Everything You Need to Know about the Hoover Institution

In this article, we explore the Hoover Institution, including not only its world-class library and archives, but also its mission to improve the human condition by promoting economic prosperity and opportunity.

A Brief History of the Hoover Institution

Based at Stanford University, the Hoover Institution includes a branch at the Johnson Center in Washington, DC.

Established in 1919 as the Hoover War Collection, a library and archives that cemented its roots in scholarship and history, the Hoover Institution was conceived by President Herbert Hoover. He came up with the idea while taking part in a humanitarian relief effort in Belgium during World War I.

In 1919, Herbert Hoover started collecting documents while attending the Paris Peace Conference as President Wilson’s advisor. The Hoover Institution’s founding document, a telegram from Herbert Hoover to Stanford President Ray Lyman Wilbur, offered $50,000 to fund the project and instructed the latter to dispatch professor Ephraim Adams to Paris immediately to start work.

In 1921, the Hoover War Collection received its first shipment of materials, including posters, pamphlets, newspapers, and government documents collected from across Europe. This founding collection features extensive files from the U.S. Food Administration, the American Relief Administration, and the Commission for Relief in Belgium.

In 1922, officials renamed the Hoover War Collection the Hoover War Library, which acquired 40,000 documents that year.

In 1928, Herbert Hoover received the Republican presidential nomination, and in 1929, he became the 31st president in a landslide victory. However, the stock market crash of 1929 that precipitated the Great Depression compromised celebrations and, eventually, his popularity. Nevertheless, he made a concerted effort to restore the country to its glory days without sacrificing American ideals.

In 1938, the Hoover War Library was renamed the Hoover Library on War, Revolution and Peace, reflecting the institution’s growing collections and widening scope. In 1939, construction of a new building to house the library commenced, with work starting on Hoover Tower.

Throughout World War II, under Herbert Hoover’s instruction, library director Ralph Lutz traveled to Europe, collecting materials from all totalitarian states to add to the library’s collections. Thanks to Herbert Hoover’s foresight and Ralph Lutz’s dedication, the institution accumulated a comprehensive collection of materials from World War II, documenting the Holocaust and a global conflict that resulted in an estimated 50 million to 85 million deaths worldwide. The library also received artifacts documenting the first use of nuclear weapons.

In 1940, the Hoover Institution contributed to the war effort, establishing the Stanford Listening Post in the library’s archives section. Here, operators recorded and studied radio broadcasts transmitted from the Far East.

Work on the Hoover Tower was completed in 1941, just in time for Stanford’s 50th anniversary. A special celebration was staged on June 20, when Herbert Hoover addressed the audience in front of Hoover Tower.

Stanford University’s Board of Trustees established the Hoover Institution in 1959 as an independent institution within the framework of the University.

In 1977, Nobel laureate Milton Friedman joined the Hoover Institution. Described by The Economist as possibly the most influential economist of the 20th century, he served as a Senior Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Reagan.

In 1991, The Economist named the Hoover Institution a top global think tank. In a feature piece in its December issue, “The Good Think Tank Guide,” it listed the world’s most prestigious think tanks, crediting the Hoover Institution as being difficult to match in terms of sheer intellectual firepower.

Following the dissolution of the USSR and the end of the Cold War in 1992, Mikhail Gorbachev and his wife visited the Hoover Archives.

In 2001, the Hoover Institution promoted interaction with the nation’s policymakers by establishing its Washington, DC, branch.

The Hoover Library and Archives

The Hoover Library boasts more than 1 million volumes and over 6,000 archival collections. Featuring works in 69 languages from more than 150 countries, the collections tell stories of war, revolution, and peace throughout the 20th and 21st centuries.

The Hoover Institution’s extensive resources support not only its vibrant global community of scholars, but also public interest in the role and meaning of history.

The Mission of the Hoover Institution

The Hoover Institution’s overall aim is to collect, preserve, and present to the public important materials reflecting social, political, and economic change globally through the 20th and 21st centuries. An institution in its own right, it serves as a guiding point on the road to peace.