Herbert Hoover (HM6)

Herbert Clark Hoover (* August 10th, 1874 in West Branch, Iowa) is a former President of the , for the - the first one who was born west of the Mississippi. He's from a Quaker Family.
When he was six years old, his father Jessie Clark died from Typhus. In 1884, his Mother Huldah died too, from pneumonia. Since 1885, he lived with his uncle John Minthorn.
As a mining engineer (a career which he chose by conincidence) he worked e.g. in and . Thanks to his work and entrepreneurship, he became very affluent: In 1908 he almost was a Millionaire, in 1914 he owned several millions.
After the First World War, he helped many starving Europeans with the American Relief Administration, even in the , where the Organisation saved Millions from dying. For this, even Communist Author Maxim Gorky praised him. However, he also used his influence, like when he removed Joseph August von Österreich (since 1936, President of the Hungarian Academy of Science) as regent in in August of 1919.
== In Politics ==
In 1921, he became Secretary of Commerce under the Presidents Warren G. Harding and later Calvin Coolidge. (It rarely happens in the US for a man to become president after having had a full cabinet position.) In his office (in which he liked to meddle in other areas too), he regulated air travel (which is why the first airport of got the Name Hoover Field in 1926) and Radio stations, demonstrating that he wasn't yet in principle against the state interventing, warned about the stock market becoming too hot, created many new Nature resorts (e.g. in the Everglades in ), even cooperated with FDR politically. He still was active in relief work, although he liked to exaggerate his importance a lot.
In 1928, he became the candidate of the Republicans for the Presidency. His VP became Charles Curtis, the first man with American Indian roots (he's of the Caw nation) in this office. He won the election against the Catholic Al Smith with 58 to 41% of the votes and 444 to 87 electors. Smith didn't even win in his Home state of and also lost his Governor's post there - this job now went to his Party's "buddy" FDR.
In 1931, he arranged the , which cancelled the Weimar Republic's Reparation payments for one year. weren't happy, stated this would postpone their victory for Months.
Hoover had the famous built, which is called one of the Seven Wonders of the World of the Modern Age. He actually wanted to name it after himself, but on May 8th in 1933, the new government scratched this honor.
== The Great Depression ==
Shortly before the Crash in October 1929, Hoover had optimistically said “We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land”. But then, the crisis struck: In 1932, the deficit was at 60%, there were 12 Millions of unemployed, and since 1929, one in four Farmers had lost his Land to his lenders. The President proved to be helpless: Instead of changing his economic politics, he blamed the Mexicans in the USA and had Hundreds of thousands sent back to their country; among them, many Kids, who had been born in the USA already. In 1930, he reluctantly approved the Smoot–Hawley Tariff, which sent foreign trade spiraling down and thus worsened the crisis.
It was him who introduced the Word "Depression", because he didn't want to call it a "crisis". As revenge, people started talking about s, "Hoover Leather" for Shoe soles made of cardboard, and "Hoover blankets" for newspapers.
In 1932, he became even more unpopular, when the (ten thousands of First World War Veterans, who demanded from his government the money that was promised to them, and their Families) demonstrated in Washington, and he had Troops under General sent against them, killing several of the demonstrators and wounding more than 1,000. The Veterans didn't get their money until today.
== After his Presidency ==
After the landslide victories of in 1932 against him and Alf Landon in 1936, the Republicans in general and especially the libertarian wing seem to be at the End of their rope. As soon as in 1932, even his Party kept at Distance from him, which hasn't changed in 1940. He doesn't see the fault on his side and became more and more of a rightist. He wrote several books, fervently attacked the New Deal Politics, calling it fascist and socialist.
On the Republican National Convention of 1940, he wanted to become candidate for the presidency, but only around 7% of the delegates rallied behind him. Which still surpassed the 2% support he got from all voters in a poll.
Since the death of Calvin Coolidge in 1933, he is the only surviving Ex-President of the USA.
In 1938, he visited and .
As an Isolationist, he is strictly against an involvement of the USA in , but still collected money for and (against the Soviets). As late as in July 1939, he excluded the possibility of the Reich having plans to make war, and even after the invasion of he considered a German Attack against absurd.
On February 10th in 1899, he married his wife Lou Henry in Monterey. In 1912, Hoover and she published the first English translation of the famous old mining book De re metallica by Georgius Agricola. They have two sons: Herbert Hoover Jr. (born in 1903) and Allan Henry Hoover (born in 1907).
Category:Rulers (HM6)
Category:United States of America (HM6)
Category:Presidents of the United States (HM6)
Category:Herbert Hoover
de:Herbert Hoover (W6)