How the President Calvin Coolidge Naming his Dogs

Calvin Coolidge served as the president of the United States from 1924 to 1928, and also as a man who said very little.

Calvin and Grace Coolidge loved dogs very much; they kept a large number of dogs before, during and after their years in the White House. 

The most famous was a white Collie named Rob Roy, purchased from Thomas and Olive shover. President Coolidge especially loved Rob Roy. He let him stay in his room at night, took him to his office every afternoon and to his press conference every Friday. When the president went fishing, Rob Roy would always ride in the boat and bark in a happy way. 

Another one is a female white Collie named Prudence Prim, who ate breakfast cereal with the President every morning. Mrs. Coolidge especially loved Prudence Prim, who was so well-behaved that she could go to White House garden parties. The First Lady made a little straw bonnet with ferns and green ribbons on it for Prudence to wear.

What got me interested are the names of these lovely dogs. Learning these dog names can help us get inspirations on naming our dogs. Let's check these cute dog names one by one. 

Bessie is a yellow collie. 

Source: Bessie is an English diminutive of Elizabeth, Beatrice or Bessandra, and has been so used since the 16th century.

Blackberry is a black Chow Chow. The Coolidges acquired the black chow during a trip to the Black Hills, their summer home in the presidential years and the place where Calvin received horseback riding lessons.

Source: The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the Rubus genus in the Rosaceae family

Beans was a Boston bulldog who arrived and took position as lead dog, which put Rob's nose out of joint so the Coolidges gave Beans to Mrs. Coolidge's mother who lived in Northampton, Massachusetts.

Source: Boston baked beans are a variety of baked beans typically sweetened with molasses or maple syrup and flavored with salt pork or bacon.

Calamity Jane was a Shetland sheepdog originally named Diana of Wildwood, who seems to have been a bit of a tomboy, was noted for getting dirty, and so she became nicknamed Calamity Jane.

Source: Calamity Jane was an American frontierswoman and professional scout, known for her claim of being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok and for fighting Indians.

King Kole was a German shepherd mixed breed of police dog.

Source: "Old King Cole" is a British nursery rhyme most likely deriving from ancient Welsh. The poem describes a merry king who called for his pipe, his bowl, and his three fiddlers.

Palo Alto is an English setter bird dog. 

Source: Palo Alto is a charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area of the United States. It is one of the most expensive cities in the United States and its residents are among the most educated in the country.

Paul Pry was an Airedale terrier that was originally named Laddie Buck. Source: Paul Pry was a farce in three acts, was the most notable play written by 19th-century English playwright John Poole.

Peter Pan was a wire-haired fox terrier, who came with the Coolidges to the White House but he did not like the hustle and bustle of Washington life, so the Coolidges found a quieter home for him.

Source: Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie, and he is a mischievous boy who can fly and never grows up.

Prudence Prim was one of the two collies that joined the family. 

Source: Prudence means cautiousness and Prim means stiffly formal and respectable.

Rob Roy was another white collie who was originally named Oshkosh. Rob Roy came from a long line of sheep herding dogs and it took quite a bit of coaxing to get him to take his first ride up the elevator to the family floor of the White House.

Source: Rob Roy was a famous Scottish folk hero and outlaw of the early 18th century, who is sometimes known as the Scottish Robin Hood.

Ruby Rough was a brown-and-white collie. 

Source: Natural ruby rough is very expensive gemstone.

Tiny Tim was a red chow-chow puppy. The president got him for his birthday, but the dog and the president never really got to like each other, so Tiny Tim became known as Terrible Tim.

Source: Tiny Tim is a fictional character from the 1843 novel A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

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