A group sits inside the President's cabin at Camp Rapidan. Lou Henry Hoover is seen on the left knitting. By Thomas F. Schwartz Many of the leading mystery writers of the era were English and tended to place murder settings in country manors. Class status, a pronounced feature of British society up to and beyond World … Continue reading Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part III
August 20, 1932: President Hoover, Lou Henry Hoover and Weegie relaxing at Rapidan Camp. By Thomas F. Schwartz How do we know what mystery writers were read by the Hoovers and available for visitors to Camp Rapidan? There are two boxes of 3x5” cards with the names of the author, title, and location of the … Continue reading Mystery Writers Read by the Hoovers: Part II
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
The front of Herbert Hoover's Boys Clubs of America Professional Association Distinguished Achievement Award.The back of Herbert Hoover's Boys Clubs of America Professional Association Distinguished Achievement Award. The back of the medal was personalized for the former President with: PRESENTED TO / HONORARY / HERBERT HOOVER / FOR TWENTY FIVE YEARS / OF HUMANITARIAN SERVICE … Continue reading Much Ado About Medals Act IV: The Aftermath and Our Most Valuable Natural Resource
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
Representative H. R. Gross speaking at the dedication of the Waterloo, Iowa municipal airport, June 10, 1951. by Spencer Howard One of the seldom used collections at the Hoover Library is the papers of Harold R. Gross, who represented northern Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives for 13 terms from 1949 … Continue reading H. R. Gross, Iowa’s Congressional Curmudgeon
Lewis Strauss (in the rear, wearing a dark suit and long tie) and Robert Oppenheimer (next to Strauss, 3-piece suit) with a group of scientists and engineers. Probably 1953. [31-1952-a10] by Spencer Howard In later years, Herbert Hoover was proud that so many of the young men who helped him provide food to starving Europe … Continue reading Lewis Strauss and Robert Oppenheimer
The front of the Inaugural Medal given to Herbert Hoover, dated March 4, 1929. The back of Herbert Hoover's Inauguration Medal. In March 1921, after having served for four years as United States Food Administrator and Commissioner for Belgian Relief, Mr. Hoover was appointed as Secretary of Commerce by President Warren G. Harding. Beloved for … Continue reading Much Ado About Medals Act III: The Secretary, The Flood, and The Chief
A silver medal of thanks was made only two years into Mr. Hoover’s Belgian Relief activities. It depicts the face of Herbert Hoover on the front, with a personalized inscription on the reverse of: Herbert C. Hoover from his friends of the Commission for Relief in Belgium (65.6.38).The back of the silver medal of thanks … Continue reading Much Ado About Medals Act II: Leones Belgicae
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
