by Thomas Schwartz Herbert and Lou Henry Hoover shared an interest in mystery novels. Popular mystery writers appear with frequency among the titles in their personal library, especially at Camp Rapidan. One of the first women to excel in the genre was Mary Roberts Rinehart, who was also a personal friend of the Hoovers. Among … Continue reading Mary Roberts Rinehart, Queen of the Mystery Novels
by Spencer Howard One of the most interesting documents at the Hoover Library is a handwritten, five-page personal letter from King Albert of Belgium to Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover. A transcript of the entire letter can be found at https://hoover.archives.gov/KingAlbertltr.pdf. King Albert wrote to ask Hoover to intervene with the U.S. Shipping Board on behalf … Continue reading A Letter from a King
by Spencer Howard The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum presented a program by art conservator Barry Bauman entitled "The Demise of Mary Lincoln: An Artistic Conspiracy." In short, Mr. Bauman discovered that a painting that had hung for years in the Illinois governor's mansion, which was believed to be an original portrait of Mrs. … Continue reading Lincoln Portrait Fraud
By Thomas F. Schwartz One of Hoover’s fondest memories of being a student at Stanford University were the two summers he spent working with the United States Geological Survey in the Nevada High Sierra. Most of the work required riding on horseback to navigate the rugged trails. Hoover recalled: “In these long mountain rides over … Continue reading Hoover and His Camel
By Thomas Schwartz John Wade Gordon stood along a hot, dusty California highway not far from Petaluma hoping to hitch a ride to Sausalito ferry about forty miles south. Gordon had relocated to California from Memphis, Tennessee is search of better prospects. It was August 24, 1933. Hungry and in need of employment, Gordon hoped … Continue reading Hitching a Ride with a President
By Matthew Schaefer While driving back from a Des Moines meeting of the Iowa World War I Centennial Committee, it occurred to this Hoover Archivist that a series of monthly posts might be in order to describe the activities of Herbert Hoover as America edged closer to war. Consider this episode one. Hoover had spent … Continue reading On Centennial Celebrations
By Thomas F. Schwartz Unlike Hoover’s birthday that remained a contested issue until 1924, Herbert “Bert” Hoover’s marriage to Lou Henry on February 10, 1899 has never been questioned. Most of the accounts of the event were recalled years later resulting in conflicting information. An earlier blog post on February 10, 2016, “The Hoover Wedding … Continue reading Documenting the Hoover Marriage of February 10, 1899
by Spencer Howard In January 1929, President-Elect Herbert Hoover returned from his seven-week trip to Latin America and began preparing for the Inauguration. (At that time Inauguration Day was March 4, so he had an extra six weeks to work with.) After a couple of weeks in Washington DC during which he chose most of … Continue reading Herbert Hoover, President-Elect – a Florida vacation
“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.
by Matthew Schaefer For some the end of the year is a time of reflection—a time to assess what has happened, what may yet come, and where they fit in the grand scheme of things. Herbert Hoover gave voice to such reflections in the late Decembers between 1913 and 1918. Hoover later titled these notes … Continue reading It’s the End of the Year as we Know it…
