Herbert Hoover National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service)

QUICKLINKS:

Parking lot closed

The parking lot between Parkside Drive and Second Street is closed. Buses and RVs may park at the gravesite and picnic areas, or may find additional parking on the streets of West Branch.

Herbert Hoover

Herbert Hoover exemplified the ideal of individualism and the self-made man. His expertise as a mining engineer made him a millionaire by age 40. Having been raised in the Quaker traditions of humanity and generosity, Hoover then embarked on a course of public service for the rest of his life.

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White cottage with flowering bush in the foreground.

Birthplace of Herbert Hoover

The future president was born in a small, two-room cottage in 1874. Today the Birthplace Cottage, along with other historic buildings associated with his early childhood in West Branch, is the centerpiece of Herbert Hoover National Historic Site. The site is adjacent the historic district of downtown West Branch.
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Presidential Library and Museum

The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is a must see while visiting the site. It is one of twelve Presidential Libraries operated by the National Archives. The papers of President Hoover and Lou Henry Hoover are among those housed in the library archives.
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Two plain marble slabs and a U.S. flag on a green lawn.

Gravesite of President and Mrs. Hoover

Herbert and Lou Henry Hoover are buried on a hillside overlooking the president's birthplace. The landscape of the National Historic Site celebrates and commemorates Herbert Hoover's accomplishments and ideals.
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Yellow coneflowers amid bright green grasses.

Tallgrass Prairie

Three trails loop the visitor through this 81-acre sea of tall grasses and spectacular flowering forbs. One can imagine the pioneers crossing over land where mothers feared they could lose their small children in the 6 to 12 foot tall maze of grasses.
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Write to

Herbert Hoover NHS
P. O. Box 607
West Branch, IA 52358-0607

E-mail Us

Phone

Visitor Information
(319) 643-2541

Teletypewriter for the Deaf (TTY)
(319) 643-2594

Fax

(319) 643-7864

Climate

Summers are hot and humid, spring and fall are mild with moderate temperatures, winters can be cold and snowy. Wear comfortable sportswear in season. Boardwalks may be slippery when wet.