Lou Henry Hoover and Herbert Hoover sitting and reading at Camp Rapidan. (31-1930-70)

Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part I

Lou Henry Hoover and Herbert Hoover sitting and reading at Camp Rapidan. (31-1930-70) By Thomas F. Schwartz A previous blog post described the friendship the Hoover’s shared with mystery writer Mary Roberts Rinehart. A review of the books they owned and provided for guests at Camp Rapidan shows a number of leading mystery writers that … Continue reading Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part I

President Hoover smoking and reading on the deck of the U.S.S. Arizona on his trip to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands on March 27, 1931. (31-1931-12)

Travel, Reading, and Herbert Hoover

By Thomas F. Schwartz Miss Jennie Gray is immortalized by Herbert Hoover as introducing him to the wonders of reading.  As he recalled: “She took me to the small library in town [Salem, Oregon] and borrowed for me a copy of Ivanhoe. That opening of the door to a great imaginative world led me promptly … Continue reading Travel, Reading, and Herbert Hoover

A framed lithograph showing the "First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln," an 1864 painting by F.B. Carpenter.

The Emancipation Moment

There are numerous emancipation moments in American history: many by blacks fleeing enslavement on their own initiative, and others through legal, military, executive and congressional acts. Most individuals know of the work of the “Underground Railroad” that was neither underground nor a railroad, but a network of individuals who helped enslaved people escape to freedom. Often … Continue reading The Emancipation Moment

A letter of thanks written by Rosemarie Brettman to Herbert Hoover for his food relief efforts in Germany. The letter is dated March 4, 1948.

“We all are poor fugitives.”

A letter of thanks written by Rosemarie Brettman to Herbert Hoover for his food relief efforts in Germany. The letter is dated March 4, 1948. Previous blogs have described various aspects of Hoover’s food relief efforts in post-WWII Germany. Combating various leaders who sought to punish Germany by withholding food, Hoover understood the necessity of … Continue reading “We all are poor fugitives.”

A drawing included in a letter dated November 12, 1947, made by students at an elementary school in Germany, showing appreciation for Herbert Hoover's efforts fighting hunger in the British and American zones in Germany

Hearing Loss, Colds, and the Hoover Speisung [Feeding]: Hoover’s 1947 Trip to Germany

Students from the elementary school at Hamburg Volksdoft in Germany sent drawings like this to Herbert Hoover as a sign of appreciation for their "Hooverbreakfast" in a letter dated November 12, 1947. On January 18, 1947, President Harry Truman reached out to Herbert Hoover with another request. Stating that “a serious situation in food still … Continue reading Hearing Loss, Colds, and the Hoover Speisung [Feeding]: Hoover’s 1947 Trip to Germany

The Road Not Taken: Hoover and Feeding the Five Small Democracies

Former Pres. Hoover, head of the Finnish Relief Fund thanks Popeye the Sailor Man. Popeye is handing Hoover $100 in bills, his contribution to start the "Kids Popeye Finnish Relief Fund." The famous Robert Frost poem ends: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, And that has made … Continue reading The Road Not Taken: Hoover and Feeding the Five Small Democracies

“King Kong” and the American Relief Administration

Publicity photo of Merian C. Cooper with a King Kong prop, ca. 1933. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cooper-Kong.jpg. History is often more imaginative than fiction with individuals whose lives reflect deeds like something out of a novel. Merian C. Cooper is one of these individuals. As a young journalist, he joined the American Expeditionary Forces and became a pilot. … Continue reading “King Kong” and the American Relief Administration

Lessons of History? The Use and Misuse of Smoot-Hawley Tariff

Rep. W.C. Hawley and Sen. Reed Smoot, April 11, 1929.Library of Congress, National Photo Company Collection, http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/npcc.17371. A popular understanding of studying history is reflected in an attribution to the philosopher George Santayana: “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” The notion that history contains lessons that if only studied … Continue reading Lessons of History? The Use and Misuse of Smoot-Hawley Tariff

The Family Tree

The Family Tree. It is easy to think about Herbert Hoover’s humanitarian relief efforts as discrete events brought about by different moments in historical time. Yet Hoover saw them all related and extensions of his original efforts with the Commission for Relief in Belgium, the United States Food Administration, and the United States Grain Corporation. … Continue reading The Family Tree

Johnny Cash and Herbert Hoover Confront Prison Reform

On display until March 19 is our temporary exhibit, 1968: A Folsom Redemption. The exhibit tells the story of the Johnny Cash live recording concert for the inmates of Folsom and its aftermath. The concert rebooted Cash’s career and began a series of concerts he gave at various prisons. He became an inspiration for many … Continue reading Johnny Cash and Herbert Hoover Confront Prison Reform