Iowa Influences Lives--TRIP 3 (2012)

The skies this morning promised rain--grey, overcast with heavy clouds. But temperatures stayed in the 60's. We set out in good time, headed for the Amana Colonies, the cluster of seven villages on the Iowa River that represent an American dream come true, a thriving community founded by religious faith and community spirit--Amana, East Amana, West Amana, South Amana, High Amana, Middle Amana and Homestead.

Street decorations abound
... everywhere.

Although some shops were closed in Amana, all sported creative harvest and Halloween decorations. In spite of the grey skies, colors dominated. Pumpkins and corn stalks decorated every fence post and brilliantly colored mums in rust, yellow, red, gold and royal purple accented staircases and porches. And almost every store and house had a decorative display of hay bales and gourds and country raffia dolls. We explored and browsed: Heritage Designs Quilting and Needlework with more than 3500 different fabrics; Broom and Basket Shop with unique wooden gifts; Amana General Store with a wide variety of foods, souvenirs and gifts; Edelstein Treasures with jewelry and mineral specimens; Amana Woolen Mills with sweaters and clothing; and White Cross Cellars with wine and gourmet foods.

One local merchant offers outdoor
pieces of every shape and kind.

At Catiri's Art Oasis, salesperson Beth helped me choose Ginger Lily, a hand-crafted decorative soap made of glycerin, almond oil and essential oils. I selected it for color for the downstairs bathroom, but Beth said it soothed rough, dry skin, as well. I kept the website for future reference.
At the Bakery, Andy selected a loaf of German apple bread with maple caramel topping.  With two cups of hot coffee and our sweet treat, we had the sparrows flocking to our little table on the front porch of the bakery.
Ackerman Winery offers 24 varieties of various fruit wines. We tried blackberry, black raspberry, cherry, apricot, red raspberry and cranberry and bought three bottles.
"It's not even noon!" said Andy.
"Since when has that been a problem?" I joked.

Ackerman Winery is open for tastings.

Ackerman winery offers more than
wine with gifts, gourmet foods
and lots of hospitality.

We didn't sample at the Village Winery. We had no intention of purchasing more wine anyway. But salesperson Joyce and I shared stories about our fleece tied blankets.  She visited with Andy while I shopped for a hand-painted sun catcher.
Then we returned to Creative Colony, a "Made in Iowa" store of handcrafted products from local artisans. "I told you we'd be back," I said to the salespeople, as we returned for a wooden country wall hanging. It was our souvenir from the trip, and Andy had spotted it immediately when we first arrived in town.
Back on the road, I read to him about the story of Amana.

Leaves rustle around the courtyard
of a quaint inn on the main street.

The history of the Amana Colonies, America's longest-lived communal society, began in 1714 in Germany in the midst of a religious movement called Pietism. Eberhard L. Gruber and Johann F. Rock advocated faith renewal through reflection, prayer and Bible study. Their belief was that God, through the Holy Spirit, would inspire individuals to speak. The group that began meeting in 1714 called themselves the Community of True Inspiration.  Persecuted for their beliefs, they found refuge in central Germany in several estates, including the 13th century Ronneburg castle.  With continued persecution and then economic depression, they hoped for religious freedom in America, led by Christian Metz, and left Germany in 1843-1844. Community members pooled their resources and purchased 5000 acres near Buffalo, New York. Some 1200 people called themselves the Ebenezer Society and formalized their communal way of life with a constitution. When more farmland was needed, they found one valley on the Iowa River particularly promising. In 1855, they arrived in Iowa and chose the name Amana from the Song of Solomon 4:8. Amana means "remain true." Six villages were established a mile or two apart, across a river valley tract of some 26,000 acres. Homestead was added seven years later, giving the Colony access to the railroad.
Residents received a home, medical care, meals, all household necessities and schooling for their children. Property and resources were shared. Men and women were assigned jobs by their village council of brethren. No one received a wage.
Farming and the production of wool and calico supported the community. Well-crafted products became a hallmark of the Amanas. Up before dawn, called to work by the gentle tolling of the bell in the village tower, the unhurried routine of life in old Amana was paced very differently from today. Churches in the center of each village reflected their beliefs in simplicity and humility. Inspirationists attended worship 11 times a week, with quiet worship punctuating their days. More than 50 communal kitchens provided three daily meals, as well as mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks to all Colonists. These kitchens were operated by the women. Children attended school six days a week, year-round until the age of 14.  A few boys were sent to college for training as teachers, doctors and dentists.

Well kept houses and shops line the
main street of Amana, Iowa.

In 1932, amidst America's Great Depression, Amana set aside the communal way of life. It was seen as a barrier to achieving individual goals, so rather than leave town or watch their children leave, they changed. They established the Amana Society, Inc., a profit-sharing corporation to manage the farmland, the mills and the larger enterprises. Private enterprise was encouraged. The Amana Church was maintained.
By visiting with a salesperson, we learned that the company was eventually purchased by Maytag, which was bought out by Whirlpool.
Today their historic brick, stone and clapboard homes, their flower and vegetable gardens, their lanterns and walkways recall the Amana of yesterday. But a vibrant community celebrates the past and the future.  We enjoyed every minute of this simple, creative and artistic environment. 

A tiny two-room cottage is the birthplace of Humanitarian
and 31st President, Herbert Hoover.

 

We headed east on Interstate #80. Clouds thickened. Rain was just hanging by the time we reached West Branch, the birthplace of Herbert Hoover, our 31st President.
At the time of Hoover's birth, West Branch was a growing community of about 350 people. By 1880, more than 500 lived in this town, dependent on farming. Even those who did not farm supported farming, like Herbert Hoover's father Jesse who was a blacksmith.
About West Branch and the surrounding area, Hoover wrote, "My grandparents and my parents came here in a covered wagon. In this community they toiled and worshipped God... The most formative years of my boyhood were spent here. My roots are in this soil."
We watched the 12- minute video in the Visitor Center and then headed out quickly for a self-guided tour of the Hoover birthplace cottage and neighborhood before the rain set in.

Inside the Hoover cottage, Kristin
tells about the early life of Herbert.

The two-room cottage, built in 1871 by Jesse Hoover and his father Eli, housed the family of five. To President Hoover, the cottage was "physical proof of the unbounded opportunity of American life."
At the blacksmith shop nearby, Jesse Hoover plied his trade and young Herbert learned the work ethic that prevailed in the community.

The school shows that the Amanas
stressed education for all children.

 

Quakers believed strongly in educating boys and girls. Herbert studied in this primary school of West Branch as a child. 
A small creek flows past the birthplace cottage and empties into the larger west branch of Wapsinmonic Creek. Here young Herbert learned the pleasures of the outdoors and developed an interest in the environment. The statue of Isis, the Egyptian goddess of life, reflects this interest and caring about life. Hoover was given the statue by the children and citizens of Belgium in gratitude for his work on their behalf during and after World War I.

The statue of Isis reminds
visitors of Hoover's great
humanitarian efforts.

Wooden benches and an iron stove furnish the Friends Meetinghouse. The Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, held services of silent meditation here. This taught young Herbert the value of patience. He worshipped here with his family. His mother Hulda, a recorded minister, spoke often at Meeting, working for temperance and other causes.
After Jesse Hoover gave up his blacksmith business and invested in a local farm implement business in 1878, the family prospered and moved into the House of Maples on Downey Street, where they lived from 1879 to 1884. Herbert was the second of three children. Nothing remains of the house, but much of the rest of the area remains as it did when Herbert was a boy.

In the Quaker Meetinghouse, people
sat in silence and waited
for inspiration to come to them.

Herbert Hoover and his wife Lou were laid to rest on a hillside not far from the place where he was born. The grave site is simple stones of Vermont marble to reflect the Quaker ideal of simplicity. She died in 1944; he was buried by her side five days after he died on October 20, 1964.
As the rain started, we went back inside the Visitor Center to read the displays in the museum.
Herbert Hoover, a mining engineer, humanitarian, statesman and 31st President, was born on August 10, 1874. His Quaker ancestors had settled West Branch, and their principles of honesty, hard work, simplicity and generosity guided Herbert Hoover throughout his life of service to the nation and the world.

As a child Herbert spent
time at Isaac Miles Farm
at the top of Cook's Hill.

Jesse died of a heart attack in December of 1880. By taking in sewing and economizing, Hulda was able to save the money from Jesse's insurance policy for her children's education. A noted speaker in the Quaker community, Hulda was often called to nearby Meetings. On one trip in 1884, she caught cold and developed into pneumonia, then typhoid fever, which caused her death soon after. Herbert went to live with his Aunt Millie and Uncle Allan on a farm near West Branch. His older brother Theodore and younger sister Mary were sent to live with other relatives.When Herbert was 11, he was sent to live in Newberg. Oregon, with Hulda’s brother, Dr. Henry John Minthorn, superintendent of the Friends Pacific Academy, and his family. In 1888, the family moved to Salem, and Herbert worked in the Oregon Land Company office. By 1881, he entered the first class of Stanford University, graduating four years later with a degree in geology. He went to work in the California gold mines but within two years joined a British firm as a mining engineer in Australia.
On February 10, 1899, he married college sweetheart Lou Henry, and the couple left immediately for China. She was the first woman to graduate from Stanford with a geology degree. They had much in common: roots in Iowa, Stanford education, degrees in geology, love of the outdoors, and a sense of adventure.
Hoover became a partner in Bewick, Moreing and Company, and by 1901, he was known as “the doctor of sick mines.” He circled the globe several times, accompanied by his wife and their two young sons, Herbert Jr., born in 1903, and Allan, born in 1907. In 1908, he established his own international firm of engineering consultants based in London.  No wonder he was asked to serve as Secretary of Commerce.
His humanitarian efforts during World War I made him a highly respected figure, so he easily won the Presidency in 1928.

The grave site of Herbert and Lou Hoover faces the cottage
where the 31st President was born. It is marked by simplicity.

But the Stock Market collapse on October 29, 1929, triggered the Great Depression that forced Hoover to reevaluate his ideals. Individualism demanded that private institutions provide relief, but humanitarianism called for federal aid. As a result, Hoover did more than any previous President to relieve the widespread distress, paving the way for the anti-Depression New Deal measures. It was not enough. His popularity evaporated, and he lost the 1932 election.
After 1940, the Hoovers lived together at the Waldorf Towers in New York City until her death in 1944. He maintained his interest in the welfare of young people and once again worked on food relief for European countries during and after World War II. She was President of the Girl Scouts.  With Lou, he shared the belief in the equality of all people and the desire to help those in need, especially children.