Hoover, J. Edgar (1895–1972)

J. EDGAR HOOVER, a long-term director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was born on January 1, 1895, in Washington, D.C. During Hoover's youth, his father had a mental breakdown, significantly reducing his family's income. As a result, Hoover was forced to leave school and search for employment. Soon after, despite the bad economic times, he found a job as a messenger at the Library of Congress. While working at the library, Hoover studied law at night at George Washington University. He earned a bachelor of laws [Page 686]degree in 1916 and followed it up with a master of laws in 1917.

Upon graduation, Hoover became an assistant in the alien registration section of the Department of Justice, where he served during World War I. ...