Mike: The First Cat of Massachusetts

While exploring Newspapers.com, I was delighted to stumble upon an article that is about a couple of my favorite subjects, cats and libraries. What was even more captivating is that the cat worked in the State Library!  The December 8, 1920 issue of the Boston Post featured Mike, one of the cats that lived in the Massachusetts State House. Mike was a special cat that made an impression on everyone he encountered in this large and bustling building. 

“The story of his remarkable rise from an abandoned-for-dead alley-way kitten to the stately boss of the State House is a story that every cat at present seeking out meagre existence from garbage boxes should know and draw courage from.” 

Mike was rescued by the State House boiler inspector, Harry Morton. He was nursed back to health and found a home in the State House. The cat earned his keep by hunting and killing the rodents that also occupied this historic building.  

Mike was known to roam the halls and visit all of the departments. Even Governor Calvin Coolidge enjoyed Mike’s company, as the cat would often curl up and sleep on the rug next to the Governor’s feet as he was working at his desk. Whenever Governor Coolidge was away, Mike kept his seat warm and would hold down the official chair. State House staff figured that Mike knew when Governor Coolidge was away and thought it was his responsibility to take the helm.

One day Mike got into a brawl with a very overbearing black cat, and this battle caused quite a stir in the State House. 

“Bits of black fur strewed the marble corridors of the State House, but the cat they came from was seen no more.”  

Then came a threat on Mike's life. The Sergeant-at-Arms of the State House decided there should be no more cats and ordered Mike killed. Despair fell upon Mike's many foster parents in the engine room. Finally, it was decided that Engineer Thompson should take Mike home.

“Word reached the library. Down came the librarian in fury. The State House simply could not get along without Mike. Since his arrival not a single book has had to be rebound. No rat or mouse lived long enough to set tooth in the precious tomes that contained the State's records. Mike had seen to that. Previously hundreds of dollars had to be spent in repairing books.”

The librarian saved the cat’s life, so Mike stayed! On his sixth anniversary with the State House, the engineers presented him with a collar on which was engraved, "Mike--State House."

Hopefully, Mike lived a long life and continued to help the librarians out with his special skills. If you want to read more interesting articles about Massachusetts history, the library will soon be getting Newspapers.com and Ancestry.com to complement its collections. We will let you know soon when these databases are available and give you more details. If you have any questions, please email us at reference.department@mass.gov.

This article was clipped from the Boston Post, Boston MA- December 8, 1920, Wednesday, Page 7.

Coming soon to the State Library! 

 

Dava Davainis

Head of Reference and Information Services

Treasures of the State Library for March 2012- Materials about President Calvin Coolidge

When one thinks of Calvin Coolidge, it is most often of his Presidency. His public service included a long list of political positions, however, beginning with posts as City Councilor and Mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts. He served also as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1907-1908 and he was in the State Senate from 1910-1915, serving as its President from 1914-1915. While Senate President, he was a Trustee of the State Library.

His elections as Lieutenant-Governor and Governor followed before he became Vice President under Warren G. Harding and then President when Harding died in office in August of 1923.

As is the case today, the role of the candidate’s spouse was prominent in the 1920’s, and much was written about Grace Coolidge. The newspaper article on the left refers to one of the major issues of the day, women’s suffrage.

The State Library owns a plethora of material about Coolidge as well as about his wife. Many items are listed in the online catalog. Of great value to those interested in Coolidge’s political careers in Massachusetts and in Washington are some “treasures” -a manuscript collection and scrapbooks- located in the Special Collections department of the State Library.

Scrapbook collection 10 is comprised of 34 volumes of newspaper clippings covering the years 1915 through 1928, with some also concerning his death in 1933. Most are from Massachusetts newspapers and coverage of his political campaigns, beginning with his run for Lieutenant- Governor, is robust. To help the researcher with this newspaper collection, there is a card file which indexes this vast collection.
Manuscript Collection 19, the Calvin Coolidge Papers, has information covering the dates 1895-1933. Holdings include speeches and messages, statements and letters. The scan on the right, concerning Coolidge’s reelection as Senate President was done from an entry in the collection. There are materials about the Boston Police Strike of 1919, one of the most studied events of the Coolidge Governorship.

The collections are available for research in the Library’s Special Collections department, room 55 of the State House. The staff can be reached at 617-727-2595 or email special.collections@state.ma.us


Pamela Schofield
State Library Reference Department