Last updated: April 15, 2021
Article
Herbert Hoover, 31st President of the United States
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National Archives & Records Administration
"My country owes me no debt. It gave me, as it gives every boy and girl, a chance. It gave me schooling, independence of action, opportunity for service and honor. In no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbounded hope."
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover, mining engineer, humanitarian, statesman, and 31st President of the United States, was born August 10, 1874 in a simple two-room cottage in West Branch, Iowa. His Quaker family had helped settle the town, and their principles of honesty, hard work, simplicity, and generosity guided Hoover throughout his life of service to the nation and the world.
President Herbert Hoover
Images of Herbert Hoover, 31st President of the United States
People
- Sites: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, The White House and President's Park
Herbert Hoover, mining engineer, humanitarian, statesman, and 31st President of the United States, was born August 10, 1874 in a simple two-room cottage in West Branch, Iowa. His Quaker family had helped settle the town, and their principles of honesty, hard work, simplicity, and generosity guided Hoover throughout his life of service to the nation and the world.
Stories
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, Santa Fe National Historic Trail
When Charles Curtis was born in 1860, no one could have known that he was destined for a career in national politics. Nor that he would become the first with American Indian ancestry to hold the second highest office in the nation. Curtis was 1/8th American Indian and a descendent of Kaw Chief White Plume and Osage Chief Pawhuska. As a child, for a short time, he lived on the Kaw Indian Reservation near Council Grove, Kansas, an important stop on the Santa Fe Trail.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Restoration of the Birthplace Cottage
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
In the years following his presidency, Herbert and Lou Hoover restored the president's humble birthplace, which he called, "physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life." The small space and few material possessions reflect the Hoovers' ethic of thrift, while the antique furnishings represent common household items of a simply furnished two room rural home.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Herbert Hoover Historic Places
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Series: Herbert Hoover, West Branch's Native Son
- Type: Series
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
What do you want to be when you grow up? Most of us have been asked this question, and many of us are still looking for the answer— life is a continuous journey, and few of us know just where we may end up. Herbert Hoover could not have know that he would become the 31st President of the United States. He did believe in the "American dream"— that if you work hard, have faith in yourself, and treat others fairly and charitably, then you can accomplish anything.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Triumphs & Tragedies
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
A Memorial & a Legacy
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Simple Beginnings
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
The Emergence of the Great Humanitarian
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Family & Fellowship
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Herbert Hoover's parents and their fellow Quakers played a large role forming his values. During these early childhood years, Herbert saw how the Quaker faith promoted simplicity, integrity, equality, peace, and service to others. The hard work and conscientious deeds of his parents and their neighbors helped build a community (of Quakers and others) that also supported the Hoover family.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Adversity Leads to Opportunity
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
From the ups and downs of his childhood Herbert Hoover grew to be a resilient and self-reliant man. As his personal achievements mounted, he came to believe that uncommon character opened doors of opportunities, and that individuals acting conscientiously and cooperatively could together solve great problems.
Educational Activities & Materials
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
From Iowa To The World
- Type: Field Trips, Student Activities
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Grade Levels: Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
- Subject(s): Social Studies
How did daily life of a rural community in the 1870s and 1880s compare to our own daily lives? Did events of Herbert Hoover's childhood motivate his career in public service? What did Herbert Hoover do to be recognized as a good citizen of the world? A visit to historic buildings from President Hoover's childhood helps answer these questions.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Lessons Learned In West Branch
- Type: Field Trips, Student Activities
- Locations: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Grade Levels: Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade
- Subject(s): Social Studies