by Spencer Howard When Herbert Hoover became President in 1929, the care of America's veterans was one of the nation’s most pressing issues. Three agencies had overlapping jurisdiction over veterans affairs: the Veterans Bureau, the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, and the Bureau of Pensions. By the end of the 1920's, the total expenditures … Continue reading Herbert Hoover and the Veterans Administration
Speaking to an American radio audience just before the German surrender at the end of World War II, Hoover raised important issues for Western Civilization in the post-war world. His main focus was on food availability and security. Hoover observed ‘No peace will be possible in nations that are half well-fed and half starved.’ He … Continue reading ‘It’s 11:59 on the Clock of Starvation’
by Spencer Howard On September 17, 1930, Secretary of the Interior Ray Lyman Wilbur journeyed to the Nevada desert to drive a silver railroad spike, marking an end and a beginning. The spike commemorated the completion of a railroad from Las Vegas to Black Canyon, which was to be the site of an enormous new … Continue reading What’s in a Name? The Saga of the Hoover Dam
By Thomas F. Schwartz History, some argue, is the study of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. It is also the study of extraordinary people doing seemingly impossible things. Jan Karski is an example of the latter. A Polish diplomat, Karski was taken prisoner by Soviet military forces during the 1939 invasion by both Nazi Germany … Continue reading Jan Karski and Herbert Hoover
by Spencer Howard On August 8, 1900, a young Lou Henry Hoover wrote to her friend Evelyn Wight, “you missed one of the opportunities of your life by not coming to China in the summer of 1900… So many many many times I thought of you, and that you should have been here, at the … Continue reading The most interesting – but largely forgotten – siege and bombardment of the age
At this time last year, I wrote a blog on Hoover’s return to the world stage in response to President Truman’s request for Hoover’s insights into the food situation in Europe immediately after V-E Day. I summarized an 18-page memo Hoover sent to Truman on May 31, 1945, recapping the main points of their 55-minute … Continue reading Revisiting Hoover’s Memo to Truman, May 1945
By Thomas F. Schwartz A popular children’s game is rock, scissors, paper: rock breaks scissors, scissors cut paper, paper covers rock. Hoover’s eye doctor, Maynard C. Wheeler offered an interesting variation on the game in his oral history about Herbert Hoover. Previous blog posts have detailed Hoover’s habit of smoking Cuban cigars and pipe smoking … Continue reading Rock, Scissors, Sandpaper
Herbert Hoover with President Elect Franklin D Roosevelt as they leave the White House on their way to the Inauguration ceremonies. By Thomas F. Schwartz Much ink has been spilled on the relationship between Herbert Hoover and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. What began as friendly mutual cooperation ended in a bitter transition of power. It … Continue reading A Troubled Relationship
By Thomas F. Schwartz George Aubrey Hastings served as an administrative assistant to President Herbert Hoover. After Hoover left office, Hastings was asked to speak about his time in the White House and what he observed. In a talk before the National Republican Club on May 16, 1933, Hastings provided a glimpse into the … Continue reading An Average Day in the Life of a President
By Thomas F. Schwartz Many young people are in a hurry to grow up and be able to do things that their age prevents. Once they get older, they begin to pine for the previous unencumbered joys of childhood. It remains a great irony of life. Herbert Hoover was one of the many precocious youth … Continue reading A Problem of Youth: Herbert Hoover’s Changeable Age
