Herbert Hoover is seen by some as the president responsible for the Great Depression. Who
was Herbert Hoover? Did he take any efforts to solve the economic difficulties the nation
was facing? Born in Iowa, in 1874, Herbert Hoover was
the son of a blacksmith. He attended Stanford in 1891 and graduated four years later with
a degree in Geology. Hoover made his financial fortune as a mining engineer. He made over
$4 million mining for silver, lead, and zinc. The course of his life changed during World
War I, though. As the war began, he orchestrated an evacuation of Americans who were trying
to get out of Europe and return home. He and 500 volunteers worked to distribute steamship
tickets, clothing, and food to more than 120,000 people. Hoover also undertook a relief effort
to provide food for the nation of Belgium, which was suffering after the German invasion.
In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson named Hoover as the head of the U.S. Food Administration.
In this position, he organized wartime rationing efforts such as “Meatless Mondays” and
“Wheatless Wednesdays”. When the war concluded, he shipped massive amounts of food to the
starving people of central Europe, even to the defeated nation of Germany. He also sent
food to the citizens of Bolshevik-controlled Russia. As the decade came to an end, The
New York Times named Herbert Hoover amongst their “Ten Most Important Living Americans”.
After Warren Harding was elected president in 1920, he appointed Hoover to the position
of Secretary of Commerce. Hoover turned the office into an important position, encouraging
“economic modernization” and overseeing everything from air travel to the census.
He also started an “own your own home” campaign, which spurred home construction.
He is often regarded as the best Secretary of Commerce in U.S. history.
In 1928 he became the 31st President of the United States. This made him one of only two
presidents who had never held a previous elected office or high military rank. He had only
been president for eight months when the stock market crashed in 1929, which, of course,
led to the Great Depression. He is often criticized for doing little to
try and combat the Great Depression. At that time, the United States had a laissez-faire
approach to economic matters. This meant that the government did not interfere with economic
matters and just left the economy alone. However, Hoover started several public works projects,
such as the Hoover Dam, and raised the highest tax bracket from 25% to 63%. He also established
the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, which loaned $238 million to banks and railroad
companies. Many of the measures Hoover took were similar to efforts Franklin Roosevelt
would later make. Despite these efforts, by 1932, unemployment
was over 24%, more than 5,000 banks had failed, and tens of thousands of Americans were homeless.
The shantytowns that they developed became known as Hoovervilles, in honor of the president
they saw as responsible for their situation. While Hoover is still viewed by some as “the
president who caused the Great Depression”, his reputation has improved considerably over
the years. He was the last president to hold a full cabinet position prior to being elected,
and he also laid much of the groundwork for the New Deal programs of the 1930s.