The four houses on this Poplar Street block were here in the 1870s and 1880s when Herbert Hoover was a boy. Families built the houses on lots they bought from John Wetherell, a Quaker real-estate developer who had subdivided 5 acres. The Hoover's . . . — — Map (db m162572) HM
Born in a modest two-room cottage, Herbert Hoover spent most of his first 11 years in West branch. He went on to become the President of the United States-the first one born west of the Mississippi River. Here Hoover's parents and neighbors . . . — — Map (db m163143) HM
“It was here that I was given that tender care of mind and body, those first steps in education, that knowledge of poverty and struggle for family betterment which contribute to understanding of American life.” President . . . — — Map (db m87749) HM
“My country owes me nothing. It gave me, as it gives every boy and girl, a chance . . . In no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbounded hope.” . . . — — Map (db m87751) HM
“My country owes me nothing. It gave me, as it gives every boy and girl, a chance...in no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbounded . . . — — Map (db m162568) HM
This cottage where I was born is physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life. In no other land could a boy from a country village, without inheritance or influential friends, look forward with unbounded hope. . . . — — Map (db m162634) HM
Charles E. Smith, a Civil War veteran and carpenter, moved in the 1880s to West Branch with his wife, Deborah. In 1903 he finished this dream house on top of Cook’s Hill, down the road to your left, where each spring he tapped his maple trees to . . . — — Map (db m162619) HM
Visit the West Branch Commercial Historic District, just a block up the street. Buildings from the late 1800s and early 1900s, now listed in the National Register of Historic places, show how downtown West Branch changed from modest wood structures . . . — — Map (db m162607) HM
As a boy Herbert Hoover liked to watch his father, Jesse, shoe horses and repair plows, but he was not always careful. "Playing barefoot around the blacksmith shop," he recalled, "I stepped on a chip of hot iron and carry the brand of Iowa on my . . . — — Map (db m162555) HM
The Hoover family worshipped in this building along with neighbors and relatives who were members of the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers as they are often called. West Branch was predominately a Quaker community in the 1850's when this . . . — — Map (db m48312) HM
Herbert Clark Hoover was born on August 10, 1874, in this two-room cottage. He spent his early boyhood years on the edge of the village Surrounded by farmland. His parents, relatives, and many neighbors were Quakers whose daily lives were centered . . . — — Map (db m163144) HM
Amanda Garvin was single and 35 when she bought this lot for $90 in 1870 and had the cottage built. She was renting the house by 1878 but lost it to foreclosure in 1885. With its gingerbread trim and ornamental arches, the cottage is a wonderful . . . — — Map (db m162642) HM
The Statue of Isis, Egyptian goddess of life, symbolizes Herbert Hoover's humanitarian efforts. Belgians gave Hoover the bronze statue to thank him for his help and staving off famine in their country in World War I. Hoover, a wealthy mining . . . — — Map (db m162581) HM
This site commemorates the life and accomplishments of Herbert Hover, 31st President (1929-1932). The first president born west of the Mississippi River. Hoover grew up in a tradition that deeply influenced his ideals and long life of public . . . — — Map (db m48307) HM
Herbert Hoover, the first president born west of the Mississippi, spent his formative years in this neighborhood, which is preserved as Herbert Hoover National Historic Site. You may visit his birthplace and other buildings he remembered from his . . . — — Map (db m162574) HM
"This cottage where I was born is physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life."
In 1871, Jesse Hoover built this two-room cottage near his blacksmith shop and moved in with his wife, Hulda, and young son, Theodore. . . . — — Map (db m162633) HM
President Herbert Hoover died in New York City on October 20, 1964, at the age of 90. Five days later his body was interred on this hillside overlooking his birthplace and presidential library-a symbolic vista of his journey from birth to death. The . . . — — Map (db m162637) HM
The Hoovers bought a home on this site in 1879. During the winter Theodore, Herbert and Mary enjoyed sledding with the Peter Smith youngsters who lived in the green house just south of here. Jesse Hoover died in 1880. Hulda passed away three years . . . — — Map (db m48316) HM
You are viewing 76 acres of partially restored tall grass prairie, planted in 1971. Extending from the historic Miles Farm, at the hilltop on your left, it provides a south western boundary for the historic site. Prior to the . . . — — Map (db m163147) HM
This was the home of Herbert Hoover's aunt and uncle, Agnes and Laban Miles, before they moved in 1878 to Oklahoma Territory. Laban served as agent on the Osage and Kaw Indian Reservation. Hoover, age eight, stayed with them for several months after . . . — — Map (db m162579) HM
Quakers, including the Hoovers, believe strongly in educating both boys and girls equally, and by 1853 West Branch's population was large enough to build this one-room schoolhouse. Because the Quakers had raised much of the funds, they also used it . . . — — Map (db m162554) HM
Dr. Lewis J. Leech built and moved into this house in 1920. Before that he hosted ice cream socials and Fourth of July parties on the lot. When Dr. Leech died in 1937 at age 91, former President Hoover praised his “long life of usefulness...to . . . — — Map (db m162610) HM
In this meetinghouse, the Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, practiced principles of simplicity, honesty, equality, peace, and service to others. These values shaped young Hoover's character and were evident in his humanitarian endeavors and . . . — — Map (db m162636) HM
The early settlers of West Branch had a strong regard for education, and in 1853 they built this school. It was used not only as a school but as a place of worship for the members of the Society of Friends. Originally the building housed all of the . . . — — Map (db m162553) HM
As a boy Herbert Hoover visited his relatives at their farm on the top of this hill. Issac and Esther Miles' 100-acre property was typical of the self-sufficient farms that surrounded West Branch. In 1880 they had 73 acres under cultivation with . . . — — Map (db m163148) HM
This landscape offers a glimpse of the tallgrass prairie that once covered 85 percent of Iowa. By the time of Herbert Hoover's birth in 1874, farmers were converting much of the state's prairie to cropland. When Hoover was a boy, Isaac Miles raise . . . — — Map (db m163149) HM
Miss Amanda Garvin purchased this lot in 1870 and by 1872 had this small frame cottage built. She resided here until 1878. Herbert Hoover was familiar with this house and would have passed it often to and from school. The Garvin Cottage is . . . — — Map (db m162640) HM
Charles Smith moved to West Branch in the 1880’s and pursued his trade as a carpenter and contractor. In 1903 Smith built this retirement dream home for himself and his wife. They celebrated many special occasions here including their 50th wedding . . . — — Map (db m162618) HM
Dr. L.J. Leech opened a medical practice in West Branch in 1882 and practiced here for the next 55 years. For many years he lived in the house one door to the north. In 1920 he moved to this home and lived here until his death in 1937. At his . . . — — Map (db m162609) HM
This house was built in 1899 for Hannah Varney. Mrs. Varney lived in the house only about one year, but her daughters Cora and Clara continued to live here until 1915. Although built some thirteen years after Herbert Hoover left West Branch, this . . . — — Map (db m162575) HM
This site is along the original route of the Herbert Hoover Highway, a 42-mile series of local, state and county roads that run between the foot of Old Capitol in Iowa City and the Cedar County community of Lowden. The Hoover Highway was designated . . . — — Map (db m76108) HM
Herbert Hoover’s distinguished uncle, Laban Miles, owned this house from 1875-1886, and Herbert would have visited the Miles family here on many occasions. In 1878 Laban Miles moved his family to the Oklahoma Territory where he had been appointed . . . — — Map (db m162578) HM
David Mackey, a local carpenter, built this house between 1868 and 1871. He lived in this home until 1876. Mackey also ran a butcher shop and served as mayor of West Branch in 1879 and postmaster in 1885. Built several years before his birth, this . . . — — Map (db m87736) HM
Hannah Varney built this house in 1899 after divorcing her husband. She lived here with her six children less than a year, moved to Iowa City, and left the house to her daughters Cora and Clara, who lived here until 1915.
Photo . . . — — Map (db m162577) HM
Many of the commercial buildings in West Branch are included in a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. It commemorates the “Golden Age of American Agriculture” (1895-1916). A variety of shops and services are . . . — — Map (db m162573) HM
Marker Front: The land on which Iowa City is located was a wilderness when it was selected and surveyed for the capital of the Territory of Iowa in 1839. The cornerstone of the new capitol building was laid by Governor Lucas on July 4, 1840. . . . — — Map (db m33608) HM
The Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, located in nearby West Branch, honors a distinguished son of Iowa, citizen of the world, and the 31st president of the United States. Established in 1965, the Site’s foundations were laid earlier when in . . . — — Map (db m33437) HM
