National Archives and Records Administration

Intro Boyhood Lou Henry Hoover Belgian Relief Secretary of Commerce President After the White House

Elementary School Field Trips
to the
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum
  Pre & Post Visit Activities

President of the United States of America

In 1928, Herbert Hoover was elected President of the United States by one of the largest margins in American history. The American people had great confidence in Herbert Hoover. In October of 1929, seven months after Hoover took office, the stock market crashed. The Great Depression had begun. Shortly after this a terrible drought hit the Midwest. This sank the country further into economic woes. President Hoover had workable solutions to these problems but as the Depression deepened and unemployment lines grew longer people lost confidence in Hoover. All of the blame for the economic crisis was placed on the president. Hoover was defeated for reelection by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932. But his election defeat was not the end of his work. “No former President can, or should cease from public service,” Hoover wrote.

To learn more about Hoover as President of the United States go to:
http://www.ecommcode.com/hoover/hooveronline/hoover_bio/pres.htm

Pre-visit activities:

• During President Hoover's administration the construction of the Hoover Dam began in 1931. The dam is located thirty miles southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. The dam was one of the most ambitious and unprecedented engineering projects of its time. More than 5,000 men worked for 5 years to complete the project. Students can watch a three-minute video entitled “The Making of the Hoover Dam” narrated by Lowell Thomas.
  http://www.ecommcode.com/hoover/hooverdam/hooverdam.html  
  

Post visit activities:

• Hoover made significant contributions to the nation during his four years in office:
  
  • Hoover helped bring about laws to protect young people and wrote a Children’s Charter advocating the rights of every child regardless of race, color or situation.
  • Hoover instituted regulations banning discrimination against women in the hiring practices of the federal government.
  • Hoover created the Veterans Administration to help those who had served in wars.
  • Hoover increased the acreage in national forests by five millions acres.
     
  After reading this list of accomplishments to your students ask them to create a list of five to seven accomplishments they would like to achieve if they ever were to become president.
   
• Ask students to write a letter from President Hoover giving advice to the incoming president.