PLYMOUTH NOTCH, Vt. — On Friday July 4th, the President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site celebrates the birth of the nation as well as its 30th president.  The public is invited to gather at the village green at 12:00 noon, when a delegation of the Vermont National Guard leads a march to the Plymouth Notch Cemetery.  There, a wreath from the White House will be placed at the President’s gravesite, and former U.S. Ambassador Peter Galbraith will conduct a brief ceremony with members of the Coolidge family in attendance.   

A chicken barbecue follows at the site’s restaurant, The Wilder House.  At 2:00, acclaimed actor Steve Wood will perform as Abraham Lincoln in the village church.  At 3:30, the Triada Music Festival will give a concert, also in the church.  Both performances are organized by the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation.   Plymouth resident Fred DePaul will offer wagon rides from 10:00 to 5:00, and members of Fiber Arts in Vermont will do “sheep to shawl” demonstrations throughout the day.  This fall, Fiber Arts will raffle the completed shawl and donate the proceeds to the Coolidge State Historic Site for the care and preservation of its textile collection.

Calvin Coolidge is the only U.S. president born on Independence Day, and the event has been commemorated at his birthplace in Plymouth Notch for many decades.     
       
The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, which owns and operates the Coolidge Site, has planned a number of other special events this season including Plymouth Old Home Day (August 2), Plymouth Folk & Blues Concerts (August 30 & 31), and Plymouth Cheese & Harvest Festival (September 20 – selected as a “Top 10 Fall Event” by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce).  Also returning this year are the popular Grace Coolidge Musicales (July 19, August 3, and August 24), made possible through the generous support of the Alma Gibbs Donchian Foundation.  

     A National Historic Landmark, Plymouth Notch is considered one of the best-preserved presidential sites in the country.  Twelve buildings are on the tour, including the Coolidge Homestead, Coolidge Birthplace, general store, village church, cheese factory, and 1924 Summer White House office. An outstanding collection of early agricultural equipment is displayed in the Wilder Barns.

is a fine opportunity to explore Plymouth Notch, birthplace and boyhood home of President Calvin Coolidge. Twelve buildings are open to the public

The President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site is located in Plymouth Notch, on Route 100A and is open 9:30 – 5:30 daily through October 19th.

William Jenney
Regional Administrator
President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site
802-672-3773

THE VERMONT STATE HISTORIC SITES
History Where It Happened