Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover was the 31st president, elected on November 6, 1928, who came into power shortly after the death of Calvin Coolidge.In May 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked Hoover to come to Washington D.C, to serve as his wartime food administrator. With World War 1 in full swing, the U.S would have to find enough food to feed themselves and their European allies. Hoover urged American households to conserve food, and in so doing, more food was made available to send overseas. But, even after the war Americans were in full demand for food. Hoover organized shipment of food for millions of starving people in central Europe, and even extended aid into Soviet Russia in 1921. For his efforts, which ultimatelty helped America, Wilson made Hoover a part of the American delegation to the conference of the Treaty of Versailles. Herbert Hoover served as secretary of commerce for seven years, under presidents Harding and Coolidge, and became the Republican presidential nominee in the Election of 1928. During his first few months as president, Hoover pushed Congress to set aside money for national park land, to reform prisons, and provide better educatioon on American Indian reservations. He also urged Congress to pass the Agricultural Marketing Act, which helped farmers set up cooperatives, control surpluses, and keep the food supply steady. Just eight months into office, the stock market crashed fueling a growing depression that became the most severe economic crisis the United States had ever known, and second only to the Civil War as the greatest domestic crisis in the nation's history. Although Hoover was blamed for the crashing of the stock market, he, in fact warned Coolidge about excessive stock market speculation. After the crash, Herbert Hoover ordered federal departments to speed up construction projects, cut $160 million in taxes, and doubled the amount spent on public works. By 1933, one-fourth of nation's workers were unemployed. In addition to the high unemplyment rate, the economy experienced slow economic growth and financial instability. Perhaps the most politically damaging event of Hoover's presidency was the Bonus March, staged by World War I veterans in 1932 in which they demanded immediate payment of "bonus", which was promised to them by federal government during the war. Herbert Hoover was defeated by Franklin D. Roosevelt in the Election of 1932. Only six of the fourty eight states voted for him. After Roosevelt's death in 1945, President Truman invited Hoover to the White House where he was asked to organize European war relief after World War II. In 1946 Hoover traveled to 38 countries, documented food needs, located surpluses, and arranged food shipments to countries in need.Because of Hoover's efforts, Truman appointed Hoover the chairman of the Commission on Organization of the Executive Branch of the Government, whose job it was to cut government waste and improve efficiency. Also, in 1947, Congress passed a bill renaming the Colorado River Dam to the "Hoover Dam". Beginning in the 1970s, Hoover's reputation began to improve. Most now argue that Hoover, in reality, could have done little to prevent or solve the Depression. However, after all of his humanitarian efforts, Hoover is still seen by many as the most unpopular president in American history.
"Herbert Hoover." Herbert Hoover. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. <http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1580.html,>.
"Herbert Hoover." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Dec. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Hoover>.
"Herbert Hoover." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Dec. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Hoover>.