Louise Henry Hoover, often referred to as Lou Hoover (1874-1944), was married to America's thirty-first President, Herbert Clark Hoover (1874-1967, Pres. 1929-1933) and served as First Lady (1929-1933). In this office, Hoover was preceded by Grace Anna Coolidge (1879-1957) and succeeded by the esteemed Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962). An intellectual match for her husband, Lou Hoover was a global traveller and noted linguist who was fluent in Latin, French, Italian, Spanish, and Chinese, making her the only First Lady to speak an Asian language. In addition, she was an accomplished geologist, author, philanthropist, aid worker, and volunteer who advocated desegregation, women's education, athletics, and career development. As First Lady, Hoover became the first wife of a President to make regular national radio broadcasts. Throughout her life, she remained active in the Girl Scouts of America and was a member of the League of Women Voters, and the Visiting Nurses' Association.…show more content… She spent the majority of her childhood in Iowa, and later California, exploring, camping, and hiking with her family and she developed an interest in rocks, minerals, and the natural world. She attended Los Angeles State Normal School, as well as San Jose State University, and briefly considered being a teacher prior to receiving a BA in Geology from Stanford University (1894-1898), making her one of the first women in America to earn such a degree. During this period, while studying geology at Stanford, she met Herbert Hoover whom she married on February 10, 1899 after he cabled her while working abroad as a geological consultant. Following graduation, Lou volunteered as an aid worker and nurse during the Spanish American War