE-ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE, next to the Cheese Factory,
was built about 1890. It replaced the stone schoolhouse
that Calvin Coolidge attended until he graduated eighth
grade in 1885. Stones from the earlier school were
reused as the foundation for the present structure.
The building is now used for school programs at the
site and is not open to the public on a daily basis.
|
|
|
|
THE
PLYMOUTH CEMETERY
|
|
Beyond
the Brown House and across Route 100A (16 on
map), is the grave- site of President Coolidge.
Seven generations of Coolidges are buried here.
Established before 1800, this steep hillside
cemetery is under the care of the Plymouth Cemetery
Commissioners  who
are
elected at the annual Town Meeting.
The
serenity of the village and surrounding mountains
is
appropriately
reflected in the simple granite headstone that
marks the President’s grave. Visitors are sometimes
surprised that a president should be buried
in such plain surroundings, but when Coolidge
left the White House, he said, "We draw
our Presidents from the people...I came from
them. I wish to be one of them again."
|
(8)
THE AZRO JOHNSON FARM, a few hundred yards
beyond the Schoolhouse, is a fine stone farmhouse
built about 1845. It is typical of the “ashlar” stone
construction found in this area of Vermont. The mica
schist stone was taken from a small quarry southwest
of the house. (Not open to the public.)
(9)
THE COOLIDGE FARM SHOP, built c. 1870, served
as a farmer's workshop for the Coolidge Homestead
across the road. A 19th century Vermont hill farmer
required skills that we would now regard as many separate
crafts and professions; his workbench was the farm's
maintenance and repair center. The shop contains an
extensive collection of tools for woodworking and
blacksmithing. Also on display are the shop contents
of W.C. Landon & Co., a late 19th century carriage-
maker in Rutland, Vermont.
(10)
THE CARRIE BROWN COOLIDGE GARDEN, opposite the
Homestead, was started and maintained by the President’s
stepmother. Some of the perennial flowers are descended
from the original early 20thcentury plants, others
are representative of those found in gardens of the
period.
(11)
THE UNION CHRISTIAN CHURCH was built in 1840 and
dedicated as a Congregational Church in 1842. It is
in the Greek Revival style. The original iron thresholds
for the front doors were cast at Tyson Furnace in
the southern part of the town of Plymouth.
Strawberry
socials and baked bean suppers were held to raise
funds for building repairs in the 1890s. A local artisan,
Willie Pierce, redesigned the interior in the Carpenter
Gothic style. The hard pine for the woodwork was sawn
at a local mill. The interior offered perfect acoustics
for the new Estey pump organ, and the Church was rededicated
in 1900.
The
Church is owned by the Calvin
Coolidge Memorial Foundation. The Coolidge Foundation
is a private nonprofit membership organization with
offices in the basement of the Church. The Foundation
perpetuates the memory of President Coolidge through
educational programs and publications.
|
|
|
 |
|
Coolidge
was born in the house attached to the back of
the general store. |
(12a)
THE CALVIN COOLIDGE BIRTHPLACE
is attached to the General Store. Calvin Coolidge
was born in the downstairs bedroom on July 4, 1872.
He was the first child of John Calvin and Victoria
Josephine Moor Coolidge. His sister, Abigail, was
born in 1875. The family lived in this modest house
until 1876 when they moved across the road to what
is now called the Coolidge Homestead.
Unlike
the other buildings in Plymouth Notch, the Coolidge
Birthplace was extensively remodeled over the years.
The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation purchased
the building in 1968 and restored the Birthplace to
its 1872 appearance. The Coolidge family donated the
original furnishings.
(12b)
THE FLORENCE CILLEY GENERAL STORE
was built during the 1850s. John Coolidge, the President’s
father, became storekeeper in 1868. The rent was $40
a year, and by careful management profits averaged
$100 a month. Coolidge soon purchased the store and
entered into partnership with his wife’s brother in
1875. He sold his share of the business in 1877, but
owned the building until 1917. Florence Cilley, whose
name appears above the front door, operated the store
between 1917 and 1945. The small post office at the
front of the store served the town until 1976.
(12c)
COOLIDGE HALL, the large vaulted room above the
General Store, was used by the Grange for weekly dances
and family reunions well into the 20th century. It
became famous when it served as President Coolidge’s
Summer White House office in 1924. The hall has its
original furnishings including tables made especially
for the President and instruments of the "Plymouth
Old-Time Dance Orchestra."
|
|
|
 |
|
1924
Summer White House Office
Coolidge used the dance hall, located above the
general store,
as his presidential office in August 1924. |
(12d)
THE PLYMOUTH POST OFFICE, located in the former
carriage barn attached to the General Store, is an
operating United States Post Office.
(13)
THE ALDRICH HOUSE, currently the site’s office,
was the home of Carrie Brown, Calvin Coolidge’s schoolteacher
and later his stepmother. Later it was the home of
Plymouth’s first cheesemaker, Eugene Aldrich, and
his daughter Ruth, who was known to all as “Midge.”
For many years Midge operated a tea room in this house.
Built in the early 1800s, the house is a good example
of “continuous New England architecture.” Inclement
weather could be avoided by going directly from the
house to the barn. This building is open year-round
and has special winter exhibits.
(14)
THE TOP OF THE NOTCH CABINS provided Plymouth
tourists with modest, but comfortable accommodations.
Made in the Boston area, they were shipped "flat"
to Plymouth and assembled on the spot in 1927. “Midge”
Aldrich operated these cabins, a gift shop and tea
room called “Top of the Notch” for many years. The
middle cabin has original furnishings and is open
as an exhibit.
(15)
THE BROWN FAMILY FARMHOUSE, at the southern end
of the village, was built in 1869. This was one of
Plymouth’s outstanding farms, particularly under the
care of James S. Brown. In 1879 the farm’s production
included 4,000 pounds of butter, 400 bushels of buckwheat,
350 bushels of oats, and 80 tons of hay. The garden
area in front of the house, which is enclosed by the
white picket fence, is the location of an earlier
homestead of the Brown family. (Not open to the public.)
| HOURS |
Open daily, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
May 27 to October 15, 2006
The
site's office, located in the Aldrich House,
is open weekdays year-round and
has exhibits especially designed for winter
visitors
|
|
ADMISSION
|
Adults - $7.50
Children 6 to 14 - $2.00
Under 6 - free
Family pass - $20.00
Groups of 15 or more, $6.00 each (reservation
required)
802-
672-3773
Email: William.Jenney@state.vt.us
|
| NEARBY
AMENITIES |
|
|
| HOW
TO GET HERE |
|
Physical Address:
President
Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site
3780 Route 100A
Plymouth, VT 05056
From
points southeast or northeast:
Take I-91 Exit 8. Follow Rte 131 west 19 miles
to Ludlow. Go north on Rte 100 for 11 miles,
then right on Rte 100A. Plymouth Notch is approximately
1 mile north.
From
points southwest or northwest:
Take either US Rte 7 or US Rte 4 to Rutland.
Follow Rte 4 east for 23 miles until its junction
with Rte 100A. Plymouth Notch is 6 miles south
of U.S. 4 on VT 100A.
|
| HOW
TO CONTACT US |
Phone:
(802) 672-3773
Email: William.Jenney@state.vt.us
Or write: P.O. Box 257, Plymouth Notch, Vermont
05056 |
|
