Ronald Reagan

	PRIMARY HOME: "Rancho del Cielo" ("ranch of the sky") at 3333 Refugio Road, near Santa Ynez CA in Santa Barbara County - a five-room adobe heated by fireplaces on 688 acres, and purchased for $527,000 PHOTO CREDIT: The Reagan Ranch, Santa Barbara CA CLOSE-UP of FEATURED REAGAN ARTIFACT Ronald Reagan Presidential Library-Museum, Simi Valley CA BIRTHPLACE: 111 Main Street , Tampico IL - a five-room apartment rental above a bakery PHOTO CREDIT: Cabins, Cottages, and Mansions: Homes of the Presidents of the United States by Nancy D. Meyers-Benbow and Christopher H. Benbow BOYHOOD HOME: 816 South Hennepin, Dixon IL - a two-story Victorian frame house of seven rooms PHOTO CREDIT: 2004 Calendar of Presidential Homes, photographer Garren Zuck

A walk-up apartment saw the entry into the world of Ronald Reagan, whose father called him "a fat little Dutchman." "Dutch" Reagan became a radio announcer at stations in Iowa before following an acting career in Hollywood.

Playing George Gipp in the 1940 football film Knute Rockne-All-American earned him a new nickname, "the Gipper." In 1952, he married his second wife, Nancy Davis, and shifted from film to television and from Democrat to Republican. He developed a good-natured, anecdotal style as "The Great Communicator," and served for a decade as California's governor.

During his presidency in the 1980s, "Reaganomics" shaped the economy at home and Communism faltered abroad, however terrorism increased. The Iran-Contra Affair raised questions of wrong-doing, but President Reagan left office with his integrity and popularity intact. Within a few years after retiring to his California ranch, Ronald Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.

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