Although better known for his work in government, Herbert Hoover spent the first 20 years of his distinguished career as a mining engineer and rose to become one of the most respected mining consultants in the world. He graduated from Stanford University in 1895 with a degree in geology. His career began with the U.S.G.S. in the Sierra Nevadas. He then spent two years managing mining properties in Australia, and from there he went to China where he advised the Bureau of Mines on the development and operations of mines. In 1908 he became a private mining consultant and was in great demand all over the world. He continued as an active mining engineer until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. At that time, his great personal involvement in refugee relief brought an end to that phase of his life, and thus began his more widely know career of public service.​

His greatest scholarly contribution to mining by far was his collaboration with his wife on the first English translation of Agricola’s De Re Metallica. The Hoovers spent five years and over $20,000 in producing the translation and, in recognition of their work, the Hoovers were awarded the first Gold Medal of the Mining and Metallurgical Society in 1914.​

In addition to his professional contributions to mining, Herbert Hoover rose to international prominence through public serve as a humanitarian and President of the United States. Through it all, he never forgot the industry that made all his great accomplishments possible.​

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