The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is the

presidential library A presidential library, presidential center, or presidential museum is a facility either created in honor of a former president and containing their papers, or affiliated with a country's presidency. In the United States * The presidential libr ...

and burial place of

Herbert Clark Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Grea ...

, the 31st

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

(1929–1933), located on the grounds of the

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site The Herbert Hoover National Historic Site is a unit of the National Park System in West Branch, Iowa, United States. The buildings and grounds are managed by the National Park Service to commemorate the life of Herbert Hoover, the 31st president ...

West Branch West Branch may refer to: Communities * West Branch, Iowa, city in Cedar and Johnson counties * West Branch, Michigan, city in Ogemaw County * West Branch, New Brunswick, in the Local Service District of Weldford Parish * West Branch River John, i ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. The library is one of thirteen presidential libraries run by the

National Archives and Records Administration The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

. In 1954, a group of Hoover's friends incorporated the Herbert Hoover Birthplace Foundation to raise money for the preservation of his birthplace and the area around it, and to plan for improvements to the site. One of their ideas was to build a small museum, and with Hoover's approval work began in the late 1950s. The architectural firm of Eggers and Higgins of New York drew the plans for the original building, a modest limestone structure of just over 4,000 square feet. While the museum at West Branch was still under construction, Hoover decided to expand it and to make it his Presidential Library. The Library and Museum was officially dedicated and opened to the public on August 10, 1962, Hoover's 88th birthday. Hoover and Former President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

were present at the dedication. Hoover began his speech by saying,

When the members of the Congress created these presidential libraries they did a great public service. They made available for research the records of vital periods in American historyand they planted these records in the countryside instead of allowing their concentration on the seaboard. Already the three libraries of President Roosevelt, President Truman, and President Eisenhower, by their unique documentation, serve this purpose, and today we dedicate a fourthmy own. Within them are thrilling records of supreme action by the American people, their devotion and sacrifice to their ideals. Santayana rightly said: "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to relive it." These institutions are the repositories of such experiencehot off the griddle. In these records there are, no doubt, unfavorable remarks made by our political opponents, as well as expressions of appreciation and affection by our friends. We may hope that future students will rely upon our friends. In any event, when they become sleepy they may be awakened by the lightning flashes of American political humor.

The original Library and Museum building was expanded several times, with major additions being completed in 1964, 1971, 1974 and 1992. The architects for the 1964, 1971, and 1974 expansion projects were Wetherell, Harrison & Wagner Associates. On August 8, 1992, former President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

rededicated the Library and Museum. The rededication was the result of a renovation project that expanded the library to . The $6.5-million expansion was a publicprivate partnership, with Washington supplying $5 million for bricks and mortar, supplementing $1.5 million raised by the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library Association for new exhibits. The architects for the 1992 expansion were HNTB Corp. Holding almost 300 collections, the Library is an important center for the study of conservative thought, agricultural economics, famine relief, commercial aviation, political journalism, government efficiency and reorganization, isolationism, and U.S. foreign policy. In addition to the papers of Herbert Hoover, the manuscript holdings include those of

Lewis Strauss Lewis Lichtenstein Strauss ( "straws"; January 31, 1896January 21, 1974) was an American businessman, philanthropist, and naval officer who served two terms on the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), the second as its chairman. He was a major ...

Gerald P. Nye Gerald Prentice Nye (December 19, 1892 – July 17, 1971) was an American politician who represented North Dakota in the United States Senate from 1925 to 1945. He was a Republican and supporter of World War II-era isolationism, chairing the Nye ...

Felix Morley Felix Muskett Morley (January 6, 1894 – March 13, 1982) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and college administrator from the United States. Biography Morley was born in Haverford, Pennsylvania, his father being the mathematician Frank Mo ...

, Clark Mollenhoff,

Robert E. Wood Robert Elkington Wood (June 13, 1879 – November 6, 1969) was an American military officer and business executive. After retiring from the U.S. Army as a brigadier general, Wood had a successful career as a corporate executive, most notabl ...

Westbrook Pegler Francis James Westbrook Pegler (August 2, 1894 – June 24, 1969) was an American journalist and writer. He was a popular columnist in the 1930s and 1940s famed for his opposition to the New Deal and labor unions. Pegler aimed his pen at president ...

, and

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, mostly known for the ''Little House on the Prairie'' series of children's books, published between 1932 and 1943, which were based on her childhood ...

, among others. The Library and Museum is located within the

, which contains Hoover's birthplace, a reconstruction of Hoover's father's blacksmith shop, a one-room schoolhouse, a Quaker meeting house, andon a hill overlooking the Library and Museum and Historic Sitethe graves of Herbert and

Lou Henry Hoover Lou Hoover (née Henry; March 29, 1874 – January 7, 1944) was an American philanthropist, geologist, and First Lady of the United States from 1929 to 1933 as the wife of President Herbert Hoover. She was active in numerous community organizatio ...

References

External links

The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum"Life Portrait of Herbert Hoover"
from

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...

's '' American Presidents: Life Portraits'', broadcast from the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library & Museum and the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, October 4, 1999
Opening and dedication
of the Library, 1962

Universal International Newsreel Universal Newsreel (sometimes known as Universal-International Newsreel or just U-I Newsreel) was a series of 7- to 10-minute newsreels that were released twice a week between 1929 and 1967 by Universal Studios. A Universal publicity official, Sa ...

, at 1m26s {{Authority control Presidential Library and Museum Landmarks in Iowa Library buildings completed in 1971 Libraries in Iowa Museums in Cedar County, Iowa Hoover Presidential Library and Museum Presidential museums in the United States Biographical museums in Iowa Tombs of presidents of the United States