Herbert Clark Hoover, #31

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Was the Great Depression caused of him?


I keep hearing President Hoover was the cause of the Great Depression, so I decided to research the person of Herbert Hoover, and the Great Depression, to learn the truth.

One exciting fact I learned, Herbert Hoover’s Grandmother, Mary Hoover, died in 1853, and the Grandfather, Eli Hoover, with his five children, his parents, brothers, and sisters, moved from Miami County, Ohio to West Branch, Iowa.  (This was interesting to me because I was born and raised in Miami County, Ohio).  One of Eli’s sons was Jesse, the father of Herbert Hoover

 Jesse opened a blacksmith shop in West Branch, Iowa, sold the successful business, and opened a farm equipment sales store.  Herbert’s father, Jesse, and mother, Hulda, died, leaving a two sons, Theodore and Herbert, a daughter, Mary, who were separated and sent to different relatives to be raised.  Herbert was sent to Oregon state until he went to collage.

 He studied geology and surveying at Stanford, and developed an internationally recognized profession in mining of coal and gold around the world.  Through travels to many of the countries around the world, he learned and became concerned of the worsening conditions leading up to World War I, and the poor living conditions of children.

 In the fighting before World War I, an American Embassy asked Herbert Hoover to help get Americans out of the fighting area, and he did, much with his own money. In seeing the need to feed the starving people, victims of the fighting, he set up private programs to send food to them. 

 After World War I, Herbert organized the European Relief and Reconstruction to provide food and supplies, to the starving people in the aftermath of the was.

 Mr. Hoover served as the Secretary of Commerce under President Coolidge from 1923 to 1928, and tried unsuccessfully, to block EASY money, which was causing what Herbert called, “Orgy of mad speculation”, and this greedy and wild speculation, is what lead to the stock market crash of October of 1929.

 Because of Herbert Hoover’s popularity as a humanitarian, he was elected the 31st President of the United States in November 1928.  Upon taking the Oath, he proposed and implemented many social programs.

 The New York Stock Exchange was under the regulation of the State of New York, and New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt would not take action under existing laws to stop the greed and speculation that caused the stock failures.   President Hoover used the U.S. Mail to slow the speculation process.

 When the depression hit in October 1929, President Hoover used his presidential orders to provide emergency funds, asked businesses and industries to increase their capital expenditures, and asked Congress to establish programs similar to what WPA work would become.

 Many of the programs he requested were denied by the partisan tactics of Congress, such as, social security, old age pensions, reform of anti-trust laws, reform of banking laws, etc.

 One natural disaster beyond anyone’s control was the 1930 Midwest drought that effected farmers and the availability of the food supply.

 Many of the presidents, beginning with President Harry S. Truman, have asked Herbert Hoover to do special programs for them.  He kept busy with public and humanitarian work until his death in 1964.

He was born a humble Quaker, lost his parents at an early age, worked hard to receive a collage education, traveled the world and it hurt him seeing the poor living conditions of other people, married a wonderful lady, Lou Henry, and gave up his successful mining engineering career for a life of public service to the world.

 In answer to my original question, President Herbert Hoover did NOT cause the Great Depression; he tried to stop it from happening.  The thing that caused the Great Depression was greed of the “Money power brokers”.

 Have we learned anything from history, or do we hide the real history and keep partisanship politics.  


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Herbert and Lou

Herbert Hoover

Burial in the court yard, West Branch, Iowa


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Herbert's Childhood Home

Herbert Hoover loved fishing

Located at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Museum, West Branch, Iowa


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Jesse's Blacksmith Shop

School house where Herbert went

Located at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Museum, West Branch, Iowa


Another interesting thing, in visiting the Herbert  C. Hoover, and Harry S. Thurman Presidential Museums, and the George McGovern Museum, and studying  their histories, they were all concerned and committed to feed the hungry people of the world.