The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch is holding some special events on July 4th.
Spokesperson Aaron Scheinblum says they will have the eastern Iowa brass band with patriotic music and a reading of the Declaration of Independence. “And that is a tradition that goes back to the 1800s, where you go into the town square, and you read that declaration, essentially, as a reminder, as to why Americans felt they needed independence when it was signed,” Scheinblum says.
He says it’s something the do every year for this holiday. “For us, it kind of serves two purposes, not just people to get an opportunity to go outside and enjoy great music, but also kind of remembering, you know, what about independence day makes it so special,” he says. “But really, for us, all we’re asking people to do is either bring a blanket, bring a lawn chair, and enjoy the music when it starts at two o’clock.”
Hoover is the only Iowa native elected president, and the library has a lot of information on his life. “For us, I think the really special thing is regardless of someone’s reason for coming to visit, everyone leaves with the same thought process and the sense of, ‘wow, I really didn’t know that’,” he says.
Scheinblum says hearing people say they learned something validates the library’s purpose. “Because we’re telling a story that is so important, not just in American history, but in history, period, just in regards to the world when you realize the impact that Hoover had on millions of people,” he says. That impact came from the Commission for Relief in Belgium, an international relief organization that provided food to occupied Belgium.
“We’re talking about feeding nine million people a day in Belgium in northern France. So this is a gentleman who really had an impact on the world in so many different ways,” Schienblum says. “And being able to share more than just the four years in the White House is very special to us.”
The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is open normal hours on the 4th from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.