Herbert Hoover Presidential Library & Museum

(October 7, 2016) West Branch, Iowa

On this beautiful fall weekend, Susan and I escaped to eastern Iowa for the wedding of one of our closest friends' son in Iowa City. We set out a day ahead of the wedding festivities to do some touring. Our first night was in West Des Moines, Iowa. On Friday morning, we toured The Herbert Hoover Presidential Museum and Library in West Branch, Iowa.

The Hoover museum was built before the era of federal General Services Administration funding for Presidential Libraries. The facility is unassuming compared to the post federal funding recent Goliaths.

We arrived at the exhibits and archives mid-morning.

The Museum is a Tribute to Herbert Hoover and has well displayed and interesting exhibits. This stop along the I-80 corridor is two hours well spent.

Our Museum visit completed, we traveled back west to the Amana Colonies for lunch. We settled on the Ox Yoke Inn in Amana, Iowa. The food was wholesome but as usual I made a bad menu choice. After lunch we checked out the nearby tourist shops with interest. Out sole purchase was a very nice blanket for grandson Will at the Amana Woolen Mill.

What follows is my interpretation of a great man and a very well told story.

Like “A Tale of Two Cities”, it is the story of the American President, who during his lifetime, at one time was the most popular and well respected person in America and at another time the most hated and despised. Despite these disparate perceptions the 31^st American President was always consistent to his conservative yet progressive values and Quaker upbringing.

Herbert Clark Hoover was born August 1874 to Quaker parents. His mother was from Canada and his father, a blacksmith, was an Ohioan. At age nine Hoover was orphaned and ultimately lived with an Uncle and his family in Oregon. His Uncle was a physician and businessman.

Hoover who was called Bert, adopted Quaker piety always strived to get ahead and improve himself. His Uncle by instruction and personal example imbued into his nephew a strong work ethic. Hoover did not attend high school but worked in his Uncle’s real estate office and attended a business school at night learning mathematics, bookkeeping, and typing. Hoover became a strong believer in Self Reliance.

Bert entered Stanford University in 1891. He served as the business manager for the football and baseball teams. Under his  administration both sports were profitable. Bert received his degree in geology in 1895 a member of Stanford’s inaugural graduating class.

Hoover was a proponent of the Efficiency Movement, which became popular in the early 20^th Century. The movement sought to adopt best practices to identify and eliminate waste in society and the economy.

He began his career working as a mining engineer in Nevada City, California and after working at several mines in California was hired variously by several British mining firms for assignments in Australia and later China. Hoover was so competent he received an ownership interest in the Bewick, Moreing, and Company (mining company). Some of Bewick’s mines provided Hoover enormous income even after his death. At age twenty-seven Hoover was a millionaire. Reportedly he received the largest annual salary for a person his age among any other known person. In 1908 Hoover started his own company and owned profitable companies on every continent except Antarctica.

Hoover became a Trustee of Stanford University in 1912, a position he held until his death in 1964. Hoover was the founder and benefactor of the Hoover Institution, founded in 1919 as a policy think tank. The Hoover Institution is closely associated with Stanford.

During and after World War I he served as the Administrator of the U S Food Administration providing humanitarian relief to war torn Europe. Hoover led efforts saved Belgium from famine. Among the most unusual and beautiful artifacts in his museum are the burlap flour sacks Belgium woman embroidered and sent to Hoover in thanks.

Hoover was recognized as the “Boy Wonder”, the Great Engineer”, the “Man Who Gets Things Done”, the “Problem Solver.” In 1921 President Warren G Harding, selected Hoover to be Secretary of Commerce. During the Roaring ‘20s Hoover became a symbol of America’s success. He championed the building of better roads, street and highway safety, electrification, and the adoption of Standardization. President Calvin Coolidge put Hoover in charge of mobilizing and coordinating the relief efforts in response to the Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927.

In 1927, Coolidge surprisingly announced (from his summer vacation in the Black Hills of South Dakota) he would not run for a second full term in the 1928 election. Hoover quickly became the leading Republican candidate to replace Coolidge. He was elected defeating New York Governor Al Smith in a landslide 21 million to 15 million popular votes and 444 to 87 in the Electoral College. From a political perspective Smith supported repeal of Prohibition, while the Quaker Hoover opposed repeal. Hoover and John Kennedy are the only two Presidents who refused a Presidential salary, though JFK directed his to charity.

Hoover’s legacy and Presidency was framed by the Wall Street Crash, the Great Depression and subsequent Massive National Unemployment. Hoover who strongly believed in self-reliance implemented some Public Works Projects to create employment and economic activity. I was shocked to learn Hoover was a proponent of the Davis-Bacon Act that requires payment of prevailing local wages on public works projects. He reluctantly approved the Smoot Hawley tariffs and believing in a balance budget raised taxes. The tariffs had the effect of increasing unemployment as the economy spiraled downward. Near the conclusion of his Presidency (July 1932) the Bonus Army marched on Washington. The (mis) handling of the nearly 40,000 persons encamped in the Capitol City and violence that occurred during their demonstrations caused an adverse onus on Hoover’s reputation.

Factoids I liked:

President Hoover established the first Presidential Retreat, Rapidan Camp in the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Hoover purchased it with his own funds at a cost of $120,000.

President Harry Truman enlisted Hoover to implement the Marshall Plan, America’s European relief efforts after World War II.

Herbert Hoover was the major sponsor and supporter of the Boy’s Clubs of American. Mrs. (Lou) Hoover was an ardent supporter of the Girl Scouts. In 1935 she led the first Girl Scout Cookie Drive.

Herbert Hoover as Secretary of Commerce was the first person to appear on television.

Herbert Hoover lived and worked in 40 different countries. After his Presidency, for the rest of his life, he resided in New York City living in apartment 31A at the Waldorf Astoria Towers.

Quote I liked:

         “The way to a National greatness is the path of self-reliance, independence, and steadfastness in times of trial and stress.”

                                  Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

May 1931