"Silent Cal" had something to say when he laid the cornerstone of the National Press Building

What did Calvin Coolidge say when he laid the National Press Building cornerstone?

A photo of President Coolidge laying the cornerstone of the National Press Building on April 8, 1926, is one of the National Press Club’s iconic images. The Club was struggling to put together the financing to construct the building. Already, William Fox of the Fox Theater Corp. had agreed to advance $500,000 if the building included a movie palace. Charlie Chaplain was one of the witnesses to that agreement.

But more money was still needed if the 14-story building, the largest private commercial office building in the District, was to become a reality. James William Bryan, the driving force behind the building, came up with a scheme to attract new investors.

Why not have the president of the United States lay the cornerstone, giving the impression that the building was underway and the president had endorsed it?

And sure enough, with the Marine Band playing, Coolidge, trowel in hand, helped lay the cornerstone and stepped up to the microphones.

Coolidge, whose nickname was "Silent Cal," was not known for saying much. So, what did he say?

One day while perusing eBay for Club memorabilia, I came across a newspaper the Club had published to commemorate the ceremony. Even though it was so brittle that it crumbled to my touch, I managed to scan all of the pages, including the photo here from Page 2.

On the next page was the complete text of the president’s speech.

Here are some quotes, which still ring true today:

· “The press is one of the cornerstones of liberty.”

· “The press of our country is free because the Constitution guarantees its freedom. If that provision were struck out from our fundamental law, the press would not remain free for an hour.”

· “It is my firm conviction that the press of this country is strong enough, independent enough, and influential enough so that it should seek not to cater to the supposed low and degraded public opinion, but rather to create a noble and inspired public opinion.”

· “Race hatred, class feeling, religious persecution, however these may be exhibited, whether under a form of law or through the force of public opinion, or even in defiance of law, have no justification in reason and are disastrous in their consequences.”

· “Rank partisanship very quickly falls into a distortion or a complete misstatement of the facts, accompanied by arguments which lead to illogical and unsound conclusions … It is very difficult to reconcile a narrow and bitter partisanship with real patriotism.”

P.S. The large black letters, “National Press Building 1926” do not appear in the original photograph taken that day. They were added for emphasis in production of the newspaper. You can check out the original cornerstone in the National Press Building lobby.

This account is another in a series of articles provided by National Press Club historian Gil Klein. Dig down anywhere in the Club’s 110-year history, and you will find some kind of significant event in the history of the world, the nation, Washington and the Club itself. Many of these events were caught in illustrations that tell the stories.