Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
Encyclopedia
The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is the Presidential library
of Herbert Hoover
, the 31st President of the United States
. Located in West Branch, Iowa
, next to the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, the library is one of thirteen presidential libraries run by the National Archives and Records Administration
.
The 32000 square feet (2,972.9 m²) library was officially opened to the public on August 10, 1962, Hoover's 88th birthday.http://www.hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html. Former President Hoover and Former President Harry Truman were present at the dedication where Hoover recited the following:
On August 8, 1992, former President Ronald Reagan
rededicated the Hoover Library. The rededication was the result of a massive renovation project which expanded the library to 44500 square feet (4,134.2 m²). Among the additions to the library were a 180-seat auditorium, a multi-purpose room accommodating 60, a conference room that seats 30, and a private meeting room designed for 15 people. The $8-million facelift was very much a public-private partnership, with Washington supplying $5 million for bricks and mortar, supplementing some $3 million raised by the Hoover Presidential Library Association for new exhibits and educational programming.http://hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html
In addition to the papers of Herbert Hoover, the manuscript holdings include those of Lewis Strauss, Gerald P. Nye, Felix Morley
, Clark Mollenhoff, Robert E. Wood
, Westbrook Pegler
, and Laura Ingalls Wilder
, among others. More than 150 collections make the Library an important center for the study of conservative journalistic thought, agricultural economics, famine relief, atomic energy, and governmental reorganization.http://www.hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html
Located several hundred feet behind the Library are the flat white marble gravestones of President Herbert Hoover
and First Lady
Lou Henry Hoover
. The Hoovers rest in a large green area, with the backing semicircle constructed of a high hedgerow. Lou Henry Hoover was originally buried in Palo Alto, California
, after her death from a heart attack at only 69, but upon her husband's death in 1964, she was re-interred at the Library
The Hoover Library is located within to the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, which contains Hoover's birth house and Hoover's father's blacksmith shop, and the West Branch Commercial Historic District
which preserves aspects of West Branch's Main Street.
Presidential library
In the United States, the Presidential library system is a nationwide network of 13 libraries administered by the Office of Presidential Libraries, which is part of the National Archives and Records Administration...
of Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
, the 31st President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. Located in West Branch, Iowa
West Branch, Iowa
West Branch is a city in Cedar and Johnson counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 2,342 as of July 2009, a 7% growth since the 2000 census...
, next to the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, the library is one of thirteen presidential libraries run by the National Archives and Records Administration
National Archives and Records Administration
The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives...
.
The 32000 square feet (2,972.9 m²) library was officially opened to the public on August 10, 1962, Hoover's 88th birthday.http://www.hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html. Former President Hoover and Former President Harry Truman were present at the dedication where Hoover recited the following:
"When the members of the Congress created these presidential libraries they did a great public service. They made available for research the records of vital periods in American history - and they planted these records in the countryside instead of allowing their concentration on the seaboard.
Already the three libraries of President Roosevelt, President Truman, and President Eisenhower, by their unique documentation, serve this purpose, and today we dedicate a fourth - my own.
Within them are thrilling records of supreme action by the American people, their devotion and sacrifice to their ideals.
Santayana rightly said: 'Those who do not remember the past are condemned to relive it.' These institutions are the repositories of such experience - hot off the griddle. In these records there are no doubt, unfavorable remarks made by our political opponents, as well as expressions of appreciation and affection by our friends. We may hope that future students will rely upon our friends. In any event, when they become sleepy they may be awakened by the lightning flashes of American political humor."http://www.ecommcode.com/hoover/hooveronline/HooverCRB/CRBIntro.html
On August 8, 1992, former President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
rededicated the Hoover Library. The rededication was the result of a massive renovation project which expanded the library to 44500 square feet (4,134.2 m²). Among the additions to the library were a 180-seat auditorium, a multi-purpose room accommodating 60, a conference room that seats 30, and a private meeting room designed for 15 people. The $8-million facelift was very much a public-private partnership, with Washington supplying $5 million for bricks and mortar, supplementing some $3 million raised by the Hoover Presidential Library Association for new exhibits and educational programming.http://hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html
In addition to the papers of Herbert Hoover, the manuscript holdings include those of Lewis Strauss, Gerald P. Nye, Felix Morley
Felix Morley
Felix Muskett Morley was a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist from the United States.-Biography:Morley was born in Haverford, Pennsylvania, his father being the mathematician Frank Morley. Like his brothers, Christopher and Frank, Felix was educated at Haverford College and enjoyed a Rhodes...
, Clark Mollenhoff, Robert E. Wood
Robert E. Wood
Robert Elkington Wood was a U.S. Army Brigadier General and businessman best known for his leadership of Sears, Roebuck and Company.- Early life :...
, Westbrook Pegler
Westbrook Pegler
Francis James Westbrook Pegler was an American journalist and writer. He was a popular columnist in the 1930s and 1940s famed for his opposition to the New Deal and labor unions. Pegler criticized every president from Herbert Hoover to FDR to Harry Truman to John F. Kennedy...
, and Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Ingalls Wilder
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder was an American author who wrote the Little House series of books based on her childhood in a pioneer family...
, among others. More than 150 collections make the Library an important center for the study of conservative journalistic thought, agricultural economics, famine relief, atomic energy, and governmental reorganization.http://www.hoover.archives.gov/visiting/welcome.html
Located several hundred feet behind the Library are the flat white marble gravestones of President Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
and First Lady
First Lady
First Lady or First Gentlemanis the unofficial title used in some countries for the spouse of an elected head of state.It is not normally used to refer to the spouse or partner of a prime minister; the husband or wife of the British Prime Minister is usually informally referred to as prime...
Lou Henry Hoover
Lou Henry Hoover
Lou Henry Hoover was the wife of President of the United States Herbert Hoover and First Lady of the United States, 1929-1933. Mrs. Hoover was president of the Girl Scouts of the USA for two terms, 1922-1925 and 1935-1937....
. The Hoovers rest in a large green area, with the backing semicircle constructed of a high hedgerow. Lou Henry Hoover was originally buried in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
, after her death from a heart attack at only 69, but upon her husband's death in 1964, she was re-interred at the Library
The Hoover Library is located within to the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, which contains Hoover's birth house and Hoover's father's blacksmith shop, and the West Branch Commercial Historic District
West Branch Commercial Historic District
The downtown district of West Branch, Iowa is part of the West Branch Commercial Historic District. Multiple architectural styles are represented. The 1907 Winery Building, which served as West Branch's post office and later a full-service gas station, collapsed on June 11, 2010...
which preserves aspects of West Branch's Main Street.