Ronald Reagan writing to John Coolidge: July 8, 1985.

Reagan thanks John for an inscribed copy of “Return To These Hills” by Jane and Will Curtis and Frank Lieberman. John wrote a forward for the book. The book focused on the “Vermont years of Calvin Coolidge” and featured over 80 photos of Plymouth Notch and president Coolidge’s history. Reagan also says that Clem Conger delivered the book, referring to White House curator Clement Conger. Upon Conger’s death in 2004, the New York Times commented that “He raised millions of dollars… to build the White House collection and restore its public rooms to the grandeur of the late 19th century.”

Reagan also comments to John, “The longer I’m in this job the more I appreciate your father.” Reagan wrote of President Coolidge: “I happen to be an admirer of Silent Cal and believe he has been badly treated by history. I’ve done considerable reading and researching of his presidency. He served his country well and accomplished much.” In his autobiography Reagan writes, “One of the rooms in the White House that benefited from Nancy’s good taste was the Oval Office, which got some new paint, a new floor, and new carpeting. I did my part by hanging up a picture of Calvin Coolidge in the Cabinet Room.” Scholar Colleen Shogan wrote of the connection between the two presidents: “The Coolidge-Reagan ideology can be distilled into three shared principles: the primacy of the individual, the high-minded defense of marginal tax rate reduction, and the relevant role of religion and morality in political society.”