Herbert Hoover Jr.
Herbert Hoover Jr. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 19th United States Under Secretary of State | |
| In office October 4, 1954 – February 5, 1957 | |
| President | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| Preceded by | Walter B. Smith |
| Succeeded by | Christian Herter |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Herbert Charles Hoover August 4, 1903 London, England |
| Died | July 9, 1969 (aged 65) Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Margaret Eva Watson (m. 1925) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Allan Hoover (brother) |
| Education |
|
Herbert Charles Hoover (August 4, 1903 – July 9, 1969), better known as Herbert Hoover Jr., was a British-born American engineer, businessman, and politician who served as United States Under Secretary of State from 1954 to 1957. He was the elder son of President Herbert Hoover.
Biography
Early years, 1903–1928
Herbert Charles Hoover was born in London on August 4, 1903. He was the elder son of President Herbert Clark Hoover (1874–1964) and First Lady Lou Henry (1874–1944). He was named for his father, Herbert, and his maternal grandfather, Charles Delano Henry, but throughout his life was known as Herbert Hoover Jr. His father, an engineer, was in London working for Bewick, Moreing & Co. By the age of two, Herbert Jr. had been round the world twice. One of his earliest memories was riding a wagon piled high with gold with his father in Australia. The family lived near Stanford University while he was growing up, and he took great pride in serving as water boy for the Stanford Indians football team. During the 1918 flu pandemic, Hoover contracted influenza, which left him with a hearing impairment that affected him for the rest of his life.
Aviation radio, 1928–1930
In 1928, Herbert Jr was hired by Western Air Express to set up its communications system. Over the next year and a half, he set up a network of stations across the Western U.S. capable of guiding radio-equipped aircraft along 15,000 miles of airways. As communications chief of Western Air Express, he soon was managing a staff of 75 engineers and overseeing the purchase of over $200,000 of radio equipment. In June 1930, he was promoted to chief engineer of Western Air Express. During his time with Western Air Express, he was mainly located at Alhambra, California, but also made frequent trips to the airline's headquarters in Los Angeles. In 1929, Western Air Express, Boeing and American Airways formed a non-profit corporation, Aeronautical Radio Inc. to serve as the airline industry's single licensee and coordinator of radio communication outside of the government. (Pan American World Airways and Curtiss-Wright also agreed to participate.) Hoover was selected as the first president of Aeronautical Radio Inc., a selection that led to Time magazine putting Hoover on its July 14, 1930 cover.
Geophysical engineer and adviser to foreign governments, 1930–1953
Hoover did not stay at Western Air Express, however. During the 1930 election, there were rumors that Western Air Express had only won certain government contracts because of Hoover's status as the president's son, and saying that Hoover's advancement owed more to his famous name than his talent. Hoover submitted a letter of resignation in response to the allegations. Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and he spent 1931 convalescing, first at Rapidan Camp, then at Asheville, North Carolina. After his convalescence, he briefly returned to the airline, then taught business economics to aeronautical engineering students at the California Institute of Technology. He and his brother Allan also purchased the Herbert Hoover Birthplace at this time.
Hoover's interest in radio next turned him to the field of exploration geophysics, and the use of radio to prospect for oil. In 1937, he founded a related company, Consolidated Engineering Corporation, which focused on instrument manufacturing.
Hoover's hearing impairment made him ineligible to serve in the United States armed forces during World War II.
In 1943, President of Venezuela Isaías Medina Angarita invited Hoover to advise the Venezuelan government in the negotiation of oil contracts with foreign governments. While there, Hoover oversaw a substantial rewriting of Venezuela's oil laws, which would provide a model for other countries in the years to come.
In 1944, the new Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, hired Hoover's company to advise the government of Iran in the negotiation of new oil concessions. Hoover provided the Iranian government with technical advice about the size of their oil reserves to allow the Iranian government to negotiate a fair deal.
United Geophysical was later bought by Union Oil, though Hoover stayed on as president of the company. Consolidated Engineering went public in 1945 and Hoover sold all of his stock.
Special Envoy, 1953–1954
In the wake of the Abadan Crisis and the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, in September 1953, President of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Hoover to travel to Iran as his special envoy to attempt to broker a deal between the U.S., Britain and Iran. United States Secretary of State John Foster Dulles asked Hoover to work out a deal in 45 days; Hoover stayed in Tehran from October 17 to November 4 1953.
Under Secretary of State, 1954–1957
Eisenhower was impressed by Hoover's performance as well. Eisenhower now asked Hoover to become Under Secretary of State. Hoover agreed and, after Senate confirmation, he would serve as Under Secretary of State from October 4, 1954 until February 5, 1957. Hoover was initially criticized for his performance, in particular because his hearing impairment led to the perception he was gruff and his insistence on perfection led to the perception he was indecisive. By late 1956, however, Hoover was generally regarded as having learned the job, and was seen as a capable manager when Dulles was hospitalized.
Amateur radio
Hoover was an amateur radio operator holding the call W6ZH. He was elected as President of the American Radio Relay League in 1962; the primary representative organization of amateur radio operators to the U.S. government.
Death
Hoover died at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena on July 9, 1969. He had suffered a sudden stroke three days earlier on July 6 and never regained consciousness.
Family
Herbert Charles Hoover married Margaret Eva Watson in 1925. They had three children: Margaret Ann Hoover Brigham (March 17, 1926 – February 14, 2011), Herbert "Pete" Hoover III (November 5, 1927– February 4, 2010), and Joan Leslie Hoover (April 12, 1930 – May 10, 2002).
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