Official name	Hays, Kansas
Settlement type	City
Motto
Image seal
Map caption	Location of Hays in Kansas
Image map1	Detailed map of Hays, Kansas.gif
Mapsize1	250px
Map caption1	Detailed map of Hays
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision name
Subdivision type1	State
Subdivision name1
Subdivision type2	County
Subdivision name2	Ellis
Established title	Founded
Established date	1867
Established title1	Incorporated
Established date1	1885
Unit pref	Imperial
Area total km2	19.7
Area land km2	19.7
Area water km2	0.0
Area total sq mi	7.6
Area land sq mi	7.6
Area water sq mi	0.0
Population as of	2010
Population total	20510
Population density sq mi	auto
Timezone	Central (CST)
Utc offset	-6
Timezone dst	CDT
Utc offset dst	-5
Elevation footnotes
Elevation m	616
Elevation ft	2021
Coordinates display	inline,title
Coordinates type	region:US_type:city
Postal code type	ZIP codes
Postal code	67601, 67667
Area code	785
Blank name	FIPS code
Blank info	20-31100
Blank1 name	GNIS feature ID
Blank1 info	0475182
Website	www.HaysUSA.com
Footnotes	}}

Hays is a city in and the county seat of Ellis County, Kansas, United States. The largest city in northwestern Kansas, it is the economic and cultural center of the region. It is also a college town, home to Fort Hays State University. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 20,510.

History

In late 1866, anticipating the construction of the Kansas Pacific Railway as far west as Fort Hays, a party from St. Louis, Missouri led by one William Webb selected three sections of land for colonization near the fort. In June 1867, to better serve the railroad, the U.S. Army relocated Fort Hays to a site near where the railroad was to cross Big Creek, a tributary of the Smoky Hill River. Seeing a business opportunity, Buffalo Bill Cody and railroad contractor William Rose founded the settlement of Rome, Kansas near the fort's new location. Within a month, the population of Rome grew to over 2,000. Webb, meanwhile, established the Big Creek Land Company and then surveyed and platted a town site, which he named Hays City after the fort, roughly one mile east of Rome. The railroad reached Hays City soon thereafter and constructed a depot there. The railroad's arrival, combined with a cholera epidemic that hit Rome in the late summer of 1867, drove Rome businesses and residents to relocate to Hays City. Within a year, Rome was completely abandoned. As the western terminus of the railway, Hays City grew rapidly, serving as the supply point for territories to the west and southwest.

In its early years, Hays City was a violent frontier town characteristic of the American Old West. More than 30 homicides occurred in or near the town between 1867 and 1873, and it was the location of the original Boot Hill. Several notable figures of the Old West lived in Hays City at points, including George Custer and his wife Elizabeth, Calamity Jane, and Wild Bill Hickok who served a brief term as sheriff in 1869. Hays City became the county seat of Ellis County in 1870. By 1872, many of the rougher elements of the populace had left, mainly for Dodge City, and Hays City became more civilized. In 1885, the town was incorporated, and "City" was dropped from its name.

Volga Germans began settling the area in 1876, having found land suitable for the lifestyle and type of farming they had practiced in Russia. They brought with them Turkey Red Wheat, a type of winter wheat whose cultivation contributed to the agricultural transformation of the region. Bukovina Germans began settling in the area in 1886. These groups had a significant impact on the local way of life, establishing Hays as a regional center of ethnic German culture.

Fort Hays closed in 1889. In 1900, the Kansas delegation to the U.S. Congress secured the fort's land and facilities for educational purposes. The following year, the Kansas Legislature established the Fort Hays Experiment Station, part of Kansas State Agricultural College, on the Fort Hays reservation and set aside land for the Western Branch of Kansas State Normal School, which opened in 1902 and eventually became Fort Hays State University. Fort Hays opened as a museum in 1955 and was later acquired by the Kansas Historical Society. In 1967, it became the Fort Hays State Historic Site.

Several disasters have struck Hays over the course of its history. In 1895, fire destroyed 60 buildings downtown. Severe floods occurred in 1907 and 1951. In 1919, three Standard Oil gasoline tanks exploded, killing eight and injuring approximately 150 people. In 1935, the city experienced violent dust storms as part of the Dust Bowl.

Hays began to modernize in the early 1900s with a power plant, waterworks, telephone exchange, and sewer system complete by 1911. Over the following decades, the city evolved into a regional economic hub. Development of oil fields in the surrounding area began in 1936 with Hays serving as a trading center and shipping point. Hays Regional Airport opened in 1961. Interstate 70 reached Hays in 1966. Today, Hays is a commercial and educational center for western Kansas.

Geography

Hays is located at (38.879399, -99.322277) at an elevation of 2,021 feet (616 m). The city lies in the Smoky Hills region of the Great Plains approximately 11 miles (18 km) north of the Smoky Hill River and 15 miles (24 km) south of the Saline River. Hays is immediately north of the confluence of Big Creek and Chetolah Creek. Big Creek, a tributary of the Smoky Hill River, runs through the southwestern part of the city. Chetolah Creek flows south through the eastern part of the city. Located in northwestern Kansas at the intersection of Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 183, Hays is approximately 134 miles (216 km) northwest of Wichita, 256 miles (412 km) west of Kansas City, and 311 miles (500 km) east-southeast of Denver.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.6 square miles (19.7 km²), all of it land.

Climate

Hays sits near the climatic triple point between North America's humid subtropical climate (Köppen ''Cfa''), humid continental climate (Köppen ''Dfa''), and temperate semi-arid climate (Köppen ''BSk'') zones and has features of all three climates. It has hot summers with variable humidity and cool winters. The average temperature in Hays is 54 °F (12 °C), and the average relative humidity is 64%. Annually, Hays experiences extremes of heat and cold. Temperatures exceed 90 °F (32 °C) an average of 67 days a year and drop below 32 °F (0 °C) an average of 150 days a year. On average, Hays experiences 76 rainy days a year. Precipitation averages 22.7 inches (577 mm) per year, and snowfall averages 20.3 inches (516 mm) per year. Due to its geographic location at a climatic boundary, severe weather is common with tornadoes a major threat, especially in the spring and early summer months. On average, January is the coldest month, and July is both the hottest and wettest month. The hottest temperature recorded in Hays was 117 °F (47 °C) in 1934; the coldest temperature recorded was -26 °F (-32 °C) in 1905.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, there were 20,510 people, 8,698 households, 4,639 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,698.7 people per square mile (1,042/km²). There were 9,311 housing units at an average density of 1,225.1 per square mile (472.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.8% White, 1.8% Asian, 1.1% African American, 0.3% Native American, 2.1% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.7% of the population.

There were 8,698 households out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were married couples living together, 3.4% had a male householder with no wife present, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.7% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25, and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city, the population was spread out with 19.7% under the age of 18, 22.6% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males age 18 and over.

As of 2009, the median income for a household in the city was $39,970, and the median income for a family was $58,181. Males had a median income of $36,152 versus $30,102 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,314. About 6.9% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.7% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The service sector constitutes most of the local economy with education and health care being two major industries. Hays Medical Center, Fort Hays State University, and Hays Public Schools are the city's three largest employers. Other major employers include local government, telecommunications firms, retail stores, and social services providers. Hays also hosts some manufacturing. EnerSys, a producer of sealed lead batteries, operates a plant in the city as do Adronics, an auto parts maker, and Rans Designs, a manufacturer of aircraft and bicycles. Other local companies manufacture oil field supplies, HVAC systems, and wheelchairs.

Government

Hays is a city of the second class, according to state statute, with a commission-manager form of government which it adopted in 1919. The city commission consists of five commissioners elected at-large every two years. The commission meets on the second and fourth Thursday of each month. One commissioner serves as mayor, presiding over commission meetings and representing the city at ceremonial events. The city manager is hired by the commission and is responsible for advising the commission, enforcing its policies, administering city employees, and preparing a proposed city budget.

Education

Primary and secondary education

Hays Public Schools (USD 489) operates ten schools in Hays:

Lincoln Elementary School (Grades Pre-K-5)

O'Loughlin Elementary School (Pre-K-5)

Roosevelt Elementary School (Pre-K-5)

Washington Elementary School (Pre-K-5)

Woodrow Wilson Elementary School (Pre-K-5)

Felten Middle School (6-8)

Kennedy Middle School (6-8)

Hays High School (9-12)

Westside School, alternative school

The Learning Center, alternative school

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Salina oversees two Catholic schools in Hays: Holy Family Elementary School (Pre-K-6) and Thomas More Prep-Marian (9-12). There are also two other Christian schools in the city: Hays Seventh-Day Adventist School (K-8) and High Plains Christian School (Pre-K-8).

Colleges and universities

Fort Hays State University (FHSU) is located in Hays. A four-year public university with more than 11,000 students, it is the fourth largest university in Kansas. North Central Kansas Technical College, a two-year public college based in Beloit, Kansas, also has a campus in Hays. Immediately south of the city, Kansas State University operates its Agricultural Research Center—Hays, formerly the Fort Hays Experiment Station. The Center studies regional crop management and livestock production, and, for that purpose, its 7,810-acre campus includes a feedlot, a greenhouse complex, cropland, and rangeland as well as a preserved natural area.

Libraries

Hays Public Library, located downtown, is the city’s main library. Its collection consists of more than 145,000 volumes, and it circulates more than 1.1 million items annually. The Library first opened in 1900, expanding into a Carnegie library in 1911 which remained open until its replacement by a larger facility in 1968. That facility, in turn, has since been renovated and expanded further, re-opening in 2004. The library offers several services to the public, including computer classes, ESL and literacy tutoring, and programs for youth and children. FHSU’s Forsyth Library holds more than 225,000 volumes and serves as a federal depository library. In addition to government documents, its special collections include an archive of children’s literature and materials relating to regional history and culture.

Transportation

Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 40 run concurrently southeast-northwest immediately north of Hays. U.S. Route 183 runs north-south through Hays, intersecting I-70 immediately north of the city. A U.S. 183 bypass route runs around Hays to the west from U.S. 183 immediately south of the city to I-70 northwest of the city.

Greyhound Lines provides long-distance bus service with a stop in Hays.

Hays Regional Airport is located just southeast of the city. Used primarily for general aviation, it hosts one commercial airline with daily flights to Denver, Colorado.

The Kansas Pacific (KP) Line of the Union Pacific Railroad runs southeast-northwest through downtown Hays in the southern part of the city.

Media

Print

Newspapers ''The Hays Daily News'', daily ''The University Leader'', weekly, the Fort Hays State University student newspaper

Radio

The following radio stations are licensed to and/or broadcast from Hays:

AM

KAYS (AM) Hays, Kansas

+ align=bottom		Frequency	Callsign	Format	City of License	Notes
1400	KAYS||	Variety (US radio)>Variety

FM

KVDM Hays, KansasKJIL KPRD Hays, Kansas KHYSHigh Plains Public Radio [[KFIXKCCC-LP Hays, Kansas KHAZ Hays, Kansas KKQY KJLS Hays, KansasKCCV-FMKRMR Hays, Kansas

+ align=bottom		Frequency	Callsign	Format	City of License	Notes
88.1	|	Christian radio>Religious
88.5	K203FB||	Christian CHR>Christian Contemporary	Hays, Kansas	Translator of KJIL, Meade, Kansas
88.9	|	Christian radio>Religious
89.7	|	Christian radio>Religious	Hays, Kansas	American Family Radio>AFR
91.7	KZAN||	Public_radio#Radio>Public	Hays, Kansas	National Public Radio
96.9	|	Classic rock	Plainville, Kansas	Broadcasts from Hays
98.5	|	Christian CHR>Christian Contemporary
99.5	|	Country music>Country
101.9	|	Country music>Country	Hill City, Kansas	Broadcasts from Hays
103.3	|	Hot_Adult_Contemporary#Hot_adult_contemporary>Hot Adult Contemporary
103.9	K227AS||	Christian radio>Religious	Hays, Kansas	Translator of KCCV-FM, Olathe, Kansas
105.7	|	Talk radio>Talk

Television

Hays is in the Wichita-Hutchinson, Kansas television market. The following television stations are licensed to and/or broadcast from Hays: 7.1

+ align=bottom		Digital Channel	Digital Subchannel	Analog Channel	Callsign	Network	City of License	Notes
rowspan=4 align=center		rowspan=4
rowspan=4	rowspan=1 |PBS (SD)
9.2	Public Broadcasting Service
9.3
9.4	[[PBS World
- |

Culture

Arts and music

An established arts community supports several galleries in the city. The Hays Arts Council operates the Hays Arts Center Gallery which displays the work of Kansas artists and sponsors exhibitions and competitions throughout the year. FHSU’s Moss-Thorns Gallery of Art, affiliated with the university’s Art Department, displays student and faculty works as well as traveling exhibits. In addition, a number of local artists manage their own galleries around the city.

The Hays Symphony Orchestra, established in 1914, is an ensemble of university, regional, and community musicians which performs in FHSU’s Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center. The center also hosts the university’s ongoing performing arts series which consists of dramatic and musical performances throughout the year.

Events

Hays is a regional center of German American culture due to the number of German immigrants who settled the area in the 1870s and 1880s. As of 2008, roughly 57% of the city population claimed German ancestry. The city hosts several events throughout the year which celebrate this heritage including two Oktoberfests. The Midwest Deutsche Oktoberfest takes place the third week of September. Fort Hays State University and The Volga German Society hold an Oktoberfest celebration on the first or second Friday in October. In addition, Polka Fest occurs in March, and the Ellis County Historical Museum hosts German Heritage Days in April.

To celebrate Independence Day and to mark its early history as an Old West frontier town, the city hosts the annual Wild West Festival during the first week of July.

Points of interest

There are several museums and sites in Hays dedicated to aspects of area history. FHSU’s Sternberg Museum of Natural History features extensive collections and exhibits of fossil specimens, including an interactive diorama of life in the region during the Cretaceous period. Affiliated with the university’s Departments of Geosciences and Biology, the museum also hosts educational programs on fossil preparation and ongoing scientific research. The Ellis County Historical Society Museum, located downtown, maintains exhibits of artifacts from the area’s Old West period through its settlement by Volga and Bukovina Germans. Included in the museum complex are the Volga German Haus, a reproduction of an early Volga German settler home, and a stone chapel constructed in 1879. Southwest of Hays, the Kansas Historical Society maintains the Fort Hays State Historic Site. It consists of four of the fort’s original structures and a visitor’s center. Other sites related to the area’s frontier period include Boot Hill, the city’s earliest cemetery, and a historical marker at the site of the ill-fated town of Rome.

Religion

There are 27 Christian churches in Hays, the majority of which are Protestant. That number also includes three Catholic churches, a Jehovah's Witnesses congregation, and a LDS Church meetinghouse. Hays is also home to a Baha'i community.

Sports

Fort Hays State University's athletic teams, known as the Fort Hays Tigers, compete in several sports in the NCAA Division II MIAA conference.

Hays is also home to the Hays Larks, a collegiate summer baseball team in the Jayhawk Collegiate League of the National Baseball Congress. The team dates back to 1869 when local residents founded it as The Hays Town Team.

Notable people

Several Old West figures lived in Hays during its period as a frontier outpost, including Calamity Jane, Buffalo Bill Cody, General George Custer and his wife Elizabeth, and gunfighters Wild Bill Hickok and Clay Allison.

Other notable natives and residents of Hays include: John L. Allen, Jr., journalist Philip Anschutz, billionaire businessman Rob Beckley, Christian rock singer Robert Bogue, actor Chief Hogsett, Major League Baseball pitcher Melissa McDermott, news anchor Jerry Moran, U.S. Senator from Kansas Kathryn O'Loughlin McCarthy, U.S. Representative from Kansas Elizabeth Polly, the so-called "Blue Light Lady" Willard Schmidt, Major League Baseball pitcher Rebecca Staab, actress Frances Tilton Weaver, feminist legal pioneer

Sister cities

Hays has 3 sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International: {| | valign="top" | Neustadt an der Waldnaab, Germany Santa Maria, Paraguay Xinzheng, China |}

See also

Great Flood of 1951

References

Further reading

''History of the State of Kansas''; William G. Cutler; A.T. Andreas Publisher; 1883. (Online HTML eBook)

''Kansas : A Cyclopedia of State History, Embracing Events, Institutions, Industries, Counties, Cities, Towns, Prominent Persons, Etc''; 3 Volumes; Frank W. Blackmar; Standard Publishing Co; 944 / 955 / 824 pages; 1912. (Volume1 - Download 54MB PDF eBook),(Volume2 - Download 53MB PDF eBook), (Volume3 - Download 33MB PDF eBook)

External links

City of Hays, including a summary of the town's history

Official Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau

Hays Chamber of Commerce

Hays Daily News, local newspaper

Category:Cities in Kansas Category:County seats in Kansas Category:Populated places in Ellis County, Kansas Category:Populated places established in 1867 Category:Micropolitan areas of Kansas

ca:Hays (Kansas) es:Hays (Kansas) fr:Hays (Kansas) io:Hays, Kansas ht:Hays, Kansas mr:हेस, कॅन्सस nl:Hays (Kansas) ja:ヘイズ (カンザス州) no:Hays (Kansas) pl:Hays (Kansas) pt:Hays (Kansas) sv:Hays vo:Hays (Kansas)

Name	Warren Harding
Office	29th President of the United States
Vicepresident	Calvin Coolidge
Term start	March 4, 1921
Term end	August 2, 1923
Predecessor	Woodrow Wilson
Successor	Calvin Coolidge
Jr/sr2	United States Senator
State2	Ohio
Term start2	March 4, 1915
Term end2	January 13, 1921
Predecessor2	Theodore Burton
Successor2	Frank Willis
Office3	28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio
Governor3	Myron Herrick
Term start3	January 11, 1904
Term end3	January 8, 1906
Predecessor3	Harry Gordon
Successor3	Andrew Harris
Birth date	November 02, 1865
Birth place	Blooming Grove, Ohio, U.S.
Death date	August 02, 1923
Death place	San Francisco, California, U.S.
Party	Republican Party
Spouse	Florence Kling
Children	Marshall (Step)
Alma mater	Ohio Central College
Profession	Journalist
Religion	Baptist
Signature	Warren G Harding Signature2.svg
Signature alt	Cursive signature in ink }}

Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th President of the United States (1921–23). A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate (1899–1903), as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio (1903–05) and as a U.S. Senator (1915–21). He was also the first incumbent United States Senator and the first newspaper publisher to be elected President.

His conservativism, affable manner, and "make no enemies" campaign strategy made Harding the compromise choice at the 1920 Republican National Convention. During his presidential campaign, in the aftermath of World War I, he promised a return of the nation to "normalcy". This "America first" campaign encouraged industrialization and a strong economy independent of foreign influence. Harding departed from the progressive movement that had dominated Congress since President Theodore Roosevelt. In the 1920 election, he and his running mate, Calvin Coolidge, defeated Democrat and fellow Ohioan James M. Cox, in the largest presidential popular vote landslide in American history (60.36% to 34.19%) since first recorded in 1824.

President Harding rewarded friends and political contributors, referred to as the Ohio Gang, with financially powerful positions. Scandals and corruption eventually pervaded his administration; one of his own cabinet and several of his appointees were eventually tried, convicted, and sent to prison for bribery or defrauding the federal government. Harding did however make some notably positive appointments to his cabinet.

In foreign affairs, Harding spurned the League of Nations, and signed a separate peace treaty with Germany and Austria, formally ending World War I. He also strongly promoted world Naval disarmament at the 1921–22 Washington Naval Conference, and urged U.S. participation in a proposed International Court. Domestically, Harding signed the first child welfare program in the United States and dealt with striking workers in the mining and railroad industries. Also, the Veterans Bureau was cleaned up by Harding in March, 1923. The nation's unemployment rate dropped by half during Harding's administration. In August 1923, President Harding suddenly collapsed and died during a stop in California on a return trip from Alaska. He was succeeded by Vice President, Calvin Coolidge.

Polls of historians and scholars have consistently ranked Harding as one of the worst Presidents. His presidency has been evaluated in terms of presidential record and accomplishments in addition to the administration scandals. The most recent Presidential rankings have had various low results for President Harding. However, in 1998, political historian Carl S. Anthony stated Harding was a "modern figure" who embraced technology and culture; sensitive to the plights of minorities, women, and labor. President Harding contended with racial problems on a national level, rather than sectional, and advocated openly African American political, educational, and economic equality while in the Solid South.

Early life

Childhood and education

Warren Gamaliel Harding was born November 2, 1865, in Blooming Grove, Ohio. His paternal ancestors, mostly ardent Baptists, hailed from Clifford, Pennsylvania and had migrated to Ohio in 1820. Nicknamed "Winnie", he was the eldest of eight children born to Dr. George Tryon Harding, Sr. (1843–1928) and Phoebe Elizabeth (Dickerson) Harding (1843–1910). His mother, a devout Methodist, was a midwife who later obtained her medical license. His father, never quite content with his current job or possessions, was forever swapping for something better, and was usually in debt; he owned a farm, taught at a rural school north of Mount Gilead, Ohio and also acquired a medical degree and started a small practice. It was rumored in Blooming Grove that one of Harding's great-grandmothers may have been African American. Harding's great-great grandfather Amos claimed the rumor was started, as an attempted extortion, by a thief caught in the act by the family. Eventually, Harding's family moved to Caledonia, Ohio, where his father then acquired ''The Argus'', a local weekly newspaper. It was at ''The Argus'' where, from the age of 10, Harding learned the basics of the journalism business. In 1878, his brother Charles and sister Persilla died, presumably from typhoid.

Harding continued to study the printing and newspaper trade as a college student at Ohio Central College in Iberia, during which time he also worked at the ''Union Register'' in Mount Gilead. In college Harding became an accomplished public speaker and graduated in 1882 with a Bachelor of Science degree at the age of 17. As a youngster Harding had become an accomplished cornet player and played in various bands. In 1884, Harding gained popular recognition in Marion, when his ''Citizens' Cornet Band'' won the third place $200 prize at the highly competitive Ohio State Band Festival in Findlay. The prize money paid for the band's snappy dress uniforms Harding had bought on credit.

Career in journalism and marriage

Upon graduating, he had stints as a teacher and insurance man, and made a brief attempt at reading the law. He then raised $300, in partnership with others, for the purchase of the failing ''Marion Daily Star'', the weakest of the growing city's three newspapers; Harding was complete owner of the ''Star'' by 1886. Harding revamped the paper's editorial platform to support the Republican Party, and enjoyed a moderate degree of success. He became an ardent supporter of Governor "Fire Alarm Joe" Foraker; however, his political stance put him at odds with those who controlled local politics in Marion. When Harding moved to unseat the ''Marion Independent'' as the official daily paper, he was met with strong resistance from local figures, such as Amos Hall Kling, one of Marion's wealthiest real estate speculators. The editorial battle with the ''Independent'' became so heated that, at the inevitable mention of Harding's questionable bloodline, father and son proceeded, with shotgun in hand, to demand, and get, a retraction. While Harding won the war of words and made the ''Marion Daily Star'' one of the most popular newspapers in the county, the battle took a toll on his health. In 1889, at age 24, he suffered from exhaustion and nervous fatigue. He spent several weeks at the Battle Creek Sanitarium to regain his strength, ultimately making five visits over 14 years. Harding later returned to Marion to continue operating the paper. He spent his days promoting the community on the editorial pages, and his evenings "bloviating" (a word which Harding frequently used, referring to longwinded, pompous political speech) with his friends over games of poker. In 1893, the ''Star'' supplanted the ''Independent'' as the official paper for Marion's governmental notices, after Harding exposed the rival paper for overcharging the city. In 1896, the ''Independent'' ceased doing business and Amos Kling wasted no time in financing and launching another rival paper, the ''Republican Transcript'', in a failed attempt to derail his future son-in-law. Harding also made political speeches on the Chautauqua circuit and expressed admiration for his ideal American patron, Alexander Hamilton.

In 1900, a political opponent, J.F. McNeal, with the help of Amos Kling, secretly bought up $20,000 in loans owed by Harding, and immediately called them due in full. Harding just barely succeeded in securing the funds to pay off the debt in order to save the ''Star''. In the last year of his Presidency, anticipating no resumption of his journalism career following his years in the White House, Harding sold the ''Star'' to Louis H. Brush and Roy D. Moore for $550,000.

On July 8, 1891, Harding married Florence Kling DeWolfe, the daughter of his nemesis (and hers as well), Amos Hall Kling. Florence Kling DeWolfe was a divorcée, five years Harding's senior, and the mother of a young son, Marshall Eugene DeWolfe. "Flossie's" first, and compulsory, marriage, to an alcoholic, had been soundly condemned by her father, to the point of her disownment. Her mother remained loyal and provided support nevertheless. She pursued Harding persistently, until he reluctantly proposed. On his part, according to noted biographer Russell, true love was missing, but the prospect of social acceptance, and standing, was the compelling reason for his proposal. Florence's father was incensed by his daughter's decision to marry Harding, prohibited his wife from attending the wedding (she sneaked in long enough to see the vows exchanged) and refused to speak to his daughter or son-in-law for eight years. Her mother continued to provide support on the sly.

The couple were complementary, with Harding's affable personality balancing his wife's no-nonsense approach to life. Florence Harding, exhibiting her father's determination and business sense, turned the ''Marion Daily Star'' into a profitable business in her management of the circulation. She has been credited with helping Harding achieve more than he might have alone; some have speculated that she later pushed him all the way to the White House. Early in their marriage, Harding bestowed on her the lasting nickname "Duchess" as a nod to the imperious (and often alienating) persona she shared with her father. When his newspaper business attained sufficient strength, and even dominance, in Marion, Harding and his wife traveled widely throughout the country, which broadened Harding's exposure at political gatherings. Biographer Andrew Sinclair asserts that, like many contemporaries during the days of Ohio Republican Party boss Mark Hanna, Harding was involved with graft and excessive patronage. Harding allegedly arranged free public transit passes for his family in return for favorable coverage in his newspaper. Shortly after this victory, there was a fortuitous meeting with Ohio Republican party leader and McKinley ally, Harry M. Daugherty, who commented about him, "Gee, what a great looking President he'd make."; Daugherty later assumed the primary role in Harding's political career. Harding, as a Republican state senator, was a partisan regular and did favors for political bosses Mark Hanna and Harry M. Daugherty. Harding's only notable reform effort in his first term (Ohio state offices had terms of two years) was a progressive bill to revamp the municipal code, which passed the Senate but was halted by a single member's procedural call to "reconsider". As asserted by Sinclair, Harding, against his own conscience, signed a municipal bill that protected Republican party patronage and graft. In early 1903 Harding announced his campaign for Governor of Ohio, which was soon thwarted by an intra-party alliance that assured the election of fellow Republican Myron T. Herrick; Harding was awarded the position of Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, a post he occupied from 1904 to 1906. In short order, a number of ill-advised decisions by Gov. Herrick damaged his popularity. Harding saw an opening as the 1906 election approached, and announced his candidacy for Governor again. Nevertheless, the party bosses stuck by Herrick, and Harding took his name out of the running for any position on the ticket, which was defeated by the Democrats.

While Harding was dwindling politically, there were developments on the personal and business front. In 1907, Amos Kling married his second wife and soon after began an effort at rapprochement with daughter and son-in-law. As a result, the Klings and the Hardings took a cruise to Europe together. Not long after their return, Harding reorganized his newspaper business into the Harding Publishing Co., issued stock in the company, took two-thirds for himself and allowed his employees to purchase the rest; this was the first profit sharing arrangement of its kind in Ohio.

Harding sought the 1909 gubernatorial nomination of the GOP, which was deeply divided between progressive and conservative wings of the party, but could not defeat the united Democrats; he lost the election to incumbent Judson Harmon. Harding took his first election loss in stride, saying "...I have lost nothing which I ever had except a few dollars which I can make again, a few pounds of flesh which I can grow again, a few false friends of whom I am well rid, and an ambition which simply fettered my freedom and did not make for happiness."

U.S. Senator

In 1912, Harding gave the nominating speech for incumbent President William Howard Taft, who would later serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court during Harding's administration, at the embattled Republican National Convention in Chicago – before he completed his introduction, a fist fight ensued between the Taft supporters and the more progressive Roosevelt faction, but the speech was quite a personal success. By 1914 the Republican Party was beginning to show signs of reunification, with the result that support weakened for Ohio's U.S. Senator Theodore Burton, who then decided not to stand for re-election. When prompted, Harding agreed to run for Burton's seat against his mentor, "Fire Engine" Joe Foraker, in the Republican primary, and he emerged victorious. Henry Daugherty at this point was on a first name basis with Harding and supported his campaign. Harding's general election opponent, Timothy Hogan, fell victim to fervid anti-Catholic sentiment (which Harding did not voice) and Harding was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming Ohio's first senator elected by popular vote. The election came on the heels of the outbreak of World War I – an issue Harding downplayed due to the significant German immigrant population in his district. He was staunchly opposed to government ownership of business. In startling form, he once spoke in support of a strong executive, at least in war time, saying about President Wilson, "He is already... our partial dictator. Why not make him complete and supreme dictator?" He joined with 39 other senators in opposition to Wilson's proposed League of Nations. Harding took on a personal secretary in the Senate, George B. Christian, Jr., a former neighbor, who protected him from political patrons and intrusive inquiries, and served until the future president's death. Harding introduced 134 bills, but substantively his six year record as Senator was unremarkable; his attendance was inconsistent, he spoke minimally on the floor of the Senate and offered no major bill or debate. Harding was not even present for the vote on the women's suffrage amendment, though he "paired" his vote with another member, in effect supporting it. He was, nevertheless, most popular, and acquired many very close friends in the chamber. This popularity led to his serving as Chairman of the 1916 Republican Convention as well as Keynote Speaker.

Presidential election of 1920

Republican nomination

In 1918, when Theodore Roosevelt was entertaining plans (later abandoned) to reprise his presidency, he considered Harding had strong potential to run and serve as Vice President, and discussed with Harry Daugherty the desirability of having Harding on his ticket. In 1919, the first candidate to declare for the GOP nomination was General Leonard Wood. The GOP bosses were nevertheless determined to have a dependable listener, and were lukewarm toward the General. Some in the party began to scout for such an alternative, and Harding's name arose, despite his reluctance, due to his very unique ability to draw vital Ohio votes. Also at the forefront of a throng of candidates for the nomination were Hiram Johnson, Frank Lowden and Herbert Hoover. Harry Daugherty, who became Harding's campaign manager, and who was sure none of these candidates could garner a majority, convinced Harding to run after a marathon discussion of six-plus hours. Daugherty's campaign style was variously described as pugnacious, devious and no holds barred. For example, shortly before the GOP convention, Daugherty struck a deal with millionaire and political opportunist Jake Harmon, whereby 18 Oklahoma delegates whose votes Harmon had bought for Lowden were committed to Harding as a second choice if Lowden's effort faltered.

Harding's supporters thought of him as the next McKinley. By the time the convention began, a Senate sub-committee had tallied the monies spent by the various candidates, with totals as follows: Wood – $1.8 million; Lowden – $414,000; Johnson – $194,000; and Harding – $114,000; the committed delegate count at the opening gavel was: Wood – 124; Johnson – 112; Lowden – 72; Harding – 39. Still, at the opening, less than ½ of the delegates were committed. No candidate was able to corral a majority after nine ballots. Republican Senators and other leaders, who were divided without a singular political boss, met in Room 404 of the Blackstone Hotel in Chicago and after a nightlong session, tentatively concluded Harding was the best possible compromise candidate. According to Francis Russell, though additional meetings took place, this particular meeting came to be known as the "smoke filled room". Before receiving the formal nod, Harding was summoned by George Harvey, told he was considered to be the consensus nominee, and asked if he knew, "before God", whether there was anything in his life which would be an impediment. After mulling the question over for some minutes, he replied no, despite alleged adulterous affairs. The next day, when Harding was nominated on the tenth ballot, Mrs. Harding was so startled, she inadvertently stabbed Harry Daugherty in the side with her hat pins. The local Masons could not resist the opportunity to co-opt Harding's new notoriety, and promoted him to the Sublime Degree of a Master Mason.

General election

In the 1920 election, Harding ran against Democratic Ohio Governor James M. Cox, whose running-mate was Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt. The election was seen in part as a rejection of the "progressive" ideology of the Woodrow Wilson Administration in favor of the "laissez-faire" approach of the William McKinley era.

Harding ran on a promise to "Return to Normalcy", a seldom-used term he popularized, and healing for the nation after World War I. The policy called for an end to the abnormal era of the Great War, along with a call to reflect three trends of the time: a renewed isolationism in reaction to the War, a resurgence of nativism, and a turning away from government activism.

On July 28, 1920, Harding's general election campaign manager, Albert Lasker, unleashed a broad-based advertising campaign that implemented modern advertising techniques; the focus was more strategy oriented. Lasker's approach included newsreels and sound recordings, all in an effort to enhance Harding's patriotism and affability. Farmers were sent brochures decrying the alleged abuses of Democratic agriculture policies. African Americans and women were also given literature in an attempt to take away votes from the Democrats. Professional advertisers including Chicagoan Albert Tucker were consulted. Billboard posters, newspapers and magazines were employed in addition to motion pictures. Five thousand speakers were trained by advertiser Harry New and sent abroad to speak for Harding; 2,000 of these speakers were women. Telemarketers were used to make phone conferences with perfected dialogues to promote Harding. Lasker had 8,000 photos distributed around the nation every two weeks of Harding and his wife. Harding's "front porch campaign" during the late summer and fall of 1920 captured the imagination of the country. Not only was it the first campaign to be heavily covered by the press and to receive widespread newsreel coverage, but it was also the first modern campaign to use the power of Hollywood and Broadway stars, who travelled to Marion for photo opportunities with Harding and his wife. Al Jolson, Lillian Russell, Douglas Fairbanks, and Mary Pickford were among the luminaries to make the pilgrimage to his house in central Ohio. Business icons Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Harvey Firestone also lent their cachet to the campaign. From the onset of the campaign until the November election, over 600,000 people travelled to Marion to participate.

The campaign owed a great deal to Florence Harding, who played perhaps a more active role than any previous candidate's wife in a presidential race. She cultivated the relationship between the campaign and the press. As the business manager of the ''Star'', she understood reporters and their industry. She played to their needs by being freely available to answer questions, pose for pictures, or deliver food prepared in her kitchen to the press office, a bungalow which she had constructed at the rear of their property in Marion. Mrs. Harding even coached her husband on the proper way to wave to newsreel cameras to make the most of coverage. Campaign manager Lasker struck a deal with Harding's paramour, Carrie Phillips, and her husband Jim Phillips, whereby the couple agreed to leave the country until after the election; ostensibly, Mr. Phillips was to investigate the silk trade. Campaigning from a federal prison, Socialist Eugene V. Debs received 3% of the national vote. The Presidential election results of 1920, for the first time in U.S. history, were announced live by radio. Harding was the only Republican presidential candidate to ever defeat Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt on a presidential ticket. At the same time, the Republicans picked up an astounding 63 seats in the House of Representatives. Harding immediately embarked on a vacation which included an inspection tour of facilities in the Panama Canal Zone.

African-American lineage contention

During the campaign, political opponents spread rumors that Harding's great-great-grandfather was a West Indian black person and that other blacks might be found in his family tree. In an era when the "one-drop rule" would classify a person with any African ancestry as black, and black people in the South had been effectively disfranchised, Harding's campaign manager responded, "No family in the state (of Ohio) has a clearer, a more honorable record than the Hardings', a blue-eyed stock from New England and Pennsylvania, the finest pioneer blood." The rumors may have been sustained by a statement Harding allegedly made to newspaperman James W. Faulkner on the subject, which he perhaps meant to be dismissive: "How do I know, Jim? One of my ancestors may have jumped the fence." However, while there are gaps in the historical record, studies of his family tree have not found evidence of an African-American ancestor.

Presidency: 1921–23

The atmosphere of Harding's inauguration was unremarkable – in terms of both weather and celebration. Harding cancelled most of the planned festivities, including the customary parade, leaving only the swearing-in ceremony and a brief reception at the White House. In his inaugural speech he declared, "Our most dangerous tendency is to expect too much from the government and at the same time do too little for it." The Hardings also brought a different style to the running of the White House. Though the Duchess did keep a little red book of those who had offended her, the executive mansion was now once again open to the public, including the annual Easter egg roll.

The administration of Warren G. Harding followed the Republican platform approved at the 1920 Republican National Convention, which was held in Chicago. Harding, who had been elected by a landslide, felt the "pulse" of the nation and for the 28 months in office he remained popular both nationally and internationally. Harding's administration has been critically viewed due to multiple scandals, while his successes in office were often given credit to his capable cabinet appointments that included future President Herbert Hoover. Author Wayne Lutton asked, "Was Harding really a failure?" Historian and former White House Counsel John Dean's reassessment of Harding stated his accomplishments included income tax and federal spending reductions, economic policies that reduced "stagflation", a reduction of unemployment by 10%, and a bold foreign policy that created peace with Germany, Japan, and Central America. Herbert Hoover, while serving in Harding's cabinet, was confident the President would serve two terms and return the world to normality. Later, in his own memoirs, he stated that Harding had "neither the experience nor the intellect that the position needed." One of Harding's earlier decisions as President was the appointment of former President William Howard Taft as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, a position Taft had always coveted, more so than the Presidency. Harding calmed the 1919–20 Bolshevik scare and released election opponent, Socialist leader Eugene Debs, from prison. Debs had been convicted under charges brought by the Wilson administration for his opposition to the draft during World War I. Despite many political differences between the two candidates, Harding commuted Debs' sentence to time served.

Harding pushed for the establishment of the Bureau of Veterans Affairs (later organized as the Department of Veterans Affairs), the first permanent attempt at answering the needs of those who had served the nation in time of war. In April 1921, speaking before a special joint session of Congress which he had called, Harding argued for peacemaking with Germany and Austria, emergency tariffs, new immigration laws, regulation of radio and trans cable communications, retrenchment in government, tax reduction, repeal of wartime excess profits tax, reduction of railroad rates, promotion of agricultural interests, a national budget system, an enlarged merchant marine and a department of public welfare. He also called for measures to bring an end to lynching, but he did not want to make enemies in his own party and with the Democrats, and did not fight for his program. Generally, there was a lack of strong leadership in the Congress and, unlike his predecessors Roosevelt and Wilson, Harding was not inclined to fill that void.

According to biographers, Harding got along well with the press more than any other President, being a former newspaper man. Reporters admired his frankness, candor, and his confessed limitations. He took the press behind the scenes and showed them the inner circle of the presidency. Harding, in November 1921, also implemented a policy of taking written questions from reporters during a press conference. Harding's relationship with Congress, however, was strained and he did not receive the traditional honeymoon given to new Presidents. Prior to Harding's election the nation was adrift; President Woodrow Wilson had been ill by a debilitating stroke for eighteen months and before that Wilson had been in Europe for several months attempting to negotiate a peace settlement after World War I. By contrast, at the March 4, 1921 Inaugural, Harding looked strong, with grey hair and a commanding physical presence. Wilson's successor stressed the importance of the ceremonial aspects of the office of President. This emphasis fulfilled his desire to travel the breadth of the country to officiate at formal functions.

Although Harding was committed to putting the "best minds" on his cabinet, he often rewarded those persons who were active and contributed to his campaign by appointing them to high federal department positions. For instance, Wayne Wheeler, leader of the Anti-Saloon League was literally allowed by Harding to dictate who would serve on the Prohibition Commission. Graft and corruption charges permeated Harding's Department of Justice; bootleggers confiscated tens of thousands cases of whiskey through bribery and kickbacks. Harding, out of loyalty, appointed Harry M. Daugherty to U.S. Attorney General because he felt he owed Daugherty for running his 1920 campaign. After the election, many people from the Ohio area moved to Washington, D.C., made their headquarters in a green house on K Street, and would be eventually known as the "Ohio Gang". The financial and political scandals caused by these men, in addition to Harding's own personal controversies, severely damaged President Harding's personal reputation and eclipsed his presidential accomplishments.

In his most open challenge to Congress, Harding forced a deferral of a budget-busting World War I soldier's bonus in an effort to reduce costs. A 2008 study of presidential rankings for ''The Times'' placed Harding at number 34 and a 2009 C-SPAN survey ranked Harding at 38. In 2010, a ''Siena College'' poll of Presidential scholars placed Harding at 41. The same poll ranked President Harding 26 in the ''Ability to Compromise'' category.

Harding presided over the nation's initial consecration of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This followed similar commemorations established by Britain, France and Italy. The fallen hero was chosen from a group previously interred at Romagne Military Cemetery in France, and was re-interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

On December 23, 1921, President Harding freed Eugene V. Debs, a forceful World War I antiwar activist and socialist whom previous President Woodrow Wilson had thrown into jail for sedition. This was done as an effort to get the United States returned to "normalcy" after the Great War. Debs was released from jail for time served, but not granted an official Presidential pardon. Debs' failing health was a contributing factor for the release. Harding granted a general amnesty to 23 prisoners, alleged anarchists and socialists, active in the Red Scare.

Harding's party suffered the loss of 79 seats in the House in the 1922 mid-term elections, leaving them with a razor thin majority. The President determined to fill the void of leadership in the party and attempted to take a more aggressive role in setting the legislative agenda.

The Hardings visited their home community of Marion, Ohio once during the term, when the city celebrated its centennial during the first week of July. Harding arrived on July 3, gave a speech to the community at the Marion County Fairgrounds on July 4, and left the following morning for other speaking commitments.

Joint Session of Congress 1921

On April 12, President Harding addressed a joint session of Congress which he had called to address matters that he deemed of national and urgent importance. That speech, considered to be his best, contained few political platitudes and was enthusiastically received by Congress. On the economic front, Harding urged Congress to create a Bureau of the Budget; cut expenditures; and revise federal tax laws. Harding urged increasing protectionist tariffs, to lower taxes, and agriculture legislation to help the farmer. In the speech, Harding advocated aviation technology for civil and military purposes; the development of radio technology and regulation; and the passage of a federal anti-lynching law to protect African Americans. Harding advocated, in terms of foreign affairs, a "conference and cooperation" of nations to prevent war, yet flatly stated the U.S. should not enter the League of Nations. Harding endorsed peace to be established between all former enemy nations from World War I; and the funding and liquidation of war debts.

Domestic policies and economy

Bureau of the Budget and Veterans Bureau

Considered to be one of his greatest domestic and enduring achievements, President Harding signed Budget and Accounting Act of 1921. Harding requested and obtained from the Congress authorization for the country's first formal budgeting process via the establishing of the Bureau of the Budget. The law created the presidential budget director who was directly responsible to the President, rather than the Secretary of Treasury. The law also stipulated that the President must submit a budget annually to the U.S. Congress. Subsequent Presidents each year have had to submit a budget to Congress. The General Accounting Office was created to assure oversight in the federal budget expenditures. Harding appointed Charlie Dawes, known for being an effective financier, as the first director of the Bureau of the Budget. Dawes reduced government spending by $1.5 billion his first year as director, a 25% reduction, along with another 25% reduction the following year. In effect, the Government budget was cut in ½ in just two years. Harding believed the federal government should be fiscally managed similar to the private sector having campaigned "Less government in business and more business in government." "Harding was true to his word, carrying on budget cuts that had begun under a debilitated Woodrow Wilson. Federal spending declined from $6.3 billion in 1920 to $5 billion in 1921 and $3.3 billion in 1922. Tax rates, meanwhile, were slashed—for every income group. And over the course of the 1920s, the national debt was reduced by one third."

On August 9, 1921, President Harding signed legislation known as the "Sweet Bill", which established the Veterans Bureau as a new agency. After World War I, 300,000 wounded veterans were in need of hospitalization, medical care, and job training. In order to handle the needs of these veterans, the new Veterans Bureau incorporated the War Risk Insurance Bureau, the Brig. Gen. Charles E. Sawyer's Federal Hospitalization Bureau, along with three other bureaus that dealt with veteran affairs. Harding regrettably appointed Colonel Charles R. Forbes, albeit a decorated war veteran, as the Veteran Bureau's first director (see scandal below), a position which reported directly to the President. The Veterans Bureau later was incorporated into the Veterans Administration and ultimately the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Postwar recession and recovery

On March 4, President Harding assumed office while the nation was in the midst of a postwar economic decline, known as the Depression of 1920–21. By summer of his first year in office, an economic recovery began.

President Harding convened the Conference of Unemployment in 1921, headed by Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover, that proactively advocated stimulating the economy with local public work projects and encouraged businesses to apply shared work programs. Harding's Treasury Secretary, Andrew Mellon, ordered a study that claimed to demonstrate that as income tax rates were increased, money was driven underground or abroad. Mellon concluded that lower rates would increase tax revenues. Based on this advice, Harding cut taxes, starting in 1922. The top marginal rate was reduced annually in four stages from 73% in 1921 to 25% in 1925. Taxes were cut for lower incomes starting in 1923.

Revenues to the treasury increased substantially. Unemployment also continued to fall. Libertarian historian Thomas Woods contends that the tax cuts ended the Depression of 1920–21—even though economic growth had begun before the cuts—and were responsible for creating a decade-long expansion. Historians Schweikart and Allen attribute these changes to the tax cuts. Schweikart and Allen also argue that Harding's tax and economic policies in part "...produced the most vibrant eight year burst of manufacturing and innovation in the nation's history." The combined declines in unemployment and inflation (later known as the Misery Index) were among the sharpest in U.S. history. Wages, profits, and productivity all made substantial gains during the 1920s.

Daniel Kuehn attributes the improvement to the earlier monetary policy of the Federal Reserve, and notes that the changes in marginal tax rates were accompanied by an expansion in the tax base that could account for the increase in revenue. However:

Recovery did not last long. Another economic contraction began near the end of Harding's presidency in 1923, while tax cuts were still underway. A third contraction followed in 1927 during the next presidential term.

Farm acts and Radio Conferences

In 1921 and 1922, President Harding signed a series of bills regulating agriculture. The legislation emanated from President Woodrow Wilson's 1919 Federal Trade Commission report, which investigated and discovered "manipulations, controls, trusts, combinations, or restraints out of harmony with the law or the public interest" in the meat packing industry. The first law was the Packers and Stockyards Act, prohibiting packers from engaging in unfair and deceptive practices. Two amendments were made to the Farm Loan Act of 1916 which had been signed into law by President Wilson, and which expanded the maximum size of rural farm loans. The Emergency Agriculture Credit Act authorized new loans to farmers in order to sell and market livestock. The Capper–Volstead Act signed by Harding on February 18, 1922 protected farm cooperatives from anti-trust legislation. The Future Trading Act was also enacted, regulating "puts and calls", "bids", and "offers" on futures contracting. This legislation was later ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court on May 15, 1922.

A second radio conference was called in 1923, and this time Secretary Hoover was successful at obtaining radio regulation power without legislation passed. Hoover himself in January 1923 told the press there was an "urgent need for radio regulation." Large radio stations such as Westinghouse advocated that only 25 larger radio stations in large metropolitan areas be allowed to broadcast while smaller stations would be given limited power. At the end of the meeting, the industrialists agreed to give Hoover the power "to regulate hours and wave lengths of operation of stations when such action is necessary to prevent interference detrimental to the public good".

On February 8, 1922, President Harding had a radio installed in the White House. On June 14, President Harding Harding spoke on radio at a dedication site in honor of Francis Scott Key, who wrote the words to the Star Spangled Banner.

Revenue Act and Highway Act of 1921

On November 22, 1921, President Harding signed the Revenue Act of 1921 that gave large deductions in the amount of taxes that the wealthiest Americans had to pay. Protests from Republican farmers caused the deductions to be less than originally desired by Secretary of Treasury Andrew Mellon. The lengthy 96-page Act reduced the corporate tax from 65% to 50% and provided for the ultimate elimination of the excess-profits tax during World War I.

The 1920s were a time of modernization for America, with the advent of movies, flappers, and automobiles. To improve and expand the nation's highway system, President Harding signed the Federal Highway Act of 1921. From 1921 to 1923, the federal government spent a total of $162 million on America's highway system, infusing the U.S. economy with a large amount of capital. In 1922, President Harding proclaimed that America was in the age of the "motor car". He stated that the automobile, "reflects our standard of living and gauges the speed of our present-day life."

Fordney-McCumber Tariff

On September 21, 1922, President Harding enthusiastically signed the Fordney-McCumber Tariff Act. The protectionist legislation was sponsored by Representative Joseph W. Fordney and Senator Porter J. McCumber. It increased the tariff rates contained in the previous Underwood-Simmons Tariff Act of 1913, to the highest level in the nation's history. Harding became concerned when the agriculture business suffered economic hardship from the high tariffs. Previously, on May 21, 1921 President Harding had signed emergency legislation that put tariffs on select foreign inputs. By 1922, Harding began to realize that the long-term effects of tariffs could be detrimental to national economy, despite the short term benefits.

Foreign policies

President Harding was very specific in commenting on the appointment of Secretary of State Charles E. Hughes, that the secretary would be the sole spokesman for the State Department (as opposed to the Wilson administration). Hughes ably worked behind the scenes to formally make peace with former enemies Austria and Germany. This was known as the Knox-Porter Resolution; subsequent Peace treaties were signed with both countries and Ratified by the Senate and signed by Harding on July 21, 1921; that officially ended World War I for the U.S. The Senate had refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles in both 1919 and 1920; since it required the U.S. to endorse the League of Nations.

Washington arms conference and treaties 1921–22

President Harding spearheaded, with the urging of the Senate, a monumental global conference, held in Washington, D.C., to limit the armaments of world powers, including the U.S., Japan, Great Britain, France, Italy, China, Belgium, Netherlands and Portugal. Harding's Secretary of State, Charles E. Hughes, assumed a primary role in the conference and made the pivotal proposal – the U.S was to reduce its number of warships by 30 if Great Britain decommissioned 19, and Japan 17 ships. Starting on November 6, 1921 and ending February 6, 1922, world leaders met to control a naval arms race and to bring stability to East Asia. The conference enabled the great powers to potentially limit their large naval deployment and avoid conflict in the Pacific. The delegation of nations also worked out security issues and promoted cooperation in the Far East.

The conference produced six treaties and 12 resolutions among the participating nations, which ranged from limiting the size or "tonnage" of naval ships to custom tariffs. The treaties, which easily passed the Senate, also included agreements regulating submarines, dominions in the Pacific, and dealings with China. The treaties only remained in effect until the mid 1930s, however, and ultimately failed. Japan eventually invaded Manchuria and the arms limitations no longer had any effect. The building of "monster warships" resumed and the U.S. and Great Britain were unable to quickly rearm themselves to defend an international order and stop Japan from remilitarizing.

President Harding, in an effort to improve U.S. relations with Mexico, Latin America, and the Caribbean Islands implemented a program of military disengagement. On April 20, 1921, the Thomson–Urrutia Treaty with Colombia was ratified by the Senate and signed by Harding; that awarded $25,000,000 as indemnity payment for land used to make the Panama Canal.

Civil rights, labor disputes and strikes

Blair Mountain miner war

On May 12, 1921, just two months into Harding's presidency, violence was initiated near Matewan, West Virginia, between private detectives, on behalf of the Stone Mountain Coal Company, and United Mine Workers union members who had been fired from their jobs and were being evicted from company-owned housing. The miners cut down telephone and telegraph lines and trained their guns on the mines, strike breakers and buildings. The battle lasted three days and on the first day and night of the battle some 10,000 rounds were fired. Former Justice of the Peace Harry C. Staton was killed, and Ephraim Morgan, Governor of West Virginia, pleaded in person with President Harding for federal military support. Harding, who was keeping track of the situation, would only send in troops if state militia could no longer handle the striking miners. On August 1, Sid Hatfield, a prominent Union organizer and Matewan chief of police, was assassinated by mining company agents. On August 28, four days of fighting broke out on a front at Blair Mountain between coal company militia and thousands of Union miners led by Bill Blizzard. Both the miner and the strike buster armies were equipped with physicians, nurses and chaplains. President Harding, having issued two proclamations to keep the peace, finally used military force including Martin MB-1 bombers that deployed gas and explosive bombs. Federal troops arrived on September 2, forcing the miners to flee to their homes and hostilities ended on September 4; 50–100 miners had been killed, as well as 30 strike busters, in the fighting. After the battle, 985 miners were tried and imprisoned for crimes against the State of West Virginia. Bill Blizzard was indicted and tried for treason, but was acquitted.

Strikes by the UMW were restarted again in 1922 when workers refused a wage reduction insisted upon by companies. Union wages apparently had risen far above others under the Wilson administration. After five months, the companies capitulated, and the wage reductions were tabled. This was a Pyrrhic victory for Lewis and the UMW, as membership in the union would drop from 400K to 150K by 1930 as the nation transitioned to less costly petroleum.

Great railway strike and repeal of 12 hour work-day

A year after President Harding contended with the 1921 mining labor war in West Virginia, a strike broke out during the summer of 1922 in the railroad industry. On July 1, 1922, 400,000 railroad workers and shopmen went on strike over hourly wages reduced by seven cents and a 12 hour-day work week. This was known as the "Wilkerson" or "Daughtery" injunction, which enraged the union as well as many in congress, as it prohibited First Amendment rights. Harding had Daugherty and Wilkerson withdraw the objectionable parts of the injunction. The injunction ultimately succeeded in ending the strike; however, tensions remained high between railroad workers and company men for years. Daugherty's harsh injunction against labor created great discord in Harding's cabinet. This, along with Daugherty's other activities, prompted one congressman, Oscar Keller of Minnesota, to attempt, in vain, to bring impeachment charges against the Attorney General.

In 1922, President Harding and Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover convened a White House conference with manufacturers and unions, to reduce the length of the 12 hour work day, in a move for the cause of labor. The labor movement supported an 8 hour day and a 6 day work week. President Harding wrote Judge Gary, a steel industry leader who attended the meeting, advocating labor reform. The labor conference, however, decided against labor's demands in 1923. Both Harding and Hoover were disappointed with the committee's ruling. Harding wrote a second letter to Gary and with public support the steel industry repealed the 12-hour work day to an eight-hour work day.

Anti-lynching movement and immigration

Notably in an age of severe racial intolerance during the 1920s, President Harding did not hold any racial animosity, according to historian Carl S. Anthony. In a speech on October 26, 1921, given in segregated Birmingham, Alabama Harding advocated civil rights for African Americans; the first President to openly advocate black political, educational, and economic equality during the 20th century. Harding went further and viewed the race problem as a national and international issue and desired that the sectionalism of the Solid South and black membership of the Republican party be broken up. Harding, however, openly stated that he was not for black social equality in terms of racial mixing or miscegenation. Harding also spoke on the Great Migration, believing that blacks migrating to the north and west to find employment had actually tempered race relations between blacks and whites.

According to the Louisiana Historical Association, he named some African Americans to federal positions, such as Walter L. Cohen of New Orleans, Louisiana, whom he named comptroller of customs. Harding also advocated the establishment of an international commission to improve race relations between whites and blacks; however, strong political opposition by the Southern Democratic bloc prevented the commission. The Ku Klux Klan had its highest membership during its revival in the 1920s, when it expanded membership among urban populations of the Midwest and South who were concerned about job competition and immigration.

Harding supported Congressman Leonidas Dyer's federal anti-lynching bill, known as the Dyer Bill, which passed the House of Representatives on January 26, 1922. The bill was defeated in the Senate by a Democratic filibuster. Harding had previously spoken out publicly against lynching on October 21, 1921. Congress had not debated a civil rights bill since the 1890 Federal Elections Bill.

The Per Centum Act of 1921 signed by President Harding on May 19, 1921 severely reduced the amount of immigration into the U.S. to 3% of a country's represented population based on the 1910 census. The Act allowed unauthorized immigrants to be deported. Harding and Secretary of Labor James Davis believed that enforcement had to be humane. Harding often allowed exceptions granting reprieves to thousands of immigrants.

Sheppard-Towner Maternity Act

On November 21, 1921, President Harding signed the Sheppard-Towner Maternity Act, the first major federal government social welfare program in the U.S. The law funded almost 3,000 child and health centers throughout the U.S. Medical doctors were spurred to offer preventative health care measures in addition to treating ill children. Doctors were required to help healthy pregnant women and prevent healthy children from getting sick. Child welfare workers were sent out to make sure that parents were taking care of their children. Many minority groups, particularly African American, Native American, and foreign-born women, resented the law and the welfare workers who visited their homes and intruded into their family's lives. The law was sponsored by a woman, Julia Lathrop, America's first director of the U.S. Children's Bureau. Although the law remained in effect only eight years, it set the trend for New Deal social programs during the Great Depression. Many women who had been given the right to vote in 1920, were given career opportunities as welfare and social workers.

Religious toleration, advocated Jewish homeland

President Harding was tolerant towards religious faiths. Harding appointed prominent Jewish leader, Rabbi Joseph S. Kornfeld and Catholic leader, Father Joseph M. Dennig to foreign diplomatic positions. Harding also appointed Albert Lasker, a Jewish businessman and Harding's 1920 Presidential campaign manager, head of the Shipping Department. In an unpublished letter, Harding advocated the establishment and funding of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

Life at the White House

Katherine Marcia Forbes, wife of Harding's Veterans Bureau appointment Charles R. Forbes, had unprecedented access to the White House. Mrs. Harding and Katherine had become close friends since meeting in Hawaii, when Senator Harding and his wife were on vacation. In 1921, Katherine Forbes wrote a series of articles for the ''Washington Post'' describing the daily life of President Harding and the First Lady. President Harding and Mrs. Harding wanted to be known as "just home folks". At dinners, Harding's dog Laddie Boy, was allowed to beg guests for food and play with children. Red velvet upholstery covered much of the furniture. President Harding's informal dress included a plain tuxedo, plaited shirt, and pearl studs. Mrs. Harding herself was able to talk with many guests at the same time. Inside the White House, the Hardings had a great grandfather clock, a gold fish bowl, a French vase with pussy willows, neutral color rugs, and a grand piano. Harding sometimes gave children private tours of the White House that included conservatories and kennels.

Harding's lifestyle at the White House was fairly unconventional compared to his predecessor President Woodrow Wilson. Upstairs at the White House, in the Yellow Oval Room, President Harding allowed bootleg whiskey to be freely given to his guests during after dinner parties, at a time when the President was supposed to be enforcing Prohibition. One witness, Alice Longworth, daughter of President Theodore Roosevelt, claimed that trays "with bottles containing every imaginable brand of whiskey stood about." Some of this alcohol had been directly confiscated from the Prohibition department by Jess Smith, assistant to U.S. Attorney General Harry Daugherty. Mrs. Harding, also known as the "Duchess", mixed drinks for the guests. Harding also indulged in poker playing twice a week, smoking, and chewing tobacco. President Harding allegedly won a $4,000 pearl necktie pin at one White House poker game. Although criticized by Prohibitionist advocate Wayne B. Wheeler over Washington, D.C. rumors of these "wild parties", Harding claimed his personal drinking inside the White House was his own business.

Administrative scandals

Upon winning the election, Harding appointed many of his longtime allies and campaign contributors to prominent political positions in control of vast amounts of government money and resources. Known as the "Ohio Gang" (a term used by Charles Mee, Jr., in his book of the same name), some of the appointees used their new powers to exploit their positions for personal gain. Although Harding was responsible for making these appointments, it is unclear how much, if anything, Harding himself knew about his friends' illicit activities. No evidence to date suggests that Harding personally profited from such crimes, but he was apparently unable to prevent them. "I have no trouble with my enemies", Harding told journalist William Allen White late in his presidency, "but my damn friends, they're the ones that keep me walking the floor nights!" The only scandal which was openly discovered during Harding's lifetime was in the Veteran's Bureau. Yet the gossip became rampant after the suicides of Charles Cramer (Veterans Bureau) and Jess Smith (Justice Dept.) President Harding responded aggressively to all of this with a mixture of grief, anger and perplexity.

Before any of the scandalous activity became widely known, Harding's popularity began to ebb, but he responded with determination to run for re-election, despite strong support emerging for the very popular Henry Ford for the Democrats. While on his trip to Alaska in 1923, President Harding asked reporters and Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover, how he should respond to associates who may have betrayed him. He also said at this time, according to Joe Mitchell Chapple, "someday the people will understand all that some of my erstwhile friends have done for me." However much he did know at the time of his departure for Alaska, Russell concludes it did not include Fall and Daugherty. Harding reformed the corrupt Veteran's Bureau in March, 1923.

Teapot Dome

The most notorious scandal was the Teapot Dome affair, most of which came to light long after Harding's death, which concerned an oil reserve located in Wyoming, which was covered by a rock formation in the shape of a teapot. For years, the country had taken measures to ensure the availability of petroleum reserves, particularly for use by the Navy. On February 23, 1923 President Harding by Executive Order # 3797 created Naval Petroleum Reserve Number 4 in Alaska. It became clear by the 1920s that petroleum was becoming increasingly important to the national economy and security of the nation. The reserve system was to keep the oil under government jurisdiction rather than through private claims. The management of these reserves was the subject of multi-dimensional arguments, beginning with a turf battle, between the Secretary of the Navy and the Interior Dept. The strategic reserves issue was a topic of debate also between conservationists and the petroleum industry, as well as those favoring public ownership versus private control. Harding's Secretary of the Interior, Albert B. Fall, brought to that office a lot of political and legal experience – and also a lot of personal debt, incurred in his obsession to expand his personal estate, Three Rivers, in New Mexico. He also was an avid supporter of the private ownership and management of reserves.

Fall contracted with Edward Doheny of Pan American Corp. for the construction of storage tanks in exchange for drilling rights; it was later discovered that significant personal loans were made contemporaneously by Doheny to Fall. The Secretary also negotiated leases for the Teapot Dome reserves to Harry Sinclair of the Consolidated Oil Corp. in return for guaranteed oil reserves to the credit of the government. Again, it was later determined that Sinclair made concurrent cash payments personally to Fall, exceeding $400,000. Fall was ultimately convicted in 1931 of accepting bribes and illegal no-interest personal loans in exchange for the leasing of public oil fields to business associates. In 1931, Fall became the first cabinet member in history to be sent to prison. Strangely enough, while Fall was convicted for taking the bribe, Doheny was acquitted of paying it.

Justice department

Harding's appointment of Harry M. Daugherty as Attorney General received at the time more criticism than any other; Harding's campaign manager's Ohio lobbying and back room maneuvers with politicians were not considered the best qualifications. Historian M. R. Werner referred to the Justice Department under Harding and Daugherty as "the den of a ward politician and the White House a night club." On September 16, 1922, Minnesota Congressman Oscar E. Keller brought charges of impeachment against Daugherty. On December 4, formal investigation hearings headed by congressman Andrew J. Volstead started on Daugherty. The impeachment process, however, was stopped since Keller's charges that Daugherty protected interests in trust and war fraud cases could not be substantially proven. One alleged scandal involving Daugherty concerned the Wright-Martin Aircraft Corp., which was supposedly found to have overcharged the Federal government by $2.3 M on war contracts. Capt. Hazel Scaife attempted to bring the company to trial, but was blocked by the Department of Justice. At this time, Daugherty was said to have owned stock in the company and was even adding to these holdings, though he was never charged in the matter.

Daugherty remained in his position during the early days of the Calvin Coolidge administration, then resigned on March 28, 1924, amidst allegations of accepting bribes from bootleggers. Daugherty was later put on trial for corruption charges two times and acquitted; both juries were hung and failed to reach a verdict (in one instance after 65 hrs. of deliberation.) Daugherty's famous defense attorney, Max D. Steuer, blamed all corruption allegations brought against Daugherty on Jess Smith, an aide at the Justice Department who had committed suicide.

Harding's Attorney General hired William J. Burns to run the Justice Dept.'s Bureau of Investigation, Burns was said to be unabashed in his willingness to conduct unauthorized searches and seizures of political enemies of the Justice Dept. A number of inquisitive congressmen or senators found themselves the object of wire taps, rifled files and copied correspondence. Burns' primary operative was Gaston B. Means, a reputed con man, who was known to have fixed prosecutions, sold favors and manipulated files in the Justice Dept. Means, who acted independently, took direct instructions and payments from Jess Smith, without Burn's knowledge, to spy on Congressmen. Means hired a woman, Laura Jacobson, to spy on Senator Thaddeus Caraway, a critic of the Harding administration. Means also was involved with "roping" bootleggers.

Narcotic trafficking was rampant at the Atlanta Penitentiary while Daugherty was Attorney General. The appointed warden, J.E. Dyche, made internal prison reforms by firing two guards while two other officers were indicted by the Justice Department. Daughtery, however, was slow at following up on these indictments. As Dyche began to investigate the drug supply ring outside the prison, he was fired by Daugherty, and replaced by A. E. Sartain, a close friend of Daugherty. Daugherty had stopped the investigation into the drug ring until the two indicted officers were brought to trial. The Superintendent of Prisons, Heber Votaw, allegedly interfered and suppressed Dyche's attempted investigation into the narcotic ring outside the prison. Votaw, was Harding's brother-in-law and had been appointed by the President in April 1921. President Harding sent Charles R. Forbes, Director of the Veterans Bureau, to privately investigate the matter; upsetting Daugherty, who proclaimed the prison situation in Atlanta was none of Forbes business.

Daugherty, according to a 1924 Senate investigation into the Justice Department, had authorized a system of graft between aides Jess Smith and Howard Mannington. Both Mannington and Smith allegedly took bribes to secure appointments, prison pardons, and freedom from prosecution. A majority of these purchasable pardons were directed towards bootleggers. Cincinnati bootlegger, George L. Remus, allegedly bribed Jess Smith $250,000 not to be prosecuted. Remus, however, was prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to Atlanta prison. Smith attempted to extract more bribe money from Remus to pay for a pardon. The prevalent question at the Justice Department was "How is he fixed?"

Jess W. Smith

Daugherty's personal aid Jess W. Smith, was widely viewed as the Attorney General's (and therefore the President's) spokesman and henchman. Smith was considered Daugherty's proxy, and a central figure, in government file manipulation, paroles and pardons, influence peddling and even bag-man. During Prohibition alcohol permits were given to pharmacies to sell alcohol for medical purposes. According to Congressional testimony, Daugherty allegedly arranged for Jess Smith and Howard Mannington to sell these permits to drug company agents who in actuality represented bootleggers. The bootleggers having obtained these permits would be able to buy cases of whiskey. Profits from the sale of the alcohol permits were split between Smith and Mannington. Approximately 50,000–60,000 cases of whiskey were sold to bootleggers at a net worth of $750,000–$900,000. Smith also supplied bootleg whiskey to the White House and the Ohio Gang house on K Street concealing the whiskey in a brief case for poker games.

Eventually, rumors reached President Harding on Smith's free use of government cars, going to all night parties, and abuse of Justice Department files. Harding withdrew Smith's clearance at the White House and was told by Daugherty to leave Washington. On May 30, 1923, Smith's dead body was found at Daugherty's apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. William J. Burns immediately took Smith's body away and there was no autopsy. Russell, concluding this was a suicide, indicates that a Daugherty aide entered Smith's room moments after a noise awoke him, and found Smith on the floor with his head in a trash can and a revolver in his hand. Russell also states that the gun was purchased by Smith (though he was said to have detested guns), that a bullet had entered Smith's temple, exited the forehead, and lodged in a doorjamb. Smith allegedly purchased the gun from a hardware store shortly before his death after Daugherty had verbally abused him for waking him up from a nap.

Veterans' bureau

Charles R. Forbes, the energetic Director of the Veterans Bureau, disregarded the dire needs of wounded World War I veterans to procure his own wealth. In order to limit corruption in the Veterans' Bureau, President Harding insisted that all government contracts be by public notice, but Forbes provided inside information to his co-conspirators to ensure their bid. Forbes was very quick after his appointment to have Harding issue executive orders giving him control over veterans' hospital construction and supplies. Forbes was estimated to have defrauded the government $225 million through hospital construction, after increasing construction costs from $3,000 to $4,000 per bed. Forbes' main task at the Veterans bureau, having an unprecedented $500 million yearly budget, was to ensure that new hospitals would be built around the country to help 300,000 wounded World War I veterans.

In the Spring of 1922, Forbes went on tours, known as "joy-rides", of new hospital construction sites around the country and the Pacific Coast. On these tours, Forbes allegedly received traveling perks and alcohol kickbacks, took a $5,000 bribe in Chicago, and made a secret code to ensure $17 million in government construction hospital contracts with corrupt contractors. On the tours, Forbes allegedly went to parties, drank bootleg liquor, and played craps. Intent on gaining money upon returning to U.S. Capitol; Forbes immediately embarked on selling valuable hospital supplies under his control in large warehouses at the Perryville Depot. The government had stockpiled huge amounts of hospital supplies during the first World War, which Forbes unloaded for a fraction of their cost to the Boston firm of Thompson and Kelly. In exchange for the deal, J.W. Thompson of the firm added $150,000 to the contract for Forbes, who also received a percentage of the profits realized. The check on Forbes' authority at Perryville was Gen. Charles E. Sawyer, chairman of the Federal Hospitalization Board, who represented controlling interests in the valuable hospital supplies. Dr. Sawyer and Forbes were at odds with each other over authority at the Veterans Bureau. Sawyer, a homeopathic doctor who was Harding's personal physician, told President Harding that Forbes was selling valuable hospital supplies to an insider contractor. After two issued orders for the sales to stop, President Harding finally summoned Forbes to the White House and demanded Forbes' resignation, since Forbes had been insubordinate in stopping the shipments. Harding, however, was not yet ready to announce Forbes' resignation and allowed him to flee to Europe on the "flimsy pretext" to help disabled U.S. Veterans in Europe. While in Europe, Forbes submitted his resignation to President Harding on February 15, 1923.

Harding placed a reformer, Brig. Gen. Frank T. Hines, in charge of the Veterans Bureau who immediately cleared up the mess left by Forbes. When Forbes returned to U.S., he visited President Harding at the White House in the Red Room. During the meeting, President Harding angrily grabbed Forbes by the throat, shook him vigorously, and exclaimed "You double-crossing bastard!" A guest who had an appointment with President Harding interrupted this physical encounter and Forbes was allowed to leave. President Harding was bitter over Forbes' "betrayal" and the two never saw one another again. In 1926, Forbes was brought to trial and convicted of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government. Forbes drew a two-year prison sentence and was released in November 1927.

Charles F. Cramer, Forbes' legal council to the Veterans Bureau, rocked the nation's capital when he committed suicide in 1923. Cramer was found dead by a maid in his bathroom on the morning of March 14 with a bullet wound to the head. Previously, in the fall of 1922 Cramer had been "bitterly assailed" by the American Legion at Indianapolis over alleged corruption at the Veterans Bureau. Cramer, at the time of his death, was being investigated by a Senate committee and had been criticized and personally attacked. Cramer, himself, had denied charges of corruption and said he had given his "whole-hearted and patriotic service" to the Bureau. Cramer had paid $40,000 in Veteran funds to a private landholder to lease land to build a Veterans Hospital in Camp Kearny, California. The 325-acre land tract was only estimated to be worth $8,000. Maj. Gen. John F. O'Ryan conducted the investigation into the Veterans' Bureau. In addition to replacing Forbes with Hines, President Harding dismissed or transferred a number of subordinates at the Veteran's Bureau.

Shipping board, office of alien property and prohibition bureau

On June 13, 1921, President Harding appointed Albert D. Lasker chairman of the United States Shipping Board. Lasker, a cash donor and Harding's general campaign manager, had no previous experience with shipping companies. The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 had allowed the Shipping Board to sell ships made by the U.S. Government to private American companies. A congressional investigation revealed that while Lasker was in charge many valuable steel cargo ships worth between $200 and $250 a ton were sold as low as $30 a ton to private American shipping companies without an appraisal board. J. Harry Philbin, a manager in the sales division, testified at the congressional hearing that under Lasker's authority U.S. ships were sold "as is, where is, take your pick; no matter which vessel you took." Lasker resigned from the Shipping Board on July 1, 1923.

Thomas W. Miller, head of the Office of Alien Property, was put on trial and convicted of accepting bribes. Miller's citizenship rights were taken away and was sentenced to eighteen months in prison with a $5,000 fine. After Miller served thirteen months of his sentence in prison, he was released and put on parole. President Herbert Hoover restored Miller's citizenship on February 2, 1933.

Roy Asa Haynes, Harding's Prohibition Commissioner, ran the patronage-riddled Prohibition bureau, which was allegedly corrupt from top to bottom. The bureau's "B permits" for liquor sales became tantamount to negotiable securities, as a result of being so widely bought and sold among known violators of the law. The bureau's agents allegedly made a year's salary from one month's illicit sales of permits. During this trip, he became the first president to visit Alaska.

Harding's physical health had been declining since the fall of 1922. One doctor, Emmanuel Libman, who had met Harding at a dinner, privately suggested that the President was suffering from coronary disease. By early 1923, Harding had trouble sleeping, looked tired, and could barely get through 9 holes of golf. Although Harding desired to run for a second term in office, he may have been aware of his own health decline; he gave up drinking, sold his "life-work", the Marion ''Star'', in part to regain $170,000 previous investment losses, and had the U.S. Attorney General Harry Daugherty make a new will. Harding, along with his personal physician Dr. Charles E. Sawyer, believed getting away from Washington would help relieve the stresses of being President. By July 1923, criticism of the Harding Administration had been increasing. Prior to leaving Washington the President was noted for having chest pains radiating down his left arm.

St. Louis, Kansas, Denver

During Harding's western travels, historian Samuel H. Adams claims that Harding's own political views began to expand and became more independent from established Republican Party agenda. In St. Louis, Harding promoted U.S. participation in the World Court having earnestly desired world peace. In Kansas, Harding gave a speech on agriculture, and much to his doctor's displeasure rode on a farming combine in searing summer heat. In Denver, Harding extolled the virtues of the 18th Amendment, saying it should never be repealed, urging that the prohibition laws be obeyed. Harding, himself, did not pack any whiskey while traveling on the Presidential train. Breaking away from Republican isolationism, Harding advocated more spending on national defense in case of another war. Harding also made a speech fully endorsing labor's right to organize and even spoke against those who sought to destroy labor movements around the country. In Tacoma, Washington, the President read a letter that promoted his efforts in fighting for a 12-hour work day. Sensing his own conversion, Harding even told his friends that he felt a spiritual change was influencing his stance on issues.

Alaska, British Columbia, Seattle

300px |thumb |right |President Harding on board Presidential train in Alaska.Sec. Hoover, Sec. Wallace, Sec. Work, and Mrs. Harding included in Presidential Party. ''1923'' President Harding, as his physically demanding schedule continued, boarded a naval transport ship, the , and voyaged to Alaska. During four days at sea, Harding was unable to rest and regain strength. Rumors of corruption in his administration were beginning to circulate in Washington. While in Alaska, Harding was profoundly shocked by a long message he received detailing illegal activities previously unknown to him.

The purposes for President Harding's visit to Alaska included the encouragement of colonization of the then sparsely populated territory. Harding hoped that with the completion of the Alaska Railroad, World War I veterans would return to their home territory and any impoverished workers in the lower states could come to Alaska and make or find their own employment. President Harding brought along with him to the territory the Secretary of Interior Hubert Work, Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover, and Secretary of Agriculture Henry C. Wallace, (''"The Three Bears"'' as Herbert Hoover called themselves) in order to cut the bureaucracy in their respected departmental jurisdictions of the territory. According to author, Douglas Brinkley, President Harding came to the most northern U.S. territory in order to "open up Alaska lands" for oil, mining, and timber development and industry.

President Harding arrived in Alaska by the ''USS Henderson''. Harding and his presidential party first visited Metlakatla, Ketchikan, Wrangell, and Sitka. While in Sitka, President Harding visited and shook hands with an Alaskan Native Tlingit elder chief outside in a crowd of people. President Harding continued onto Juneau and Skagway. The President then cruised to Valdez and Seward. The President then proceeded to travel by Presidential railway car and automobile. Harding visited Snow River on the Kenai Peninsula, Chickaloon, Anchorage, and Willow. The U.S. government had bought up the financially unstable Tanana Valley Railroad in order to complete the railroad line south to Tanana. The President continued his Alaska journey through Montana, Cantwell, Curry, and Nenana. On July 15, 1923, President Harding drove in the golden spike on the north side of the steel Mears Memorial Bridge that completed the Alaska Railroad. This last official presidential act completed President Harding's visit to Alaska.

The information gathered by President Harding's Alaska tour found that to improve agriculture in the territory, irrigation would be required due to low territory rainfall totals. By 1923, the Alaskan salmon population was being depleted due to over-fishing. Harvesting and transporting coal by ship from Alaska through the territory's panhandle would be very expensive.

On July 26, 1923, having departed Alaska on the ''USS Henderson'', President Harding toured Vancouver, British Columbia; the first sitting American President ever to visit Canada. President Harding became exhausted while playing golf at the Shaughnessy Heights Golf Club, and complained of nausea and upper abdominal pain. His doctor, Charles E. Sawyer, believed Harding's illness to be a severe case of food poisoning. Nevertheless, Dr. Joel T. Boone also examined the President and noticed an enlargement of his heart. Harding's pulse and breathing rate were rapid. The President was given digitalis. President Harding met with British Columbia Premier John Oliver and Mayor of Vancouver Charles Tisdall at the Hotel Vancouver. Harding spoke in front of 50,000 people at Stanley Park with his voice projected by microphones. President Harding inspected The Vancouver Regiment honor guard accompanied by Canadian Brig. Gen. V.W. Odlum.

Coming into Seattle, Washington, President Harding's transport ship, ''USS Henderson'', accidentally rammed into a U.S. naval destroyer due to fog. Harding was not harmed in the incident. While in port, Harding reviewed the U.S. naval fleet and visited the Bell Street Pier. In Seattle, Harding greeted children and led 50,000 Boy Scouts in the Pledge of Allegiance. President Harding gave his final speech to a large crowd of 25,000 people at the University of Washington stadium in Seattle. Harding spoke on the magnificence of Alaska's wilderness, conservationism, and "measureless oil resources in the most northerly sections." Sec. of Commerce Herbert Hoover wrote the Seattle speech and Harding claimed he would protect the territory from looters and profit seekers; a rebuff to former Sec. of Interior Albert Fall. Harding had rushed through his speech not waiting for applause by the audience. President Harding traveled by train from Seattle to Portland, Oregon. Harding's scheduled speech in Portland was canceled.

Death in San Francisco, state funeral and memorial

The President's train continued south to San Francisco. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover sent a telegram from Dunsmuir, California, to his friend Dr. Ray L. Wilbur, asking Wilbur to meet and to personally evaluate the President. Arriving at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco, Harding developed a respiratory illness believed to be pneumonia. Harding, severely exhausted, ordered that his planned speech be issued through the national press in order to communicate with the public. The President was given digitalis and caffeine that momentarily helped relieve his heart condition and sleeplessness. On Thursday, the President's health appeared to be improving and his doctors went to dinner. Harding's pulse was normal and his lung infection had subsided. Unexpectedly, during the evening, Harding shuddered and died suddenly in the middle of conversation with his wife in the hotel's presidential suite, at 7:35 pm on August 2, 1923. Mrs. Harding refused to allow an autopsy. In retrospect, scholars speculate that Harding had shown physical signs of cardiac insufficiency with congestive heart failure in the preceding weeks. Naval medical consultants who examined the president in San Francisco concluded that he had suffered a heart attack.

Harding was succeeded as President by Vice President Calvin Coolidge, who was sworn in while vacationing at Plymouth Notch, Vermont, by his father, a Vermont Notary Public. It appears that the story about Harding's body being laid in state in San Francisco City Hall before being returned to Washington is false. The ''Examiner'' for Aug. 3, 1923, states that Harding's ''"remains will not be taken from the hotel except to go directly to the train." '' The ''Chronicle'' for Aug. 3 and 4, 1923, says the same thing that the Examiner does, that Harding's body was taken from the Palace Hotel directly to the train depot at Third and Townsend. The funeral train had a four-day journey eastward across the country – the first such procession since Lincoln's funeral train. Millions lined the tracks in cities and towns across the country to pay their final respects.

Harding's casket was held in the East Room of the White House pending a state funeral which was held on August 8, 1923, at the United States Capitol. Unnamed White House employees stated that the night before the funeral they heard Mrs. Harding talking to her dead husband. Harding was entombed in the receiving vault of the Marion Cemetery, Marion, Ohio, August 10, 1923. Following Mrs. Harding's death on November 21, 1924 (from renal failure), she was buried next to her husband. Their remains were re-interred December 20, 1927, at the newly completed Harding Memorial in Marion, dedicated by President Herbert Hoover on June 16, 1931. The delay between final interment and the dedication was partly because of the aftermath of the Teapot Dome scandal. At death, Harding was survived by his father. Harding and John F. Kennedy are the only two presidents to have predeceased their fathers. Harding's term of office was the shortest of any 20th century U.S. President.

Speculation on cause of death

President Harding's sudden death led to theories that he had been poisoned or committed suicide. Suicide appears unlikely, since Harding was planning for a second term election. Rumors of poisoning were fueled, in part, by a book called ''The Strange Death of President Harding,'' in which the author (convicted criminal and former Ohio Gang member, Gaston Means) suggesting Mrs. Harding had poisoned her husband. Mrs. Harding's refusal to allow an autopsy on President Harding only added to the speculation. According to the physicians attending Harding, however, the symptoms prior to his death all pointed to congestive heart failure. Harding's biographer, Samuel H. Adams, concluded that "Warren G. Harding died a natural death which, in any case, could not have been long postponed".

Presidential papers destroyed

Immediately after President Harding's death, Mrs. Harding returned to Washington, D.C., and briefly stayed in the White House with President and First Lady Coolidge. For a month, former First Lady Harding gathered and destroyed by fire President Harding's correspondence and documents, both official and unofficial. Upon her return to Marion, Mrs. Harding hired a number of secretaries, collecting and burning President Harding's personal papers. According to Mrs. Harding, she took these actions to protect her husband's legacy. The remaining papers were held and kept from public view by the ''Harding Memorial Association'' in Marion.

Cabinet and Supreme Court appointments

thumb |350px |right |President Harding's first Cabinet. ''1921''

Clear	yes
Name	Harding
President	Warren G. Harding
President start	1921
President end	1923
Vice president	Calvin Coolidge
Vice president start	1921
Vice president end	1923
State	Charles Evans Hughes
State start	1921
State end	1923
War	John W. Weeks
War start	1921
War end	1923
Treasury	Andrew Mellon
Treasury start	1921
Treasury end	1923
Justice	Harry M. Daugherty
Justice start	1921
Justice end	1923
Post	Will H. Hays
Post start	1921
Post end	1922
Post 2	Hubert Work
Post start 2	1922
Post end 2	1923
Post 3	Harry S. New
Post date 3	1923
Navy	Edwin Denby
Navy start	1921
Navy end	1923
Interior	Albert B. Fall
Interior start	1921
Interior end	1923
Interior 2	Hubert Work
Interior date 2	1923
Agriculture	Henry C. Wallace
Agriculture start	1921
Agriculture end	1923
Commerce	Herbert Hoover
Commerce start	1921
Commerce end	1923
Labor	James J. Davis
Labor start	1921
Labor end	1923 }}

Harding appointed the following justices to the Supreme Court of the United States:

William Howard Taft – Chief Justice – 1921

George Sutherland – 1922

Pierce Butler – 1923

Edward Terry Sanford – 1923

Personal controversies

Journalist Carl S. Anthony stated in a ''Washington Post'' article that Warren G. Harding had extramarital affairs with four women. These women included: Susie Hodder and Carrie Fulton Phillips, Mrs. Harding's personal friends; Grace Cross, Harding's senatorial aide; and Nan Britton. Anthony stated that Harding was the father of Hodder's daughter. In her 1927 book, ''The President's Daughter'', Britton asserted that Harding fathered her daughter, Elizabeth Ann, as well, during a 1919 tryst in his senatorial offices. Britton, who had a profound obsession with Harding beginning in high school, also alleged that she was his mistress before and during his administration, at one point having sex with him in a closet at the White House. Historian Henry F. Graff states that Harding was sterile and that Harding's affair with Britton ended after Harding assumed the presidency.

Historian Francis Russell indicates that, beginning in the spring of 1905, Harding had a 15-year relationship with Carrie Fulton Phillips, wife of businessman and friend James Eaton Phillips of Marion, Ohio. More than 100 intimate letters between Harding and Mrs. Philips were discovered in the 1960s, but publication of the letters was enjoined by court order in Ohio until 2024. Russell, however, viewed the letters upon their discovery and described them as very touching and naive in some respects, erotic in others. Russell also concluded from the letters that Phillips was the love of Harding's life -– "the enticements of his mind and body combined in one person".

Before his death, Harding had established a margin account with stockbroker Sam Ungerleider. Before the broker could get authority from Harding's successors to liquidate the stocks purchased on loan, the account had a loss of more than $170,000. The broker was given the authority to sell, but the family refused to settle the loss and the broker declined to force collection.

The most sensational allegations include one that President Harding and Attorney General Harry M. Daugherty participated in bacchanalian orgies at the Ohio Gang's Little Green House on K Street in Washington, D.C.; witnesses to this were considered unreliable and one was a convicted perjurer. Also, in his 1987 book ''The Fiery Cross'', historian Wyn Craig Wade suggested that President Harding had ties with the Ku Klux Klan, perhaps having been inducted into the organization in a private White House ceremony. Evidence included the taped testimony of one of the members of the alleged induction team; however, evidence beyond that is scanty. Other historians generally dismiss these stories.

Life legacy

As a career politician, Harding exhibited an ability to grow, and had a desire to get along with political enemies rather than alienate them. As a prior journalist, Harding was the first President to realize the importance of an ever growing powerful media, and even ordered his cabinet to organize their own respective press staff. He knew that radio would eventually dominate American commerce and promoted two Radio Conferences to give government power to regulate the industry. Harding also sensed the importance of oil in terms of national security and prosperity, signing an executive order that gave the U.S. a giant oil reserve in Alaska. President Harding staunchly protected American business interests. He also signed America's first child welfare program designed to protect children's health and ensure that they would grow up without neglect from their parents. Harding was also the first president that pursued world security through arms reduction and regulation during the Washington peace conference.

Harding's generosity and loyalty to friends proved to be a liability as President. Multiple scandals evolved during his administration that damaged his reputation throughout the nation. His successes as President were over shadowed by the "Ohio Gang" criminal exploits, the detrimental image of his social drinking and his alleged extramarital affairs. His sudden death in 1923 only intensified the unanswered questions concerning his knowledge of, and potential involvement in, the scandals, and if he would have reformed his administration. In fact, his reputation was so controversial, it was not until 1931 that President Harding's marble memorial colonnade in Marion was ably dedicated by Herbert Hoover. According to Hoover the legacy of Harding was one of tragic betrayal.

Harding's legacy began to improve during the 1970s; however, the truth behind the many presidential scandals and his personal controversies may never be known. In order to protect her husband's damaged legacy, Mrs. Harding only left 1/7 of Harding's personal papers for posterity, having destroyed the rest. The remaining papers, except for Harding's speeches, are currently unpublished. Harding has been one of the most historically challenging American Presidents in terms of finding private letters and paper documents. Historian Hazel Rowley writes that because the Harding administration and the Republicans were seen associated with prosperity, prominent Democrats were reticent of running for president in 1924. According to historian Thomas Woods, "Few American presidents are less in fashion among historians than Harding, who is routinely portrayed as a bumbling fool who stumbled into the presidency."

Warren G. Harding is among the relatively few American Presidents who have been honored on a U.S. postage stamp more than the usual two times. Harding has appeared on US postage for a total of five issues, more than that of most Presidents. Harding's election provided a short burst of popularity for the name Warren.

Memorials

Warren G. Harding High School, Warren, Ohio

Warren G. Harding Middle School, Steubenville, Ohio

Warren G. Harding High School; Bridgeport, Connecticut

Warren G. Harding Middle School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Harding Senior High School, Saint Paul, Minnesota

Harding Middle School, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Harding Elementary School, Santa Barbara, California

Warren G. Harding Elementary School, Hammond, Indiana.

Harding Memorial, Marion, Ohio.

Marion Harding High School, Marion, Ohio

Harding County, New Mexico is named in his honor.

Ohio Northern University's College of Law was once named after him but was later renamed.

Harding Park Golf Club in San Francisco is named after him.

Peace Treaty Marker. Somerville, New Jersey. In 1921, at the estate of New Jersey Governor Joseph S. Frelinghuysen, Warren Harding signed the peace treaty which ended America's involvement in World War I. Today, the estate has been replaced with mini-malls. The marker remains in a patch of grass near a Burger King parking lot along Route 28, just North of the Somerville traffic circle.

Harding Charter Preparatory High School, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Harding Memorial, Seattle, Washington. In 1925, a memorial was erected in Seattle at Woodland Park to commemorate the site of Harding's next-to-last public address. In 1977, the memorial was demolished and buried under the Woodland Park Zoo's African Savanna exhibit. The memorial's only surviving elements – two life-sized bronze statues of Boy Scouts that once saluted the image of Harding – were relocated to the headquarters of the Chief Seattle Council of the Boy Scouts.

Montana Highway 2 over Pipestone Pass near Butte, Montana is named "The Harding Way" in his honor.

Harding Ice Field in South Central Alaska

Harding Elementry in Kenilworth New Jersey.

Harding Township, New Jersey - Named in 1922 for the incumbent President.

Harding Middle School in Des Moines Iowa

See also

List of people on the cover of Time Magazine: 1920s – March 10, 1923

List of United States Presidents who died in office

List of Presidents of the United States

US Presidents on US postage stamps

Media portrayals

''Backstairs at the White House'' – Television episode 1.2, Warren G. Harding played by George Kennedy, ''1979''. ''The Prez: A Ragtime Scandal''-- A musical centered on the historial life events of Warren G. Harding: played by Larry Marshall. Hosted by ''Capital Style Magazine'' at the ''National Press Club'' on C-SPAN, ''February 18, 1999''. ''The American President'' – Season One, Episode 8, Voice of President Harding: Benjamin C. Bradley, ''2000''.

''Boardwalk Empire'' – Television episode 1.8, Warren G. Harding played by Malachy Cleary, ''2010''.

''Momma's Boys'' – A historical play that centers around eight previous Presidents of the United States from Ohio in a humorous and dramatic discussion of their lives. Warren G. Harding played by Matthew Parker. ''2011''

Mentioned in the 'SyFy' tv show ''Sanctuary'' (episode ''Requiem'') when Helen Magnus says that he was an abnormal("You don't think a normal person would choose a job that impossible?").

Documentary

''Cronkite Remembers'' ''1997'' ''Part 1'' – Walter Cronkite describes his early years growing up in Missouri selling newspapers. In 1923, Cronkite showed a Kansas City newspaper to a friend that announced Warren G. Harding had died in office. ''History Channel – The Presidents'' ''2005'' ''Part 6, 1913–1945, Part 2/5'' – The History Channel covers the life and American Presidency of Warren G. Harding.

Notes

References

Morello, John A. ''Selling the President, 1920: Albert D. Lasker, Advertising, and the Election of Warren G. Harding.'' Praeger, 2001.

Murray Robert K. ''The Harding Era 1921–1923: Warren G. Harding and his Administration.'' University of Minnesota Press, 1969

Payne, Phillip. "Instant History and the Legacy of Scandal: the Tangled Memory of Warren G. Harding, Richard Nixon, and William Jefferson Clinton", ''Prospects'', 28: 597–625, 2003 Issn: 0361-2333

Harding audio and film links

Audio clips of Harding's speeches

"Return to Normalcy" Speech, May 14, 1920

Campaign in Marion, Ohio

Wearing cowboy hat

Playing golf during Jazz Age

Primary sources

Inaugural Address

First State of the Union Address of Warren Harding

Second State of the Union Address of Warren Harding

External links

Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia, Warren Gamaliel Harding (1865–1923)

White House, 29. Warren G. Harding 1921–1923

Warren G. Harding's Inauguration ''March 4, 1921''

Memorial U.S. postage stamp issued after Harding's death

Category:1865 births Category:1923 deaths Category:19th-century American newspaper publishers (people) Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:Baptists from the United States Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Ohio Central College alumni Category:Ohio Republicans Category:Ohio State Senators Category:Lieutenant Governors of Ohio Category:People from Marion, Ohio Category:People from Morrow County, Ohio Category:Presidency of Warren G. Harding Category:Presidents of the United States Category:Republican Party Presidents of the United States Category:Republican Party United States Senators Category:Republican Party (United States) presidential nominees Category:United States Senators from Ohio Category:United States presidential candidates, 1916 Category:United States presidential candidates, 1920 Warren G. Harding

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Name	Calvin Coolidge
Office	30th President of the United States
Vicepresident	Charles Dawes
Term start	August 2, 1923
Term end	March 4, 1929
Predecessor	Warren Harding
Successor	Herbert Hoover
Office2	29th Vice President of the United States
President2	Warren Harding
Term start2	March 4, 1921
Term end2	August 2, 1923
Predecessor2	Thomas Marshall
Successor2	Charles Dawes
Order3	48th Governor of Massachusetts
Lieutenant3	Channing Cox
Term start3	January 2, 1919
Term end3	January 6, 1921
Predecessor3	Samuel McCall
Successor3	Channing Cox
Office4	46th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
Governor4	Samuel McCall
Term start4	January 6, 1916
Term end4	January 2, 1919
Predecessor4	Grafton Cushing
Successor4	Channing Cox
Birth date	July 04, 1872
Birth place	Plymouth, Vermont, U.S.
Death date	January 05, 1933
Death place	Northampton, Massachusetts, U.S.
Party	Republican Party
Spouse	Grace Goodhue
Children	JohnCalvin
Alma mater	Amherst College
Profession	Lawyer
Religion	Congregationalism
Signature	C Coolidge signature.svg
Signature alt	Cursive signature in ink }}

John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. (July 4, 1872 January 5, 1933) was the 30th President of the United States (1923–1929). A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state. His conduct during the Boston Police Strike of 1919 thrust him into the national spotlight and gave him a reputation as a man of decisive action. Soon after, he was elected as the 29th Vice President in 1920 and succeeded to the Presidency upon the sudden death of Warren G. Harding in 1923. Elected in his own right in 1924, he gained a reputation as a small-government conservative, and also as a man who said very little.

Coolidge restored public confidence in the White House after the scandals of his predecessor's administration, and left office with considerable popularity. As a Coolidge biographer put it, "He embodied the spirit and hopes of the middle class, could interpret their longings and express their opinions. That he did represent the genius of the average is the most convincing proof of his strength." Some later criticized Coolidge as part of a general criticism of laissez-faire government. His reputation underwent a renaissance during the Ronald Reagan Administration, but the ultimate assessment of his presidency is still divided between those who approve of his reduction of the size of government programs and those who believe the federal government should be more involved in regulating and controlling the economy.

Birth and family history

John Calvin Coolidge, Jr., was born in Plymouth Notch, Windsor County, Vermont, on July 4, 1872, the only U.S. President to be born on Independence Day. He was the elder of the two children of John Calvin Coolidge, Sr. (1845–1926) and Victoria Josephine Moor (1846–1885). Coolidge's chronically ill mother died, perhaps from tuberculosis, when he was twelve years old. His sister, Abigail Grace Coolidge (1875–1890), died at the age of fifteen, when Coolidge was eighteen. Coolidge's father remarried in 1891, to a schoolteacher, and lived to the age of eighty. Coolidge senior engaged in many occupations, and ultimately enjoyed a statewide reputation as a prosperous farmer, storekeeper and public servant; he farmed, taught school, ran a local store, served in the Vermont House of Representatives and the Vermont Senate, and held various local offices including justice of the peace and tax collector. Coolidge's mother was the daughter of a Plymouth Notch farmer.

Coolidge's family had deep roots in New England. His earliest American ancestor, John Coolidge, emigrated from Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, England, around 1630 and settled in Watertown, Massachusetts. Another ancestor, Edmund Rice, arrived at Watertown in 1638. Coolidge's great-great-grandfather, also named John Coolidge, was an American military officer in the Revolutionary War and one of the first selectmen of the town of Plymouth Notch. Most of Coolidge's ancestors were farmers. Other well-known Coolidges, architect Charles Allerton Coolidge, General Charles Austin Coolidge, and diplomat Archibald Cary Coolidge among them, were descended from branches of the family that had remained in Massachusetts. Coolidge's grandmother Sarah Almeda Brewer had two famous first cousins: Arthur Brown, a United States Senator, and Olympia Brown, a women's suffragist. It is through Sarah Brewer that Coolidge believed that he inherited American Indian blood, but this descent has never been established by modern genealogists.

Early career and marriage

Western Massachusetts lawyer

Coolidge attended Black River Academy and then Amherst College, where he joined the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. At his father's urging, Coolidge moved to Northampton, Massachusetts, after graduating to take up the practice of law. Avoiding the costly alternative of attending a law school, Coolidge followed the more common practice of the time, apprenticing with a local law firm, Hammond & Field, and reading law with them. John C. Hammond and Henry P. Field, both Amherst graduates, introduced Coolidge to the law practice in the county seat of Hampshire County. In 1897, Coolidge was admitted to the bar, becoming a country lawyer. With his savings and a small inheritance from his grandfather, Coolidge was able to open his own law office in Northampton in 1898. He practiced transactional law, believing that he served his clients best by staying out of court. As his reputation as a hard-working and diligent attorney grew, local banks and other businesses began to retain his services.

Marriage and family

In 1905, Coolidge met and married a fellow Vermonter, Grace Anna Goodhue, who was working as a teacher at the Clarke School for the Deaf. While Grace was watering flowers outside the school one day in 1903, she happened to look up at the open window of Robert N. Weir's boardinghouse and caught a glimpse of Calvin Coolidge shaving in front of a mirror with nothing on but long underwear and a hat. After a more formal introduction sometime later, the two were quickly attracted to each other. They were married on October 4, 1905, in the parlor of her parents' home in Burlington, Vermont.

They were opposites in personality: she was talkative and fun-loving, while he was quiet and serious. Not long after their marriage, Coolidge handed her a bag with fifty-two pairs of socks in it, all of them full of holes. Grace's reply was "Did you marry me to darn your socks?" Without cracking a smile and with his usual seriousness, Calvin answered, "No, but I find it mighty handy." They had two sons: John, born in 1906, and Calvin, Jr., born in 1908. The marriage was, by most accounts, a happy one. As Coolidge wrote in his ''Autobiography'', "We thought we were made for each other. For almost a quarter of a century she has borne with my infirmities, and I have rejoiced in her graces."

Local political office

City offices

The Republican Party was dominant in New England in Coolidge's time, and he followed Hammond's and Field's example by becoming active in local politics. Coolidge campaigned locally for Republican presidential candidate William McKinley in 1896, and the next year he was selected to be a member of the Republican City Committee. In 1898, he won election to the City Council of Northampton, placing second in a ward where the top three candidates were elected. The position offered no salary, but gave Coolidge experience in the political world. In 1899, he declined renomination, running instead for City Solicitor, a position elected by the City Council. He was elected for a one-year term in 1900, and reelected in 1901. This position gave Coolidge more experience as a lawyer, and paid a salary of $600. In 1902, the city council selected a Democrat for city solicitor, and Coolidge returned to an exclusively private practice. Soon thereafter, however, the clerk of courts for the county died, and Coolidge was chosen to replace him. The position paid well, but barred him from practicing law, so he only remained at the job for one year. The next year, 1904, Coolidge met with his only defeat before the voters, losing an election to the Northampton school board. When told that some of his neighbors voted against him because he had no children in the schools he would govern, Coolidge replied "Might give me time!"

State legislator and mayor

In 1906 the local Republican committee nominated Coolidge for election to the state House of Representatives. He won a close victory over the incumbent Democrat, and reported to Boston for the 1907 session of the Massachusetts General Court. In his freshman term, Coolidge served on minor committees and, although he usually voted with the party, was known as a Progressive Republican, voting in favor of such measures as women's suffrage and the direct election of Senators. Throughout his time in Boston, Coolidge found himself allied primarily with the western Winthrop Murray Crane faction of the state Republican Party, as against the Henry Cabot Lodge-dominated eastern faction. In 1907, he was elected to a second term. In the 1908 session, Coolidge was more outspoken, but was still not one of the leaders in the legislature.

Instead of vying for another term in the State House, Coolidge returned home to his growing family and ran for mayor of Northampton when the incumbent Democrat retired. He was well liked in the town, and defeated his challenger by a vote of 1,597 to 1,409. During his first term (1910 to 1911), he increased teachers' salaries and retired some of the city's debt while still managing to effect a slight tax decrease. He was renominated in 1911, and defeated the same opponent by a slightly larger margin.

In 1911, the State Senator for the Hampshire County area retired and encouraged Coolidge to run for his seat for the 1912 session. He defeated his Democratic opponent by a large margin. At the start of that term, Coolidge was selected to be chairman of a committee to arbitrate the "Bread and Roses" strike by the workers of the American Woolen Company in Lawrence, Massachusetts. After two tense months, the company agreed to the workers' demands in a settlement the committee proposed. The other major issue for Republicans that year was the party split between the progressive wing, which favored Theodore Roosevelt, and the conservative wing, which favored William Howard Taft. Although he favored some progressive measures, Coolidge refused to leave the Republican party. When the new Progressive Party declined to run a candidate in his state senate district, Coolidge won reelection against his Democratic opponent by an increased margin.

The 1913 session was less eventful, and Coolidge's time was mostly spent on the railroad committee, of which he was the chairman. Coolidge intended to retire after the 1913 session, as two terms were the norm, but when the President of the State Senate, Levi H. Greenwood, considered running for Lieutenant Governor, Coolidge decided to run again for the Senate in the hopes of being elected as its presiding officer. Although Greenwood later decided to run for reelection to the Senate, he was defeated and Coolidge was elected, with Crane's help, as the President of a closely divided Senate. After his election in January 1914, Coolidge delivered a speech entitled ''Have Faith in Massachusetts'', which summarized his philosophy of government. It was later published in a book, and frequently quoted.

Coolidge's speech was well-received and he attracted some admirers on its account. Towards the end of the term, many of them were proposing his name for nomination to lieutenant governor. After winning reelection to the Senate by an increased margin in the 1914 elections, Coolidge was reelected unanimously to be President of the Senate. As the 1915 session ended, Coolidge's supporters, led by fellow Amherst alumnus Frank Stearns, encouraged him again to run for lieutenant governor. This time, he accepted their advice.

Lieutenant Governor

Coolidge entered the primary election for lieutenant governor and was nominated to run alongside gubernatorial candidate Samuel W. McCall. Coolidge was the leading vote-getter in the Republican primary, and balanced the Republican ticket by adding a western presence to McCall's eastern base of support. McCall and Coolidge won the 1915 election, with Coolidge defeating his opponent by more than 50,000 votes.

Coolidge's duties as lieutenant governor were few; in Massachusetts, the lieutenant governor does not preside over the state Senate, although Coolidge did become an ''ex officio'' member of the governor's cabinet. As a full-time elected official, Coolidge no longer practiced law after 1916, though his family continued to live in Northampton. McCall and Coolidge were both reelected in 1916 and again in 1917 (At the time, both offices were held for one-year terms). When McCall decided that he would not stand for a fourth term, Coolidge announced his intention to run for governor.

Governor of Massachusetts

1918 election

Coolidge was unopposed for the Republican nomination for Governor of Massachusetts in 1918. He and his running mate, Channing Cox, a Boston lawyer and Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, ran on the previous administration's record: fiscal conservatism, a vague opposition to Prohibition, support for women's suffrage, and support for American involvement in World War I. The issue of the war proved divisive, especially among Irish- and German-Americans. Coolidge was elected by a margin of 16,773 votes over his opponent, Richard H. Long, in the smallest margin of victory of any of his state-wide campaigns.

Boston police strike

In 1919, in response to rumors that policemen of the Boston Police Department planned to form a union, Police Commissioner Edwin U. Curtis issued a statement saying that such a move would not be tolerated. In August of that year, the American Federation of Labor issued a charter to the Boston Police Union. Curtis said the union's leaders were insubordinate and planned to relieve them of duty, but said that he would suspend the sentence if the union was dissolved by September 4. The mayor of Boston, Andrew Peters, convinced Curtis to delay his action for a few days, but Curtis ultimately suspended the union leaders on September 8. The following day, about three-quarters of the policemen in Boston went on strike. Coolidge had observed the situation throughout the conflict, but had not yet intervened. That night and the next, there was sporadic violence and rioting in the lawless city. Peters, concerned about sympathy strikes, had called up some units of the Massachusetts National Guard stationed in the Boston area and relieved Curtis of duty. Coolidge, furious that the mayor had called out ''state'' guard units, finally acted. He called up more units of the National Guard, restored Curtis to office, and took personal control of the police force. Curtis proclaimed that all of the strikers were fired from their jobs, and Coolidge called for a new police force to be recruited.

That night Coolidge received a telegram from AFL leader Samuel Gompers. "Whatever disorder has occurred", Gompers wrote, "is due to Curtis's order in which the right of the policemen has been denied …" Coolidge publicly answered Gompers's telegram with the response that would launch him into the national consciousness (quoted, above left). Newspapers across the nation picked up on Coolidge's statement and he became the newest hero to opponents of the strike. In the midst of the First Red Scare, many Americans were terrified of the spread of communist revolution, like those that had taken place in Russia, Hungary, and Germany. While Coolidge had lost some friends among organized labor, conservatives across the nation had seen a rising star. Although he usually acted with deliberation, the Boston police strike gave him a national reputation as a man who would take decisive action.

1919 election

Coolidge and Cox were renominated for their respective offices in 1919. By this time Coolidge's supporters (especially Stearns) had publicized his actions in the Police Strike around the state and the nation and some of Coolidge's speeches were published in book form. He faced the same opponent as in 1918, Richard Long, but this time Coolidge defeated him by 125,101 votes, more than seven times his margin of victory from a year earlier. His actions in the police strike, combined with the massive electoral victory, led to suggestions that Coolidge run for President in 1920.

Legislation and vetoes as governor

By the time Coolidge was inaugurated on January 2, 1919, the First World War had ended, and Coolidge pushed the legislature to give a $100 bonus to Massachusetts veterans. He also signed a bill reducing the work week for women and children from fifty-four hours to forty-eight, saying, "We must humanize the industry, or the system will break down." He signed into law a budget that kept the tax rates the same, while trimming four million dollars from expenditures, thus allowing the state to retire some of its debt.

Coolidge also wielded the veto pen as governor. His most publicized veto was of a bill that would have increased legislators' pay by 50%. Although Coolidge was personally opposed to Prohibition, he vetoed a bill in May 1920 that would have allowed the sale of beer or wine of 2.75% alcohol or less, in Massachusetts in violation of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. "Opinions and instructions do not outmatch the Constitution," he said in his veto message, "Against it, they are void."

Vice Presidency

1920 election

At the 1920 Republican National Convention most of the delegates were selected by state party conventions, not primaries. As such, the field was divided among many local favorites. Coolidge was one such candidate, and while he placed as high as sixth in the voting, the powerful party bosses never considered him a serious candidate. After ten ballots, the delegates settled on Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio as their nominee for President. When the time came to select a Vice Presidential nominee, the party bosses had also made a decision on who they would nominate: Senator Irvine Lenroot of Wisconsin. A delegate from Oregon, Wallace McCamant, having read ''Have Faith in Massachusetts'', proposed Coolidge for Vice President instead. The suggestion caught on quickly, and Coolidge found himself unexpectedly nominated.

The Democrats nominated another Ohioan, James M. Cox, for President and the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin D. Roosevelt, for Vice President. The question of the United States joining the League of Nations was a major issue in the campaign, as was the unfinished legacy of Progressivism. Harding ran a "front-porch" campaign from his home in Marion, Ohio, but Coolidge took to the campaign trail in the Upper South, New York, and New England. On November 2, 1920, Harding and Coolidge were victorious in a landslide, winning every state outside the South. They also won in Tennessee, the first time a Republican ticket had won a Southern state since Reconstruction.

"Silent Cal"

The Vice-Presidency did not carry many official duties, but Coolidge was invited by President Harding to attend cabinet meetings, making him the first Vice President to do so. He gave speeches around the country, but none were especially noteworthy.

As Vice-President, Coolidge and his vivacious wife Grace were invited to quite a few parties, where the legend of "Silent Cal" was born. It is from this time that most of the jokes and anecdotes involving Coolidge originate. Although Coolidge was known to be a skilled and effective public speaker, in private he was a man of few words and was therefore commonly referred to as "Silent Cal." A possibly apocryphal story has it that Dorothy Parker, seated next to him at a dinner, said to him, "Mr. Coolidge, I've made a bet against a fellow who said it was impossible to get more than two words out of you." His famous reply: "You lose." It was also Parker who, upon learning that Coolidge had died, reportedly remarked, "How can they tell?" Alice Roosevelt Longworth supposedly once commented that, "He looks as if he'd been weaned on a pickle." Coolidge often seemed uncomfortable among fashionable Washington society; when asked why he continued to attend so many of their dinner parties, he replied, "Got to eat somewhere."

As President, Coolidge's reputation as a quiet man continued. "The words of a President have an enormous weight," he would later write, "and ought not to be used indiscriminately." Coolidge was aware of his stiff reputation; indeed, he cultivated it. "I think the American people want a solemn ass as a President," he once told Ethel Barrymore, "and I think I will go along with them." However, he did hold a then-record number of presidential press conferences, 520 during his presidency. Some historians would later suggest that Coolidge's image was created deliberately as a campaign tactic, while others believe his withdrawn and quiet behavior to be natural, deepening after the death of his son in 1924.

Presidency 1923–1929

Succession to the Presidency

On August 2, 1923, President Harding died while on a speaking tour in California. Vice-President Coolidge was in Vermont visiting his family home, which had neither electricity nor a telephone, when he received word by messenger of Harding's death. Coolidge dressed, said a prayer, and came downstairs to greet the reporters who had assembled. His father, a notary public, administered the oath of office in the family's parlor by the light of a kerosene lamp at 2:47 am on August 3, 1923; Coolidge then went back to bed. Coolidge returned to Washington the next day, and was re-sworn by Justice Adolph A. Hoehling, Jr. of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, as there was some confusion over whether a state notary public had the authority to administer the presidential oath.

Finishing Harding's term

The nation did not know what to make of its new President; Coolidge had not stood out in the Harding administration and many had expected him to be replaced on the ballot in 1924. He appointed C. Bascom Slemp, a Virginia Congressman and experienced federal politician to work jointly with Edward T. Clark, a Massachusetts Republican organizer whom he retained from his vice presidential staff, as Secretaries to the President (a position equivalent to the modern White House Chief of Staff). Although many of Harding's cabinet appointees were scandal-tarred, Coolidge announced that he would not demand any of their resignations, believing that since the people had elected Harding, he should carry on Harding's presidency, at least until the next election.

He addressed Congress when it reconvened on December 6, 1923, giving a speech that echoed many of Harding's themes, including immigration restriction and the need for the government to arbitrate the coal strikes then ongoing in Pennsylvania. Coolidge's speech was the first Presidential speech to be broadcast to the nation over the radio The Washington Naval Treaty was proclaimed just one month into Coolidge's term, and was generally well received in the country. In May 1924, the World War I veterans' World War Adjusted Compensation Act or "Bonus Bill" was passed over his veto. Coolidge signed the Immigration Act later that year, though he appended a signing statement expressing his unhappiness with the bill's specific exclusion of Japanese immigrants. Just before the Republican Convention began, Coolidge signed into law the Revenue Act of 1924, which decreased personal income tax rates while increasing the estate tax, and creating a gift tax to reinforce the transfer tax system.

1924 election

The Republican Convention was held from June 10–12, 1924 in Cleveland, Ohio; President Coolidge was nominated on the first ballot. The convention nominated Frank Lowden of Illinois for Vice President on the second ballot, but he declined by telegram. Former Brigadier General Charles G. Dawes, who would win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1925, was nominated on the third ballot; he accepted.

The Democrats held their convention from June 24 to July 9 in New York City. The convention soon deadlocked, and after 103 ballots, the delegates finally agreed on a compromise candidate, John W. Davis, with Charles W. Bryan nominated for Vice President. The Democrats' hopes were buoyed when Robert M. La Follette, Sr., a Republican Senator from Wisconsin, split from his party to form a new Progressive Party. Many believed that the split in the Republican party, like the one in 1912, would allow a Democrat to win the Presidency.

Shortly after the conventions Coolidge experienced a personal tragedy. Coolidge's younger son, Calvin, Jr., developed a blister from playing tennis on the White House courts. The blister became infected, and within days Calvin, Jr. developed sepsis and died. After that Coolidge became withdrawn. He later said that "when he died, the power and glory of the Presidency went with him." In spite of his sadness, Coolidge ran his conventional campaign; he never maligned his opponents (or even mentioned them by name) and delivered speeches on his theory of government, including several that were broadcast over radio. It was easily the most subdued campaign since 1896, partly because the President was grieving for his son, but partly because Coolidge's style was naturally non-confrontational. The other candidates campaigned in a more modern fashion, but despite the split in the Republican party, the results were very similar to those of 1920. Coolidge and Dawes won every state outside the South except for Wisconsin, La Follette's home state. Coolidge had a popular vote majority of 2.5 million over his opponents' combined total.

Industry and trade

During Coolidge's presidency the United States experienced the period of rapid economic growth known as the "Roaring Twenties". He left the administration's industrial policy in the hands of his activist Secretary of Commerce, Herbert Hoover, who energetically used government auspices to promote business efficiency and develop airlines and radio. With the exception of favoring increased tariffs, Coolidge disdained regulation, and carried about this belief by appointing commissioners to the Federal Trade Commission and the Interstate Commerce Commission who did little to restrict the activities of businesses under their jurisdiction. The regulatory state under Coolidge was, as one biographer described it, "thin to the point of invisibility."

Coolidge's economic policy has often been misquoted as "generally speaking, the business of the American people is business" (full quotation at right). Some have criticized Coolidge as an adherent of the laissez-faire ideology, which they claim led to the Great Depression. On the other hand, historian Robert Sobel offers some context based on Coolidge's sense of federalism: "As Governor of Massachusetts, Coolidge supported wages and hours legislation, opposed child labor, imposed economic controls during World War I, favored safety measures in factories, and even worker representation on corporate boards. Did he support these measures while president? No, because in the 1920s, such matters were considered the responsibilities of state and local governments."

Taxation

Coolidge's taxation policy was that of his Secretary of the Treasury, Andrew Mellon: taxes should be lower and fewer people should have to pay them. Congress agreed, and the taxes were reduced in Coolidge's term. In addition to these tax cuts, Coolidge proposed reductions in federal expenditures and retiring some of the federal debt. Coolidge's ideas were shared by the Republicans in Congress, and in 1924 Congress passed the Revenue Act of 1924, which reduced income tax rates and eliminated all income taxation for some two million people. They reduced taxes again by passing the Revenue Acts of 1926 and 1928, all the while continuing to keep spending down so as to reduce the overall federal debt. By 1927, only the richest 2% of taxpayers paid any federal income tax. Although federal spending remained flat during Coolidge's administration, allowing one-fourth of the federal debt to be retired, state and local governments saw considerable growth, surpassing the federal budget in 1927.

Farm subsidies

Perhaps the most contentious issue of Coolidge's presidency was that of relief for farmers. Some in Congress proposed a bill designed to fight falling agricultural prices by allowing the federal government to purchase crops to sell abroad at lowered prices. Agriculture Secretary Henry C. Wallace and other administration officials favored the bill when it was introduced in 1924, but rising prices convinced many in Congress that the bill was unnecessary, and it was defeated just before the elections that year. In 1926, with farm prices falling once more, Senator Charles L. McNary and Representative Gilbert N. Haugen—both Republicans—proposed the McNary-Haugen Farm Relief Bill. The bill proposed a federal farm board that would purchase surplus production in high-yield years and hold it (when feasible) for later sale, or sell it abroad. Coolidge opposed McNary-Haugen, declaring that agriculture must stand "on an independent business basis," and said that "government control cannot be divorced from political control." He favored instead Herbert Hoover's proposal to modernize agriculture to create profits, instead of manipulating prices. Secretary Mellon wrote a letter denouncing the McNary-Haugen measure as unsound and likely to cause inflation, and it was defeated.

After McNary-Haugen's defeat, Coolidge supported a less radical measure, the Curtis-Crisp Act, which would have created a federal board to lend money to farm co-operatives in times of surplus; the bill did not pass. In February 1927, Congress took up the McNary-Haugen bill again, this time narrowly passing it. Coolidge vetoed it. In his veto message, he expressed the belief that the bill would do nothing to help farmers, benefitting only exporters and expanding the federal bureaucracy. Congress did not override the veto, but passed the bill again in May 1928 by an increased majority; again, Coolidge vetoed it. "Farmers never have made much money," said Coolidge, the Vermont farmer's son, "I do not believe we can do much about it."

Flood control

Coolidge has often been criticized for his actions during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, the worst natural disaster to hit the Gulf Coast until Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Although he did eventually name Secretary Hoover to a commission in charge of flood relief, Coolidge's lack of interest in federal flood control has been criticized. Coolidge did not believe that personally visiting the region after the floods would accomplish anything, but would be seen only as political grandstanding. He also did not want to incur the federal spending that flood control would require; he believed property owners should bear much of the cost. On the other hand, Congress wanted a bill that would place the federal government completely in charge of flood mitigation. When Congress passed a compromise measure in 1928, Coolidge declined to take credit for it and signed the bill in private on May 15.

Civil rights

Coolidge spoke out in favor of the civil rights of African Americans and Catholics. He appointed no known members of the Ku Klux Klan to office; indeed the Klan lost most of its influence during his term.

In 1924, Coolidge responded to a letter that claimed the United States was a "white man's country":

On June 2, 1924, Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, which granted full U.S. citizenship to all American Indians, while permitting them to retain tribal land and cultural rights. However, the act was unclear on whether the federal government or the tribal leaders retained tribal sovereignty. Coolidge repeatedly called for anti-lynching laws to be enacted, but most Congressional attempts to pass this legislation were filibustered by Southern Democrats.

Coolidge appointed some African Americans to federal office. He retained Harding's choice of Walter L. Cohen of New Orleans, Louisiana, as the comptroller of customs and offered Cohen the post of minister to Liberia, which the businessman declined.

Foreign policy

left|thumb|Official White House portrait of Calvin CoolidgeAlthough not an isolationist, Coolidge was reluctant to enter into foreign alliances. Coolidge saw the landslide Republican victory of 1920 as a rejection of the Wilsonian idea that the United States should join the League of Nations. While not completely opposed to the idea, Coolidge believed the League, as then constituted, did not serve American interests, and he did not advocate membership in it. He spoke in favor of the United States joining the Permanent Court of International Justice, provided that the nation would not be bound by advisory decisions. The Senate eventually approved joining the Court (with reservations) in 1926. The League of Nations accepted the reservations, but suggested some modifications of their own. The Senate failed to act; the United States never joined the World Court.

Coolidge's best-known initiative was the Kellogg-Briand Pact of 1928, named for Coolidge's Secretary of State, Frank B. Kellogg, and French foreign minister Aristide Briand. The treaty, ratified in 1929, committed signatories including the U.S., the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan to "renounce war, as an instrument of national policy in their relations with one another." The treaty did not achieve its intended result the outlawry of war but did provide the founding principle for international law after World War II.

Coolidge continued the previous administration's policy not to recognize the Soviet Union. He also continued the United States' support for the elected government of Mexico against the rebels there, lifting the arms embargo on that country. He sent his close friend Dwight Morrow to Mexico as the American ambassador. Coolidge represented the U.S. at the Pan American Conference in Havana, Cuba, making him the only sitting U.S. President to visit the country. The United States' occupation of Nicaragua and Haiti continued under his administration, but Coolidge withdrew American troops from the Dominican Republic in 1924.

1928 Election

In the summer of 1927, Coolidge vacationed in the Black Hills of South Dakota, where he engaged in horseback riding and fly fishing and attended rodeos. He made Custer State Park his "summer White House". News coverage of Coolidge's time in the Black Hills soon increased tourism in the general region and promoted the popularity of Wind Cave National Park. While on vacation, Coolidge surprisingly issued his terse statement that he would not seek a second full term as President in 1928: "I do not choose to run for President in 1928." After allowing the reporters to take that in, Coolidge elaborated. "If I take another term, I will be in the White House till 1933 … Ten years in Washington is longer than any other man has had it—too long!" In his memoirs, Coolidge explained his decision not to run: "The Presidential office takes a heavy toll of those who occupy it and those who are dear to them. While we should not refuse to spend and be spent in the service of our country, it is hazardous to attempt what we feel is beyond our strength to accomplish." After leaving office, he and Grace returned to Northampton, where he wrote his memoirs. The Republicans retained the White House in 1928 in the person of Coolidge's Secretary of Commerce, Herbert Hoover.

Coolidge had been reluctant to choose Hoover as his successor; on one occasion he remarked that "for six years that man has given me unsolicited advice—all of it bad." Even so, Coolidge had no desire to split the party by publicly opposing the popular Commerce Secretary's nomination. The delegates did consider nominating Vice President Charles Dawes to be Hoover's running mate, but the convention selected Senator Charles Curtis instead.

Cabinet

Judicial appointments

Supreme Court

Coolidge appointed one Justice to the Supreme Court of the United States, Harlan Fiske Stone in 1925. Stone was Coolidge's fellow Amherst alumnus, a Wall Street lawyer and conservative Republican. Stone was serving as dean of Columbia Law School when Coolidge appointed him to be Attorney General in 1924 to restore the reputation tarnished by Harding's Attorney General, Harry M. Daugherty. Coolidge named Stone to the Supreme Court in 1925. Stone was later appointed Chief Justice by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Other courts

Along with his Supreme Court appointment, Coolidge successfully nominated 17 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals, and 61 judges to the United States district courts. He appointed judges to various specialty courts as well, including Genevieve R. Cline, who became the first woman named to the Federal judiciary when Coolidge placed her on the United States Customs Court in 1928. Coolidge also signed the Judiciary Act of 1925 into law, allowing the Supreme Court more discretion over its workload.

Retirement and death

After his presidency, Coolidge retired to his beloved Northampton home, "The Beeches," where he became a local fixture. He kept a Hacker runabout boat on the Connecticut River and was often observed on the water by local boating enthusiasts. During this period he also served as chairman of the non-partisan Railroad Commission, as honorary president of the American Foundation for the Blind, as a director of New York Life Insurance Company, as president of the American Antiquarian Society, and as a trustee of Amherst College. Coolidge received an honorary Doctor of Laws from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.

Coolidge published his autobiography in 1929 and wrote a syndicated newspaper column, "Calvin Coolidge Says," from 1930 to 1931. Faced with looming defeat in 1932, some Republicans spoke of rejecting Herbert Hoover as their party's nominee, and instead drafting Coolidge to run, but the former President made it clear that he was not interested in running again, and that he would publicly repudiate any effort to draft him, should it come about. Hoover was renominated, and Coolidge made several radio addresses in support of him.

He died suddenly of a heart attack at "The Beeches," at 12:45 pm, January 5, 1933. Shortly before his death, Coolidge confided to an old friend: "I feel I no longer fit in with these times."

Coolidge is buried beneath a simple headstone in Notch Cemetery, Plymouth Notch, Vermont, where the family home is maintained as one of the original buildings on the site, all of which comprise the Calvin Coolidge Homestead District. The State of Vermont dedicated a new visitors' center nearby to mark Coolidge's 100th birthday on July 4, 1972. Calvin Coolidge's "Brave Little State of Vermont speech" is memorialized in the Hall of Inscriptions at the Vermont State House in Montpelier, Vermont.

Radio, film, and commemorations

Despite his reputation as a quiet and even reclusive politician, Coolidge made use of the new medium of radio and made radio history several times while President. He made himself available to reporters, giving 529 press conferences, meeting with reporters more regularly than any President before or since.

Coolidge's inauguration was the first presidential inauguration broadcast on radio. On December 6, 1923, he was the first President whose address to Congress was broadcast on radio. On February 22, 1924, he became the first President of the United States to deliver a political speech on radio. Coolidge signed the Radio Act of 1927, which assigned regulation of radio to the newly created Federal Radio Commission.

On August 11, 1924, Lee De Forest filmed Coolidge on the White House lawn with DeForest's Phonofilm sound-on-film process, becoming the first President to appear in a sound film. The title of the DeForest film was ''President Coolidge, Taken on the White House Grounds''.

Coolidge was the only president to have his portrait on a coin during his lifetime, the Sesquicentennial of American Independence Half Dollar, minted in 1926. After his death he also appeared on a postage stamp, pictured below.

See also

SS President Coolidge

Coolidge, Arizona

Coolidge Dam

Notes

References

Primary sources

Scholarly sources

Buckley, Kerry W. "'A President for the "Great Silent Majority': Bruce Barton's Construction of Calvin Coolidge." ''New England Quarterly'' 2003 76(4): 593-626. Issn: 0028-4866 Fulltext: in Jstor

Felzenberg, Alvin S. "Calvin Coolidge and Race: His Record in Dealing with the Racial Tensions of the 1920s." ''New England Journal of History'' 1998 55(1): 83-96.

Gilbert, Robert E. "Calvin Coolidge's Tragic Presidency: the Political Effects of Bereavement and Depression." ''Journal of American Studies'' 2005 39(1): 87-109. Issn: 0021-8758 Fulltext: in Cambridge and Swetswise

Gilbert, Robert E. ''The Tormented President: Calvin Coolidge, Death, and Clinical Depression.'' Praeger, 2003. 288pp

excerpt and text search

Haynes, John Earl, ed. ''Calvin Coolidge and the Coolidge Era: Essays on the History of the 1920s.'' Library of Congress, 1998. 329 pp. essays by scholars

Other

An academic conference on Coolidge was held July 30–31, 1998, at the John F. Kennedy Library to mark the 75th anniversary of his lantern-light homestead inaugural.

External links

Audio and video

Category:1872 births Category:1933 deaths Category:Amherst College alumni Category:American Congregationalists Category:American people of English descent Category:Articles containing video clips Calvin Coolidge Category:College Republicans Category:Coolidge family Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Governors of Massachusetts Category:Lieutenant Governors of Massachusetts Category:Massachusetts city council members Category:Massachusetts lawyers Category:Massachusetts State Senators Category:Mayors of places in Massachusetts Category:Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Category:People from Northampton, Massachusetts Category:Plymouth, Vermont Category:Presidents of the United States Category:Republican Party (United States) presidential nominees Category:Republican Party (United States) vice presidential nominees Category:Republican Party Presidents of the United States Category:Republican Party state governors of the United States Category:Republican Party Vice Presidents of the United States Category:St. Johnsbury Academy alumni Category:United States presidential candidates, 1920 Category:United States presidential candidates, 1924 Category:United States presidential candidates, 1932 Category:United States vice-presidential candidates, 1920 Category:Vice Presidents of the United States

am:ካልቪን ኩሊጅ ar:كالفين كوليدج an:Calvin Coolidge az:Kalvin Kulic bn:ক্যালভিন কুলিজ zh-min-nan:Calvin Coolidge be:Кальвін Кулідж be-x-old:Кальвін Кулідж bcl:Calvin Coolidge bs:Calvin Coolidge br:Calvin Coolidge bg:Калвин Кулидж ca:Calvin Coolidge ceb:Calvin Coolidge cs:Calvin Coolidge co:Calvin Coolidge cy:Calvin Coolidge da:Calvin Coolidge de:Calvin Coolidge dv:ކެލްވިން ކޫލިޖް et:Calvin Coolidge es:Calvin Coolidge eo:Calvin Coolidge eu:Calvin Coolidge fa:جان کالوین کولیج fr:Calvin Coolidge ga:Calvin Coolidge gv:Calvin Coolidge gd:Calvin Coolidge gl:John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. ko:캘빈 쿨리지 hi:कालविन कूलिज hr:Calvin Coolidge io:Calvin Coolidge id:Calvin Coolidge is:Calvin Coolidge it:Calvin Coolidge he:קלווין קולידג' pam:Calvin Coolidge ka:კალვინ კულიჯი rw:Calvin Coolidge sw:Calvin Coolidge la:Calvinus Coolidge lv:Kelvins Kūlidžs lt:Calvin Coolidge hu:Calvin Coolidge mr:कॅल्विन कूलिज ms:Calvin Coolidge nl:Calvin Coolidge ja:カルビン・クーリッジ no:Calvin Coolidge nn:Calvin Coolidge oc:Calvin Coolidge pnb:کیلون کولج pl:Calvin Coolidge pt:Calvin Coolidge ro:Calvin Coolidge rm:Calvin Coolidge ru:Кулидж, Джон Калвин sq:Calvin Coolidge scn:Calvin Coolidge simple:Calvin Coolidge sk:Calvin Coolidge sl:Calvin Coolidge sr:Калвин Кулиџ sh:Calvin Coolidge fi:Calvin Coolidge sv:Calvin Coolidge tl:Calvin Coolidge ta:கால்வின் கூலிஜ் th:แคลวิน คูลิดจ์ tr:Calvin Coolidge uk:Калвін Кулідж ur:کیلون کولج vi:Calvin Coolidge war:Calvin Coolidge yi:זשאן קעלווין קולידזש yo:Calvin Coolidge zh:卡尔文·柯立芝

name	Will Hay
birth name	William Thomson Hay
birth date	December 06, 1888
birth place	Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England
death date	April 18, 1949
death place	Chelsea, London, England
death cause	Stroke
resting place	Streatham Park Cemetery, London
occupation	Actor, comedian, film director, astronomer
years active	1933–1944
spouse	Gladys Perkins (1907-1935) (divorced)
children	Gladys Elspeth Hay (b. 1909)William E. Hay (b. 1913)Joan A. Hay (b. 1917) }}

William Thomson "Will" Hay (6 December 1888 – 18 April 1949) was an English comedian, actor, film director and amateur astronomer.

Early life

He was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England to William R. Hay and his wife Elizabeth but moved to Suffolk at an early age.

Hay was educated at Gardner Street Higher Grade School in Pendleton, a suburb of Salford — then in Lancashire, but now within Greater Manchester.

Stage and Film career

Hay was trained as an engineer and joined a firm of engineers but at the age of 21 he gave up that profession for the stage, starting in Manchester, as a juggler, self-taught after seeing W C Fields doing it in a film. Later, he took up acting. He had a relatively brief screen career: by the time he made his first film he was in his mid-40s and an established music hall artist, and his last role came less than a decade later. But between 1934 and 1943 he was a prolific and popular film comedian. He was credited on several films as a writer or co-ordinator, and was arguably the dominant "author" of all the films in which he appeared, in that they were built around his persona and depended on the character and routines he had developed over years on the stage.

He worked at the British film studios of Elstree, then Gainsborough, then Ealing; the Gainsborough period was the most consistently successful, particularly when he worked with the team of Marcel Varnel (director), Val Guest and Marriott Edgar (writers), and Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt (supporting cast) - as on the railway film ''Oh, Mr Porter!'' (1937), his most fondly remembered picture with its catchphrase, 'The next train's gone!', spoken by Marriott as the decrepit old deputy stationmaster. Hay decided to break up the partnership with Moffatt and Marriott and brought in Claude Hulbert as his side-kick for ''The Ghost of St. Michael's'' (1941). ''The Goose Steps Out'' for Ealing (1942) was an effective anti-Nazi piece of slapstick, and while he was never quite the same again without Moffatt and Marriott, ''My Learned Friend'' (1943) again with Hulbert, is considered a masterpiece of black comedy which some regard as his best.

Radio career

The half hour weekly Will Hay Programme began in August 1944, and was broadcast live from the Paris Cinema, which still exists in a basement just off Piccadilly Circus. There, St. Michael's schoolmaster Dr. Muffin (referred to by his students as Old Crumpet) barely kept a kind of order from his desk, perched slightly higher from his unruly students, Charles Hawtrey who played the cheeky Smart (later to go on to the Carry On films), John Clark, a child actor who played the annoying swot D'arcy Minor (later to gain fame as Just William), and an air force recruit, Billy Nichols, who on his days off played the really dumb schoolboy, Beckett. The series lasted about four months, and was prematurely cancelled, owing, it was said, to a dispute with the BBC over scripts. But it found a continuing life on the music hall stage, at the top of the bill at London's Victoria Palace.

The cast was brought together one last time for an all variety anticipatory celebration at midnight on 4 May 1945 for the Royal Family and many military notables at a private function at the Life Guards barracks in Windsor, which featured the leading comics of the day. The war in Europe ended just four days later. This may also have been Will Hay's last performance prior to his illness, and his son Will Hay, Jr. carried on his father's act for a while.

Private life

Aside from his day job as a comedian, Hay was a dedicated and respected amateur astronomer. His personal observatory sat in his garden in Mill Hill, the dome very visible from the main Hendon Road. He became a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1932. He is noted for having discovered a white spot on the planet Saturn in 1933; the spot lasted for a few months and then faded. He also measured the positions of comets with a micrometer he built himself, and designed and built a blink comparator. He wrote the book ''Through My Telescope'' in 1935, which had an impressive foreword by Sir Richard Gregory FRS, formerly Emeritus Professor of Astronomy at Queen's College, London. At Hay's death, a few items of his equipment were bequeathed to the British Astronomical Association.

He was also one of Britain's first private pilots and gave flying lessons to Amy Johnson. In 1942, as part of the war effort, he joined the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), serving in the Special Branch as a sub-lieutenant. He was able to put his hobby to practical use when he later became an instructor in astronomy and navigation with the Sea Cadet Corps.

He was a polyglot and, before entering the acting profession full time, was an accomplished translator - fluent in French, German, Latin, Italian, Norwegian and Afrikaans.

As a favourite trick for his friends, he would write rapidly seeming nonsense on a blackboard, look at it thoughtfully for a minute with a puzzled expression, then turn the blackboard upside down and there would be a perfectly written statement of some kind. And he could take someone's dictation, and repeat the trick.

He married Gladys Perkins in 1907 but legally separated on 18 November 1935. They had two daughters and a son: Gladys Elspeth Hay (b. 1909), William E. Hay (b. 1913), and Joan A. Hay (b. 1917).

In 1947, Hay suffered a stroke which left him physically disabled. He died at his flat in Chelsea, London after a further stroke in 1949 and is buried in Streatham Park Cemetery, London SW16.

Filmography

''Playmates (Around the Town)'' (1922) (A silent short)

''Know Your Apples'' (1933) (A short and lost film)

''Those Were The Days'' (1934)

''Radio Parade of 1935'' (1934)

''Dandy Dick'' (1935)

''Boys Will Be Boys'' (1935)

''Windbag the Sailor'' (1936)

''Where There's a Will'' (1936)

''Oh, Mr. Porter!'' (1937)

''Good Morning, Boys'' (1937)

''Hey! Hey! USA!'' (1938)

''Old Bones of the River'' (1938)

''Ask A Policeman'' (1939)

''Convict 99'' (1939)

''The Big Blockade'' (1940)

''Where's That Fire?'' (1940)

''The Ghost of St. Michael's'' (1941)

''Go to Blazes'' (1942)

''The Goose Steps Out'' (1942)

''The Black Sheep of Whitehall'' (1942)

''My Learned Friend'' (1943)

See also

Radio comedy

Cinema of the United Kingdom

List of British actors and actresses

English film directors

Notes

Further reading

''Will Hay'' by Graham Rinaldi with foreword by Ken Dodd, Tomahawk Press, 2009

External links

Will Hay.Comic Genius

Astronomical obituary MNRAS 110 (1950) 130 - NB: this biography wrongly gives Hay's middle name as ''Thompson'' - it was ''Thomson''

The Next Train's Gone: Will Hay pages including bio and audio

Radio files

Will Hay and his telescopes: A comprehensive account of Hay's astronomical observations

Category:1888 births Category:1949 deaths Category:English astronomers Category:English comedians Category:English film actors Category:English film directors Category:English stage actors Category:Music hall performers Category:Vaudeville performers Category:People from Stockton-on-Tees Category:Deaths from stroke

bg:Уил Хей de:Will Hay es:Will Hay fr:Will Hay nl:Will Hay

name	Moore Marriott
birthname	George Thomas Moore Marriott
birth date	September 14, 1885
birth place	West Drayton, Middlesex
death date	December 11, 1949
death place	Bognor Regis, West Sussex
occupation	Comedy actor
yearsactive	1912–1949
spouse	}}

Moore Marriott (14 September 1885 – 11 December 1949) was a British character actor most notable for a series of films he made with Will Hay in the 1930s.

Career

Marriott came from a theatrical family and had made his stage debut at the age of five. He had originally intended to train as an architect, but instead he went into films. Rather like Clive Dunn and Wilfrid Brambell later, he became typecast as playing old men when he was still relatively young. He had a special set of artificial teeth which he would put in to play his 'old man' characters. He had no teeth in real life and took four different sets of false teeth with him in order to achieve variety in his characters.

Although he made a huge number of film appearances since 1908, today he is probably best known as old "Harbottle" in a number of comedy films he made with Will Hay and Graham Moffatt, including ''Oh, Mr Porter!'' and ''Ask a Policeman''.

Following the dissolution of the Will Hay/Graham Moffatt/Moore Marriott partnership, he went on to make films with the comedian Arthur Askey and The Crazy Gang, where he continued to play his famous 'Harbottle'-type character. One example was ''I Thank You'', which also starred Kathleen Harrison and Richard Murdoch as well as several other faces who became famous in later years.

His other film appearances included ''Millions Like Us'' (1943) and ''Green for Danger'' (1946).

His cause of death was cardiac syncope, acute pulmonary oedema and chronic myocardiac degeneration due to a previous pneumonia. At the time of his death he was keeping a grocer's store in Bognor Regis. He was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium, where his ashes were also interred.

Partial filmography

''A Maid of the Alps'' (1912)

''By the Shortest of Heads'' (1915)

''Grim Justice'' (1916)

''Lawyer Quince'' (1924)

''Ordeal by Golf'' (1924)

''King of the Castle'' (1925)

''Afraid of Love'' (1925)

''Every Mother's Son'' (1926)

''The Mating of Marcus'' (1926)

''London Love'' (1926)

''Huntingtower'' (1927)

''Sweeney Todd'' (1928)

''The Flying Scotsman'' (1929)

''The Lady from the Sea'' (1929)

''Mr. Smith Wakes Up'' (1929)

''Up for the Cup'' (1931)

''The Lyons Mail'' (1931)

''Aroma of the South Seas'' (1931)

''Dance Pretty Lady'' (1932)

''Hawley's of High Street'' (1933)

''The House of Trent'' (1933)

''The Crime at Blossoms'' (1933)

''Nell Gwynn'' (1934)

''Girls, Please!'' (1934)

''The Feathered Serpent'' (1934)

''Turn of the Tide'' (1935)

''Drake of England'' (1935)

''Dandy Dick'' (1935)

''The Man Without a Face'' (1935)

''Wednesday's Luck'' (1936)

''The Amazing Quest of Ernest Bliss'' (1936)

''As You Like It'' (1936)

''Luck of the Turf'' (1936)

''Talk of the Devil'' (1936)

''Windbag the Sailor'' (1936)

''Feather Your Nest'' (1937)

''Fifty-Shilling Boxer'' (1937)

''The Fatal Hour'' (1937)

''Night Ride'' (1937)

''Oh, Mr. Porter!'' (1937)

''Victoria the Great'' (1937)

''Intimate Relations'' (1937)

''Old Bones of the River'' (1938)

''Owd Bob'' (1938)

''Held for Ransom'' (1938)

''Ask a Policeman'' (1938)

''Convict 99'' (1938)

''Cheer Boys Cheer'' (1939)

''The Frozen Limits'' (1939)

''A Girl Must Live'' (1939)

''Where's That Fire?'' (1940)

''Charley's (Big-Hearted) Aunt'' (1940)

''Band Waggon'' (1940)

''Gasbags'' (1941)

''I Thank You'' (1941)

''Hi Gang!'' (1941)

''Back-Room Boy'' (1942)

''Millions Like Us'' (1943)

''Time Flies'' (1944)

''It Happened One Sunday'' (1944)

''Don't Take It to Heart'' (1944)

''The Agitator'' (1945)

''A Place of One's Own'' (1945)

''I'll Be Your Sweetheart'' (1945)

''Green for Danger'' (1946)

''The Root of All Evil'' (1947)

''Green Fingers'' (1947)

''The Hills of Donegal'' (1947)

''The History of Mr. Polly'' (1949)

''High Jinks in Society'' (1949)

References

External links

Category:1885 births Category:1949 deaths Category:English film actors Category:People from West Drayton

es:Moore Marriott id:Moore Marriott