Herbert Hoover NHS collection

Nothing remains of the "House of the Maples". An interpretive sign and a young maple tree mark the lot where it stood.

House of the Maples (Second Hoover Home)

The house where the Hoover family lived from 1879-1884 no longer stands, but the site is marked by an interpretive sign. Maple trees lined the front yard and a wild crabapple tree grew in back of this spacious four-room home.

The family had lived in the house for one and a half years when Jesse Hoover died at age 34 from heart failure brought on by pneumonia. In 1884 Herbert's mother died from typhoid fever and pneumonia. The children were separated and sent to live with relatives.

NPS PHOTO

The P.T. Smith House stands next to the site of the House of the Maples, the Hoover family's second home.

P.T. Smith House

The P.T. Smith House next door is the only house that Hoover remembered when he visited West Branch many years later. While living in the House of Maples, the Hoover children and Smith children were playmates. Their homes stood at the base of Cook's Hill, a favorite winter sledding spot.

"That was a great long hill where on winters’ nights, to satisfy our human craving for speed, we slid down at terrific pace with our tummies tight to home-made sleds."

Herbert Hoover

The site of the House of the Maples is not handicapped accessible, but may be approached on the gravel trace of Downey Street. The interpretive marker is on a grass lawn.

The P.T. Smith House is not open to the public, but may be approached on the gravel trace of Downey Street.

Take a Virtual Tour

This is a stop on the virtual tour of Herbert Hoover National Historic Site.

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