Marcus Allen Coolidge (October 6, 1865January 23, 1947) was a
Democratic United States Senator
The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
representing
from March 4, 1931, to January 3, 1937.
Biography
Coolidge was born in
Westminster, Massachusetts
Westminster is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 8,213.
History
Westminster was first settled by Europeans in 1737, and was officially incorporated in 1759.
Westmin ...
, son of
Frederick Spaulding Coolidge. Through his father, he was descended from both John Coolidge (1604–1691) and
Thomas Hastings who came from the
East Anglia
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...
region of England to the
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...
, in 1630 and 1634 respectively.
After attending public schools and
Bryant & Stratton Commercial College at its former
Boston, Massachusetts, campus, Coolidge worked with his father's company in manufacturing chairs and
rattan
Rattan, also spelled ratan, is the name for roughly 600 species of Old World climbing palms belonging to subfamily Calamoideae. The greatest diversity of rattan palm species and genera are in the closed-canopy old-growth tropical forests of ...
. He later worked in the contracting business, building street railways, water works, and bridges.
In 1916, Coolidge was elected mayor of
Fitchburg, Massachusetts
Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private e ...
. In 1919, President
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
appointed Coolidge as
special envoy
Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...
to
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
to represent the Peace Commission. He became chairman of the Democratic state convention in 1920. That year he was defeated for lieutenant governor by Republican Congressman Alvan T. Fuller. Coolidge also served as trustee and president of the
Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy is a Private school, private, coeducational College preparatory, college-preparatory school for Boarding school, boarding and Day school, day students in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, United States. It serves approximately 400 student ...
at
Ashburnham, Massachusetts
Ashburnham () is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 6,315. It is home to Cushing Academy, a private preparatory boarding school.
Ashburnham contains the census-designated place ...
.
After being elected to the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
in 1930, Coolidge served as chairman of the Committee on Immigration for the
Seventy-third and
Seventy-fourth Congresses, but was not a candidate for renomination in
1936
Events
January–February
* January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...
.
After leaving the Senate, Coolidge returned to Fitchburg and his former business pursuits. He died at St. Francis Hospital in
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...
, in 1947, aged 81, and is interred at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in
Westminster, Massachusetts
Westminster is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 8,213.
History
Westminster was first settled by Europeans in 1737, and was officially incorporated in 1759.
Westmin ...
.
He donated substantial land to the city of Fitchburg for a recreational park located in the north section. The park bearing his last name is the largest in the city and bears an engraved stone memorializing his notable activities and public contributions.
He was a "distant relative" of
Massachusetts Governor
The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces.
Massachusetts ...
and
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...
.
Coolidge was the father-in-law of Secretary of War
Harry Hines Woodring
Harry Hines Woodring (May 31, 1887September 9, 1967) was an American politician. A Democrat, he was the 25th Governor of Kansas and the United States Assistant Secretary of War from 1933 to 1936. His most important role was Secretary of War in P ...
and Mayor Robert E. Greenwood of Fitchburg, Massachusetts.
References
Sources
*
External links
Descendants of Thomas Hastings websiteDescendants of Thomas Hastings on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coolidge, Marcus A.
1865 births
1947 deaths
People from Westminster, Massachusetts
Coolidge family
American people of English descent
American Universalists
Democratic Party United States senators from Massachusetts
Massachusetts Democrats
Mayors of places in Massachusetts
Politicians from Fitchburg, Massachusetts
Politicians from Miami
Bryant and Stratton College alumni