(Radio Iowa) – Starting next week, visitors to a popular Des Moines-area tourist attraction will get a two-for-one, as Living History Farms in Urbandale is hosting a traveling exhibit about Iowa’s only native president. While the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch is closed for a 20-million dollar renovation, Greta Bierman, spokeswoman for the Hoover Presidential Foundation, says this comprehensive “Hoover on the Road” exhibit is an excellent placeholder.
“We want to talk about how he was able to come from a small town in Iowa and make it all the way to the White House, so we take you on that journey,” Bierman says, “but we’re also talking about the museum, which had not been renovated since 1992, so we’re showing the progression of what it’s going to look like, giving you a sneak peek into the immersive exhibits that will be there.” Visitors will also learn about Hooverball, a cross between volleyball and tennis, that involved a six-pound medicine ball.
“Hooverball was the game that President Hoover played every day but Sunday on the White House lawn with cabinet members or other dignitaries,” she says, “because he and his physician believed it was important to be physically fit in order to be mentally fit.” As part of the exhibit’s stay in Urbandale, a guest speaker will appear next month. Sarah Fling is a historian with the White House Historical Association. She’ll be giving a presentation, “The Hoovers in the White House,” which will explore the time the Hoovers spent in the Executive Mansion and the influence they had on the institution of the presidency and life in the White House. Bierman says Fling’s a wonderful speaker.
“She’s very passionate about it and wants to get the story of Bert and Lou out there to the public,” Bierman says, “and she’s just able to bring all different sorts of little stories that we don’t really know as the general public about the Hoovers and relate them to us.” Fling’s talk is scheduled for Thursday, April 23rd at 6:30 p.m. The exhibit will be at Living History Farms from April 1st through May 31st.
Bierman says the museum and library in West Branch will reopen this summer, likely in late July or early August.
