• Pink flowers blossom in the garden of a white two-room cottage.

    Herbert Hoover

    National Historic Site Iowa

To Look Forward With Unbounded Hope

Born in a two-room cottage, Herbert Hoover could have been any small town boy. Orphaned at age nine, he left West Branch, never to live here again. The landscape and buildings of the early years remain, however, to tell how family, faith, education, and hard work opened a world of opportunity— even the presidency of the United States— to a child of simple beginnings.

Features

  • A white cottage stands at an intersection marked by a wooden sign post.

    Birthplace of Herbert Hoover

    Herbert Hoover called the cottage where he was born in 1874 "physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life."

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  • Two flags fly at the portico of a museum building.

    Presidential Library and Museum

    The papers of President and Mrs. Hoover are among those housed in the library archives. Museum exhibits tell the story of Hoover's life and career.

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  • Two marble grave stones and a flag overlook a park vista.

    Gravesite of President and Mrs. Hoover

    The graves of Herbert and Lou Henry Hoover overlook the president's birthplace and the landscape which commemorates his accomplishments and ideals.

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  • Seed heads of prairie grasses are silhoutted against a dawn sky.

    Tallgrass Prairie

    The reconstructed prairie is a memorial to President Hoover's love of the outdoors where visitors can connect with Iowa's lost landscapes.

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  • A blacksmith stokes the fire in a brick forge.

    Blacksmith Shop

    Hoover's father, a skilled and ambitious businessman, in his short life he had provided an example of the Quaker work ethic for his children.

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  • Rows of wooden benches in a sunlight room are seen through a door.

    Friends Meetinghouse

    The values of the Quakers, expressed by his parents and the community, played an important role in shaping Herbert Hoover's life.

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  • Pencils, books, a hand bell, and a globe sit atop a schoolhouse desk.

    Schoolhouse

    Herbert learned reading, writing, and arithmetic, and came to admire presidents Washington and Lincoln, whose portraits hang on the walls.

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  • A bronze statue of an Egyptian goddess sits among park greenery.

    Statue of Isis

    This bronze statue was a gift from the people of Belgium in gratitude for Hoover's famine relief efforts on their behalf during World War I.

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  • A man presents an award to a female high school student.

    Join the Hoover Association

    Our nonprofit partner supports the collection, interpretation, and preservation of historical resources relating to Hoover’s life and ideals.

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Did You Know?

Photograph of Herbert Hoover as an infant.

Herbert Hoover was the first person born west of the Mississippi River to become president. Seven other presidents were born west of the river. More...