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Abraham Lincoln is often admired as being the man who was born in a log cabin, but through hard work and overcoming many adversities he arose to become President of the United States. The same can be said about Herbert Hoover, yet most people seem to remember is that he was President when the depression hit. And most of the blame was put on his shoulders. Even today when the economy is on a downswing you will here people say, " Well the Hoover days are upon us again."
If one takes a look into the life of Hoover they will find a man who knew poverty, sorrow, and the value of hard work.
Herbert Hoover was born in 1874 to poor Quaker family in Cedar County Iowa. He was the second child in a family of three children. By the time he was eleven both parents had died. The three Hoover children (older brother and younger sister) were separated and lived among various relatives. For the first few months Hoover lived with and uncle and aunt, who owned a farm. On the farm young Hoover did his share of the work on the farm. He cleaned out the barn, milked the cows and even work in the potato fields.
An uncle in Oregon, who had just lost his son, decided he wanted the orphan Hoover to come live with him. So Hoover spent the remainder of his childhood in Oregon, where he received his basic education. He proved to be a very bright student.
Like many students of today, Hoover had problems finding a job, once he graduated from college. No jobs were available in Mining Engineering, which he had a degree in. So he took a job as a clerk for a mining company. Shortly after Hoover went over sees and work many years in the mining industry. He spent most of that time working in China and Europe becoming a self made millionaire.
Unlike the Presidents before him Hoover was not a Professional Politician or a Military Hero. He gained national recognition for his work as a Humanitarian. At the break of World War I he was asked to serve as head for the Commission for the Relief of Belgium. Which provided food for many people whom were victims of the war in that country. Afterwards he was appointed U.S. Food Administrator. And served as Secretary of Commerce under Presidents Harding and Coolidge.
When Coolidge chose not to seek reelection Hoover was the most popular replacement.
He was so popular as Secretary of Commerce that even the Democrats wanted him as their Presidential Candidate. But after serving in the Cabinet of two Republican Presidents, he chose to stay with them. When Hoover won the 1926 election this was the first time he had run for a public office. This does not include the election of School Treasurer at Sanford.
The popularity of Hoover stared to dwindle when the Depression hit; he felt that economic relief was the responsibility of the state governments. Hoover’s political opponents used this against him and soon had the image of being unconcerned for the poor. In the 1932 General Election he was badly defeated by Franklin Roosevelt.
Now Hoover was an unpopular man, but continued to live a productive life. In 1936 he became Chairman of the Boy Scouts of America. President Truman appointed him to head the Commission of the Executive Branch of Government. And Eisenhower appointed him as the representative to the 1958 Worlds Fair in Brussels.
Among all his accomplishments Hoover authored four books; America’s First Crusade (Co author Hugh Gibson),The Problems of Lasting Peace, The Ordeal of Woodrow Wilson, and An American Epic(Three volumes.)
Just remember that when Hoover is blamed for the Great Depression, but do not forget he was very successful in most every thing else.
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