Lou Henry Hoover Amphitheater

Lynn Smith Sitting on a hillside in Burlingame, California is Hoover Elementary School. Originally founded in 1932, the neighborhood school closed its doors in 1979 due to declining enrollment. The school district sold the building to Buddhist monks. In 2010, the school district purchased the building back and after extensive renovations and the construction of … Continue reading Lou Henry Hoover Amphitheater

Lou Henry Hoover Responds to Questionnaire on Engineering for Women

By Thomas F. Schwartz Individuals in the news often are asked about their views on a wide range of topics.  Lou Henry Hoover was no exception.  As someone who was already well-known for her translation of De Re Metallica, fund raising efforts for food relief, leadership in the Girl Scouts, and involvement with many other … Continue reading Lou Henry Hoover Responds to Questionnaire on Engineering for Women

White House Staff Remember Lou

By Thomas F. Schwartz, Director A genre of writing concerns the memoirs of domestic White House staff.  Personal secretaries, head butlers, maids, and secret service who live round the clock with the President, First Lady, and First Family see and hear things that are typically not reported at the time but become known through “tell … Continue reading White House Staff Remember Lou

Lou Hoover and the Bandeirantes of Brazil

Extroverted by nature, Lou Hoover likely enjoyed the Latin American trip more than her husband Herbert.  As the tour entered it final port of call in South America, Rio de Janeiro, Lou made time to visit with the Federacao des Bandeirantes, a Brazilian Girl Scout troop.  Given Hoover’s deep and long involvement with the Girl … Continue reading Lou Hoover and the Bandeirantes of Brazil

On Human Nature: Lou Henry Hoover’s Musings

Lou Henry Hoover, ca. 1932 By Thomas F. Schwartz                 Lou Henry Hoover liked to capture kernels of ideas on papers for further elaboration at some later date.  Often, the ideas never were revisited and remain unpolished thoughts containing interesting potential.  One of these describes the problem of human nature.  Lou writes: “It is a … Continue reading On Human Nature: Lou Henry Hoover’s Musings

Lou Henry Hoover and Girl Scouts

3/25/24 First Lady Grace Coolidge, honorary president of the Girl Scouts with Lou Henry Hoover, President of the Girl Scouts, at a re-dedication ceremony of the"Girl Scout Little House" in Washington DC. Lou Henry Hoover’s involvement with the Girl Scouts spanned decades.  Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of Girl Scouts, recruited Lou Hoover in 1917 … Continue reading Lou Henry Hoover and Girl Scouts

On the Passing of Lou Henry Hoover

Lou Henry Hoover died on Friday January 7, 1944 at the Waldorf-Astoria suite that she shared with her husband Herbert Hoover.  The following Monday more than 1500 mourners attended her memorial service at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church.  There was no eulogy.  After the service, the Hoover family took the mortal remains of Lou Henry Hoover … Continue reading On the Passing of Lou Henry Hoover

Bleeding Heart and Lily

by Matthew Schaefer The relationship between successive Presidents can sometimes be contentious regardless of political affiliation.  These relationships have been given due attention by historians.  The relationship between successive First Ladies has garnered far less attention, as historians have focused attention on First Ladies individually. The relationship between Grace Coolidge and Lou Henry Hoover merits … Continue reading Bleeding Heart and Lily

Tempest in a Teapot – Lou Henry Hoover and the DePriest Tea Incident

by Spencer Howard When Lou Henry Hoover became First Lady in 1929, one of her main responsibilities was to coordinate the social functions at the White House, and the first major event on her agenda was to invite the wives of the members of Congress to the White House for tea.  The Congressional teas served … Continue reading Tempest in a Teapot – Lou Henry Hoover and the DePriest Tea Incident

The Hoover/Kennedy Letters.

“May you have the happiest new year imaginable.”  By Thomas F. Schwartz The recent film Jackie (2016) by Pablo Larrain offers an artistic interpretation of a life based on a 1963 Life magazine interview by Theodore H. White with the recently widowed Jacqueline Kennedy.  One typically would not connect Herbert Hoover with this fashionable First … Continue reading The Hoover/Kennedy Letters.