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Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Coast Guard Academy Class Ring
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA.

Coast Guard Academy Class Ring

Artifact ID1988.00357.01
Object Type Ring
Gifter
Maker (Minneapolis, MN)
Date 1988
Medium Metal (gold), Stone (diamond, synthetic aquamarine)
Dimensions1 5/16 × 1 1/16 × 3/8 in. (32.8 × 27.4 × 9.6 mm)
Physical DescriptionA gold Coast Guard Academy class ring, with a stain finish and a round facet aquamarine colored center stone. The bezel ring is lettered UNITED STATES COAST GUARD ACADEMY and has two diamond chips as dividers. One shank has the year 1988 and a sailing ship. The Academy crest (a winged Eagle and crossed sabers with a book lettered “1876” and ribbons with “SCIENTIAE CEDIT MARE”) is on the other. The ring is engraved "President Ronald Reagan Honorary Member 1988" inside.
Historical NoteThe class ring was given to President Reagan on May 18, 1988, when he addressed U.S. Coast Guard Academy Commencement at Nitchem Field in New London, CT, and attended an anti-drug event on the cutter the USCG Vigorous (WMEC-627). ENS Leonard Murphy, the president of the class of 1988, presented him with the ring in a decorative wooden box, which he put on his finger in front of the cheering graduates. President Reagan recorded in his diary that day, "It was a most impressive ceremony & I was made an honorary member of the graduating class & given a class ring. My speech was well received."
Additional Details
Custodial History NoteThe item was a gift from a member of the general public to President Ronald Reagan Reagan during the Reagan administration. It was received through the Executive Office of the President Office of Correspondence and maintained there until its transfer to the National Archives in January, 1989 for deposit with the Reagan Presidential Library.
National Archives Catalog CollectionRecords of the White House Gift Unit (Reagan Administration) (National Archives Identifier 6816362) and
National Archives Catalog SeriesGifts from the General Public (National Archives Identifier 6816363)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestricted
Use Restriction NoteReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.
In Collection(s)
Related LinksVideo: Trip to Connecticut, President Reagan's Remarks at the United States Coast Guard Academy Commencement Ceremony at Nitchem Field in New London, Connecticut May 18, 1988

Remarks at the United States Coast Guard Academy Commencement Ceremony in New London, Connecticut May 18, 1988

Monday Minute: Coast Guard Ring

President Reagan's Diary entry for: Wednesday, May 18, 1988