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Executive Offices
In 1949, five years after the death of First Lady Lou Hoover, former President Herbert Hoover was appointed as chair of the Commission on Organization of the Executive Branch of the Government which became commonly known as the Hoover Committee. President and First Lady Hoover were advocates of the Efficency Movement, a major component of the Progressive Era. The focus of this movement was that government, particularly the federal government, was riddled with inefficiency and waste. Thus, not surprisingly President Truman appointed former President Hoover chair of the committee to evaluate the efficiency of the executive branch of the federal government.
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"On My Honor, I Will Try...": The Founding of the Girls Scouts of America
Lou Hoover loved the outdoors, and loved to camp and fish. Her love of the outdoors made her the perfect candidate for a Girl Scout troop leader. While serving as First Lady of the United States, Lou Hoover also served as the leader of Troop VIII of the Girl Scouts. As the leader of her troop, she guided the girls to plant plots of vegetables and maintain a war garden. Lou Hoover, however, did not only serve as a troop leader, but also president of the national organization and a member of the national board. Lou Hoover believed Girl Scouts “made the girls better homemakers, citizens, and friends, and that it encouraged keener minds and stronger characters.”
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Latin: The Language of Ancient Rome
In 1907, Lou Hoover was a student of geology and also fluent in German and Latin. One day she found a rare book on mining, Agricola de re Metallica and she decided to translate the German version into English. She and her husband Herbert, the future president, worked on the translation when relaxing in the evenings. The project took five years and as a result, the Hoovers were awarded the first gold medal for distinguished service by the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America.
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Mining Disasters
Lou Hoover, the first female geology major at Stanford University, had a love of rocks, minerals and mining. This love of mining led her to discover in the British Museum in London, Agricola de re Metallica, a sixteenth century manual of mining and metallurgy. After obtaining the text from an antiquarian book dealer, Lou and Herbert began to translate the book into English. After five years of work, the project was completed and published in 1921. The text continues to be referenced in articles on mining.
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History of Women in Sports
The 1920’s was a decade in which amateur sports blossomed primarily due to press and radio coverage. One controversy that arose was the role of women in sports. The Vice President of the National Amateur Athletic Federation, Lou Hoover, organized a conference to address this controversy. The outcome of the conference was the Women’s Division, which was responsible for managing growth and policy of women’s sports and had the stated belief that "promotion of competition that stresses enjoyment of sport and the development of good sportsmanship and character rather than those types that emphasize the making and breaking of records, and the winning of championships for the enjoyment of spectators and for the athletic reputation or commercial advantages of institutions and organizations." This policy continued until 1940.
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Hoover Dam
Lou Hoover was a highly educated woman and had much experience in civics when she became First Lady. Unfortunately, she was unable to use her skills due the Great Depression and public perceptions. President Hoover was often blamed for the depression. The public’s displeasure was also keenly felt by his wife. In an effort to end some of their unpopularity President Hoover had the Hoover Dam named after him because construction of the dam would employ 5000 people. When FDR came into office he changed the dam’s name to the Boulder Dam. On April 30, 1947, President Truman signed a resolution renaming the dam once again the Hoover Dam.
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Geology: History of Earth
In 1894, Lou Hoover entered Stanford University where she became the first woman to major in geology. At a dinner hosted by her professor, Lou met Herbert Hoover, a fellow geology major and discovered that they both had much in common, including being geology majors and a love of fishing. During geology field experiences, Lou and Herbert fell in love. Lou and Herbert became international travelers and one day while in England she discovered a rare geology book, Agricola de re Metallica, which was written in Latin. Together the Hoovers translated the Latin text into English. Their efforts resulted in a gold medal from the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America.
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