Volume 036-2 - April 1982 (8 pages)

HERBERT HOOVER AND NEVADA COUNTY By Peter W. van der Pas INTRODUCTION Nevada County has probably had its fair share of native sons and daughters who became famous and of famous people who lived here for some time. However, before (and since) the events, to be discussed in this article, Nevada County had few presidential contacts. The only exception was when President Theodore Roosevelt passed through and was presented with a cabinet, containing gold nuggets and gold quartz specimens. Herbert Clark Hoover was the only president who had close ties with our county. He was born in West Branch, Iowa, on August 10, 1874 in a Quaker family. His father died when Herbert was six years old and his mother died when he was eight. He had an older . brother, Theodore (born January 28, 1871) and a sister, May (born September 1, 1876). After his mother’s death, Herbert lived for a short time with an uncle, Allan Hoover, but soon was adopted © into the family of Henry John: Minthorn, a physician who lived in Newberg, a Quaker settlement in the Willamette Valley, Oregon. Here Herbert got his first regular job, as office boy with a land settlement company. He learned to operate a typewriter there, something which came in handy later. There was no secondary schooling available in Newberg, but private persons saw to it that Hoover received some secondary schooling. His training in mathematics was quite good, his training in Latin less successful. And he was introduced . to contemporary English literature. ‘ A chance meeting with a mining engineer kindled his interest in engineering as a profession. At that time, Stanford University was being founded and professors of the, soon to be opened university traveled around in the Western states to conduct entrance examinations for prospective students. © One of these, the mathematics professor Joseph Swain, came to Portland for this purpose. Herbert took the examination. His performance in most subjects was apparently not too great. This might have been expected considering the limited schooling which had been available to him. But his skill in mathematics so impressed Professor Swain that he offered Hoover to come to Stanford three months early so that his deficiencies could be made up. When Hoover arrived at Stanford, he did not have the means to finance his studies. He had $210 from savings and gifts from friends in Newberg. After his father’s death, his mother had saved the $1000 life insurance for the 10 education of her children; when Hoover entered his share of this fund, with accumulated interest amounted to $600. All this was not sufficient. His skill with the typewriter qualified him for an office job which paid $30 per month. In addition, each summer vacation he found a job with the U.S. Geological Survey at $60 per month. The first summer he worked in Arkansas, the two following summers in the Gold Country. Here he was associated with the brilliant work of Waldemar Lindgren, whois responsible for many of the beautiful geological maps of the Gold Country. According to his own story, Hoover . was quite good, but not outstanding in the regular subjects and in the many extra-curricular subjects he managed to take. He was not good at sports and therefore concentrated on the financial management of the baseball and football teams. As such, he perhaps was the best they ever had. Herbert Hoover graduated in Stanford’s first class (May, 1895), the “Pioneer Class.”’ HERBERT HOOVER AS A STUDENT am

HERBERT HOOVER AND NEVADA COUNTY By Peter W. van der Pas INTRODUCTION Nevada County has probably had its fair share of native sons and daughters who became famous and of famous people who lived here for some time. However, before (and since) the events, to be discussed in this article, Nevada County had few presidential contacts. The only exception was when President Theodore Roosevelt passed through and was presented with a cabinet, containing gold nuggets and gold quartz specimens. Herbert Clark Hoover was the only president who had close ties with our county. He was born in West Branch, Iowa, on August 10, 1874 in a Quaker family. His father died when Herbert was six years old and his mother died when he was eight. He had an older . brother, Theodore (born January 28, 1871) and a sister, May (born September 1, 1876). After his mother’s death, Herbert lived for a short time with an uncle, Allan Hoover, but soon was adopted © into the family of Henry John: Minthorn, a physician who lived in Newberg, a Quaker settlement in the Willamette Valley, Oregon. Here Herbert got his first regular job, as office boy with a land settlement company. He learned to operate a typewriter there, something which came in handy later. There was no secondary schooling available in Newberg, but private persons saw to it that Hoover received some secondary schooling. His training in mathematics was quite good, his training in Latin less successful. And he was introduced . to contemporary English literature. ‘ A chance meeting with a mining engineer kindled his interest in engineering as a profession. At that time, Stanford University was being founded and professors of the, soon to be opened university traveled around in the Western states to conduct entrance

examinations for prospective students. © One of these, the mathematics professor Joseph Swain, came to Portland for this purpose. Herbert took the examination. His performance in most subjects was apparently not too great. This might have been expected considering the limited schooling which had been available to him. But his skill in mathematics so impressed Professor Swain that he offered Hoover to come to Stanford three months early so that his deficiencies could be made up. When Hoover arrived at Stanford, he did not have the means to finance his studies. He had $210 from savings and gifts from friends in Newberg. After his father’s death, his mother had saved the $1000 life insurance for the 10 education of her children; when Hoover entered his share of this fund, with accumulated interest amounted to $600. All this was not sufficient. His skill with the typewriter qualified him for an office job which paid $30 per month. In addition, each summer vacation he found a job with the U.S. Geological Survey at $60 per month. The first summer he worked in Arkansas, the two following summers in the Gold Country. Here he was associated with the brilliant work of Waldemar Lindgren, whois responsible for many of the beautiful geological maps of the Gold Country. According to his own story, Hoover . was quite good, but not outstanding in the regular subjects and in the many extra-curricular subjects he managed to take. He was not good at sports and therefore concentrated on the financial management of the baseball and football teams. As such, he perhaps was the best they ever had. Herbert Hoover graduated in Stanford’s first class (May, 1895), the “Pioneer Class.”’ HERBERT HOOVER AS A STUDENT am