Herbert Hoover. I didn't know much about Herbert Hoover before today, except that he was President of the United States. Oh, and that Archie and Edith Bunker sang "Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again." Now that the "All in the Family" theme song is running through your head, here are a few more tidbits about our 31st President that we gleaned from our visit to Herbert Hoover National Historic Site today...
- Orphaned at the age of nine
- A Quaker
- Was a mining engineer
- Led humanitarian relief effort to provide food for millions of Belgians during World War I
- First president born west of the Mississippi
Located in West Branch (~10 miles east of Iowa City), the site's historic structures (birthplace cottage, blacksmith shop, Friends meetinghouse, and schoolhouse) represent the early life of Hoover.
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| "This cottage where I was born is physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life. In no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbound hope." |
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| Blacksmith shop with the yellow schoolhouse behind it to the left |
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| Friends Meetinghouse |
The gravesites of President and Mrs. Hoover are located on a hillside overlooking the site, with a clear view of the birthplace cottage.
The Hoover Presidential Library & Museum are also located in West Branch, but unfortunately we didn't have time to go through them.
Here's one last thing that we learned today...
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| You should always listen to your mother! Cold much?! |
Next stop, Quad Cities and then Central Illinois!
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