US manufacturer who developed the vacuum cleaner. 'Hoover' soon became a generic name for vacuum cleaner. In 1908, Hoover founded the enterprise that would become The Hoover Company after purchasing the patent for an electric suction sweeper from a family acquaintance, James Murray Spangler. He retained Spangler as a partner in the business and began manufacturing the product in the corner of his horse collar and leather goods factory.
Hoover’s efforts on behalf of the community are legendary.
was responsible for North Canton receiving a branch post office; donated the land and funds for the Community Building, which preceded the North Canton Community Building YMCA;
was instrumental in establishing the interurban line that connected New Berlin (now North Canton) with Canton and Akron;
served as the president of the board of trustees of Mount Union College, his alma mater;
served as president of the Goodwill Mission;
was an advisor to the Urban League.
As an employer whose nickname "Boss" was bestowed upon him by fond employees, he kept the best interests of his work force always at heart. During the Depression, for example, he carried $100,000 of home down payments on hand for Company employees -- unbeknownst to them --with a local savings and loan company. He visited sick employees as well as local men in Army boot camp before they went off to serve in World War I.
Hoover died in 1932. Today, his boyhood home, a 146-year-old Victorian farmhouse at 1875 Easton Street inside Hoover Park, is the setting for the Hoover Historical Center. This museum, owned and operated by The Hoover Company, houses what is believed to be the nation’s most complete collection of vacuum cleaners. It also chronicles the history of The Hoover Company and the Hoover family, along with changes in technology, American lifestyles and the local community.