Leo Hoegh is an American lawyer, state representative, Iowa governor, and federal civil defense administrator.
Background
Leo was born on March 30, 1908, in Audubon, Iowa, United States. His father, William Hoegh, was a farmer and president of the Farmers Savings Bank in Elk Horn, Iowa. Leo Hoegh grew up in a strict Danish Lutheran home and did not learn English until he was six years old. He possessed a strong work ethic, and at a young age he set up a shoeshine stand in Elk Horn, where he charged 5 cents for a normal shine, and 10 cents if the shoes were caked with manure.
Education
In 1929 Leo graduated from the State University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, United States, where he had been captain of the water polo team, president of Pi Kappa Alpha, and a member of All for Iowa, which later became the national honor society Omicron Delta Kappa. In 1932 he graduated from the State University of Iowa College of Law in Iowa City, Iowa, United States.
In 1932, during the trying days of the Great Depression, Hoegh established a law practice in Chariton, Iowa. He quickly earned a reputation as a civic leader and made a name for himself with local farm families. Because of abysmal prices for agricultural products, Iowa farm families struggled to keep their farms solvent. Many of Hoegh’s first clients were local farmers seeking legal assistance to prevent foreclosures and reduce mortgage payments. Hoegh later recalled that although he received little cash payment for his services, he “saved quite a few farms and made quite a few friends.”
Hoegh first sought public office in 1936, when he campaigned as a Republican to represent Lucas County in the Iowa General Assembly. He was twice re-elected but resigned in 1942 after the United States entered World War II. During the war, he served in the 104th “Timberwolf ” Infantry Division and attained the rank of lieutenant colonel. He also received several decorations, including the Bronze Star, Croix de Guerre, and Legion of Honor. In 1946 Hoegh coauthored a book about the division with Howard Doyle: Timberwolf Tracks: The History of the 104th Infantry Division.
Following the war, Hoegh returned to Chariton and pursued a political career. He campaigned vigorously for Republican candidates, including Dwight Eisenhower. In February 1953 Iowa governor William Beardsley appointed Hoegh as Iowa’s attorney general. In 1954 Hoegh ran for governor and defeated Democrat Clyde Herring by just 25,000 votes.
In Hoegh's one term as governor, from 1955 to 1957, Hoegh implemented an extensive program to improve education, mental health services, highway safety, and industrial development. He favored the introduction of speed limits on Iowa’s roads and unions in manufacturing centers. His plan required a budget of $146 million, the largest in Iowa’s history. Hoegh urged legislators to fund his programs by raising taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, and gasoline, and by increasing capital gains taxes and sales taxes. These policies earned him much praise from educators and social activists, but also the nickname “High-tax Hoegh” from fiscal conservatives. Despite his successes, many Iowans opposed the tax increases, and Hoegh failed to win reelection in 1956.
In 1957 President Eisenhower appointed Hoegh as a member of the National Security Council and director of the Federal Civil Defense Administration, a cabinet-level position. As a director, Hoegh developed national strategies to protect Americans and their resources in case of nuclear war. This included the evacuation of federal officials from Washington, D.C., to a safe area where they could continue to run the country.
In 1958, following the launch of Sputnik and heightened fears of the Soviet attack, Hoegh oversaw the creation of the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization. He continued as director until 1961. Hoegh became a vocal proponent of family fallout shelters in private homes. He often appeared on radio and television programs and in several films that encouraged families to construct inexpensive and basic shelters in their own basements. To illustrate his point and to encourage families to take action, Hoegh claimed to have built an adequate shelter for his family for just $212.
In 1964 Hoegh moved to Chipita Park, Colorado, where he established a law practice. He retired in 1975 to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he died at the age of 92.
Achievements
Membership
In 1957 President Eisenhower appointed Hoegh as a member of the National Security Council.
Personality
Quotes from others about the person
Time Magazine placed Hoegh's face on its cover. The cover story ended with this prediction: "His principal problem is that he has caught the spirit of an era that is beginning to recognize the need for a resurgence of good local and state government, and, in doing so, he has perhaps stirred his quiet state too much. But if he has gone too far too fast, he can take a governor's small comfort from the conviction that one year, if not this year, his state will forget the anthills and look with satisfaction on the considerable movements of home-grown progressive government".
Connections
In 1936 Hoegh married Mary Louise Foster. They had two daughters, Kristin and Janice.
Father:
William Hoegh
Mother:
Annie Kristine Johnson Hoegh
Spouse:
Mary Louise Foster Hoegh
Brother:
Theodore Nels Hoegh
Daughter:
Kristin Hoegh
Daughter:
Janice Hoegh
Grandfather:
Nels Peder Hoegh
References
The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa
Iowa has been blessed with citizens of strong character who have made invaluable contributions to the state and to the nation. In the 1930s alone, such towering figures as John L. Lewis, Henry A. Wallace, and Herbert Hoover hugely influenced the nation’s affairs.